I’m struggling with the re-installation of my air conditioning compressor after I removed it to replace the exhaust manifold gaskets. Once I got the compressor where it needed to be (no mean feat BTW), the adjacent spark plug wire is fouled on the rear of the housing. Note the compressor has been updated to a newer, R134 unit. I’m pretty sure it was like this as the boot was torn (didn’t notice it when I removed it).

The installation looks right per the assembly manual, is there a routing trick I’m missing? I’m about to clearance the offending mounting ear…

I’ve attached some pictures for reference.

 

Mine looks like this. Your spark plug boot looks all wrong to me.

 

That’s a straight sparkplug wire termination correct? That’s what I have and the sparklplug is in the hole correctly so I’m thinking the issue is the ac compressor.

 

Your aftermarket plug wires have straight boots. You need a wire with a 45 degree boot.

 

Mine is angled about 45 degrees.

 

In terms of the spark plug wires, they are the ones that came with the car. I see a number of them with 45 degree terminations and a lot that don’t. Thanks for the tip as they are on my list to replace. I also realized the belt is a bit short and a longer one (Gates 7550) moves the compressor out to a bit past the center of the adjustment, yielding more room for the wire to clear.

 

I was thinking about removing the AC compressor, well I should say moving the compressor without disconnecting the lines, so I can get at the manifold. I had a quick look and it's not obvious how it is removed or even adjusted. I looked through the manual and found it a bit confusing without digging in. How did you find the removal process?

 

Your new replacement compressor has an extra bolt lug that is competing for space with the spark plug wire - the picture with original compressor (ourkid2000) shows the extra space that you originally had, even allowing use of a straight spark plug connector.
You might do yourself a favor by sawing off and filing smooth that unneeded bolt lug - not only will that help accommodate the connector but will give you more room for spark plug replacement down the road. I would think that removal of the lug down to the level of the threaded hole should not be problematic as far as the interior workings of that cast piece of the compressor.
Others should kindly advise as to my suggestion. Good luck.

 

No, that Pro6Ten compressor does NOT have an "extra" "unneeded" bolt lug. Note that the A6 has a similar lug in the same place. The differences are more subtle. First, since the A6 uses smaller diameter studs that pass through that rear plate, the lug on the aftermarket unit has to be larger for the bolt that is inserted from the backside. Couple this with the use of aluminum instead of cast iron on the A6 rear plate and that requires a larger diameter bolt with larger threads - increasing both the diameter and the length of the lug. Second, note that the location of the boss on the A6 is much closer to the mounting bolt on the bracket than it is for the aftermarket. There are only three mounting lugs vs four on the A6 rear plate. Obviously this puts the lug slightly closer to the plug wire boot.

As for removing that lug, this is a really bad idea for two reasons. First, since aluminum has only 1/3 the stiffness of cast iron, the no longer symmetrical mounting of the compressor is a great way to create internal distortions that can case premature wear of the internal components. Since there are only three lugs on the rear plate to start with, you've also significantly increased load on the remaining two. Second, cutting off the lug immediately voids any warranty that might still apply to the compressor. The smart thing to do would be to re-clock the compressor on that rear mounting plate to move the lug away from the plug wire. This obviously means drilling new holes.

 

Well, at least I stirred up some controversy and got some added info for the original post. From the pictures, I still can't totally figure out the installation of the new compressor. Once again, good luck.

 

I forgot to mention how excellent JOE PADAVANO's information always is. He is a master resource for our hobby.