I seem to be having intermittent issues with the Aircon compressor on my rover.
It is not always pumping the gas around so sometimes it works and sometimes it does not.
The auto electrician said that the seals have perished in the compressor but i think it could be something else.
On my last rover (1993 rover) when you turned the aircon on you could see the clutch engage and spin with the belt but on my new rover (1997) i turn the aircon on and the clutch just sits idle and does not spin with the belt.

I don't notice any RPM drop either when i turn the A/C on.

Now if it is the clutch does anyone know the required voltage used to trigger it? My multi meter was jumping all over the place.

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http://www.flickr.com/by_dan
Current: 1970 Mini K 2014 Focus ST
Past: 93 Rover, 64 850, 97 Rover, 66 Deluxe, 66 Moke
81 Austin Estate, 2006 R53MCS, 66 Deluxe, 1978 Clubbie
2014 Land Rover Defender 90

If the gas is low it will not switch the compressor on.
If you can find the low pressure switch bridge the two wires together and see if the compressor kicks in. That will soon tell you if it is a pressure problem.

It is connected right next to the filter and i bridged the wires and ta da! drop in RPM and icy cold air blowing out.
Do you know how much gas is required to fill a rover A/C?
When the auto electrician saw to it he filled it up with some gas and told me the compressor was not working so now i need to work out if its faulty wiring or just low gas.

Cheers!

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http://www.flickr.com/by_dan
Current: 1970 Mini K 2014 Focus ST
Past: 93 Rover, 64 850, 97 Rover, 66 Deluxe, 66 Moke
81 Austin Estate, 2006 R53MCS, 66 Deluxe, 1978 Clubbie
2014 Land Rover Defender 90

I'd be taking it to a reputable air con place to have it checked properly .

Sounds like low gas or could be a dodgy low pressure switch. Take it to a work skip to get regased.

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I have an Addiction just not the time.......
1966 Morris Mini Deluxe http://www.ausmini.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=80459
1968 Morris 1100 viewtopic.php?f=3&t=101555

I would suspect the pressure switch. If it blows nice cold air with the switch bridged it obviously has enough gas, and proves the wiring works too.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

Went through all this a few months ago with my car danny (same year).

Your car has the symptoms I've seen before from low gas.

First things first - make sure the job s done right.
That means take the car to an AC specialist - not an auto elec or mechanic that happens to have the gas bottles. There's a lot of places that will just top the gas level up, or even worse - fill it with the gas that came out of the previous car. I have no proof of this, just stories from people in the industry. It all comes from lack of knowledge on ac systems in cars and for most people, a $50 gas re-charge is good enough instead of doing the job properly.

To do the job properly, put new o-ring seals on any connections you can. Both hose ends, the bulkhead and receiver/dryer are easy. Put a new receiver drier in. The originals are no longer made, and replacements vertually don't exist. Apparently there is a mini specialist somewhere in this country with a small stockpile, but I don't know who that is.
I modified my system to take a standard CAT unit - cheap and stocked when it needs changing.
Evacuate and vacuum test the system to check for leaks, then refill with 134a.

It's recommended to replace the receiver/dryer and gas every two years, it has a lubricant in it vital to the life of the system.

looking through the viewport right above the low pressure sensor you can see the gas turn from a sold green to it bubbling up the view port. Is it supposed to do that?

Cheers for all the advice guys, I will start calling places tomorrow.

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http://www.flickr.com/by_dan
Current: 1970 Mini K 2014 Focus ST
Past: 93 Rover, 64 850, 97 Rover, 66 Deluxe, 66 Moke
81 Austin Estate, 2006 R53MCS, 66 Deluxe, 1978 Clubbie
2014 Land Rover Defender 90

Thats normal, so too should it be the pipes on that side of the car are hot and the ones on the other side are cold.

I'd like to have aircon compressor issues in my GT or 850.