My bride and I went cruising last evening. While accelerating quickly from a light, I heard an under-hood screech, lost power, regained power, and returned home with no further issues. When I raised the hood, I noticed a light oily spray pattern on the W/S washer bottle on the passenger side. I had detailed the engine prior to our trip so I know the spray was recent. Is it possible that the a/c clutch locked temporarily and caused a seal to blow and spray refrigerant? The compressor is original. If the compressor is leaking, would you fix it or replace it with a more modern one? TIA folks.........Tadpole11

 

I don't know about the compressor blowing out oil, but I did have a compressor (1970) lock up once -- and the clutch lock, too -- the first time I took the car out of storage in the spring. I didn't know it was happening until I smelled smoke and popped the hood to find my A/C belt almost on fire. After things cooled down, it fixed itself (both the clutch and compressor freed up) and never happened again.

 

Thanks Brian. My 67 Impala a/c compressor locked up, destroyed the belt, and somehow started a small fire. It didn't hurt anything but it was scary for a few seconds. Live and learn, eh?

 

A-6 compressors are notorious for spraying oil, even in the best of condition. Did this happen when you turned on the AC, was AC already running or was it off from the time you started the car?

If the compressor is going out, there are modern compressors made to be direct replacements for the A6 if the rest of the system is in good shape.

 

You didn't say if the A/C quit or not, does it still operate? Did it break the belt? The clutch should only lock if you had the A/C on. If the A/C was off and it did this it's possible that the clutch bearing is starting to go which is serviceable with the right tools.

 

Yes, the A/C was on at that point and working fine. I know the engine bay was clean because I had just detailed it. The A/C still works fine and I can't duplicate the event. I'll take a closer look at anything that could have sprayed the mist at that angle. It may have even been one of the compressor connections. Thanks everyone for your advice. I'll keep you posted if I find a problem.

 

Underhood screech ...... sprayed mist ......
Maybe it was the neighbor's cat sleeping in your engine bay then getting caught in your A/C belt. One can always hope.

 

It also can be an overfilled radiator that burped out coolant . If you don't have an overflow container it might have misted in the engine compartment, got the belt wet, belt slips and makes noise.