Does 550 AC system have a sight glass to check refrigerant presence? If yes, where is it? My AC is not working. Can hear the AC clutch coming on/off. So just want to make sure the refrigerant hasn't leaked out before I take car to repair shop. Thanks in advance for your help. Regards, Wayne
Cooling will only happen in a pretty narrow range of freon charge. A sight glass is just not a good way to judge that. If the clutch can be heard it has freon, that much is already known. Compressor leakage is so common on those there is a very high probability it is low.
The sight glass is on top of the dryer. The dryer is located far down on the right side of the engine bay, just behind the headlight. If the clutch comes in and out, then the coolant is neither low or high. A pressure switch is located at the dryer, which cuts out the clutch if the pressure is below 2 bar and above 20 or 25 bar (I do not recall the correct value for the upper cut-out ad hoc). So, the coolant seems to be present. The compressor may still be tight, but nevertheless in bad condition. This can be tested by observation of the system pressure, when the system comes in and out. E.g. slow pressure drop will indicate a bad compressor. Best will be to have a air-con shop look at it. I am presently finding out, which Fiat compressor may be used in the 550 instead of the Ferrari part. I know that the compressor in the Enzo (costs about 2000.--) is the same as a Fiat part, with exception of the pulley and a bracket. The latter two rarely break and can be switched. The Fiat part is around 200.-- to 300.-- ....
Not true. It is quite common for there to be insufficient Freon to cool yet enough to trip the pressure switch.
Good luck. Many have tried. No need to replace in any event. Resealing or rebuilding is very cost effective and is a service offered by many businesses coast to coast.
i do not believe that there is an interchange. the problem is the mounting locations, from what i have been told.
Thanks for everyone's input. Shop confirmed compressor is leaking. New one cost over US$3,000 so will have it rebuilt. Searched the archives for name of rebuilder in US. Name of Polar Bear comes up. Any other good rebuilders in the US? I'm located in Hong Kong, so I doubt any local shop can rebuild the compressor correctly here.
I have had 6 ferraris and the best of the worst ac systems has been the 550. Still they suck. They all seem to leak. Ferrari needs lessons from the Japanese. Your best friend is your ac manifold gauge set. It will help you diagnose the system. Putting a vacuum on the system is a first step to system charging to even see if you have a capable system. Everything else is guessing.
The A/C compressors that leak like there is no tomorrow are Japanese. So are the POS alternators they use.
Maybe that is because not all Japanese compressors are bad? Don't recall reading that anywhere anyway. I have no idea what Nissan uses but the compressor brand and type used by Ferrari is used in many other cars and the rebuild shops have them stacked up waiting to be resealed. Well known issue to the A/C industry. Being manufactured in Japan does not equate to being perfect any more than it equates to being junk but some still cling to both beliefs.
The air con compressor for the 550, made by Delphi, is obtainable for about 865.-- € (includes shipping in the EU) from MONDOAUTORICAMBI, Ricambi Auto Online, I tuoi componenti a prezzi scontati. Go to the homepage, the price there is significantly lower than their offers on eBay (a circumstance I often observe ). Cheers, Bernhard
