How to Guide to replacing the Air Con Compressor on a D3
This is my guide to replacing the Air con Compressor, ive probably taken too many bits off but having shovel hands I needed the extra space, if you attempt this its at your own risk but hopefully this will be of some help, unfortunately I dint take any pictures. I also replaced the Dryer whist i had the car off the road and this is the reason for the way i took the car apart the way i did.
I recommend you take pictures as you go along so you can replace things exactly as you found them (wished id done this ) especial important to picture the pipework at the front of the engine as there is a lot and you need to get them in the right location when putting back together
It goes without saying you must get a qualified air con expert to de gas the system first
Things you will need.
3Ton high lift jack
A set of heavy duty axle stands,
Socket set with 1/4,1/2 universal joints upto 21mm sockets
set of spanners upto 21mm
screwdrivers
trim removing kit
head torch
power steering oil
anti freeze
range of air con O rings
air con oil
Compressor & Dryer
this is the order i did things
.1. Remove the engine cover, battery cover and disconnect the battery
.2. Remove the air intake pipe from the filter housing to the down pipe and the top fan shroud
.3. Remove the fan (special tools needed) and the auxiliary belt
.4. remove the radiator splash shield from under the car
.5. Remove the main fan shroud, to do this there is a screw holding the air intake down pipe and two clips either side, from underneath you can unclipp the coolant pipes from the shroud. (i then moved the radiator to get access to the condenser but this isn't necessary for just replacing the pump)
.6. loosen the passenger side wheel (uk version)
.7. lift the front of the car and support on axle stands
.8. remove passenger side wheel, wheel inner arch liner, splash shield from next to FBH exhaust
.9. To get the most access i removed the upper suspension arm
.10. after removing the arm remove the two heat shields to the right of the suspension turret
.11. you now have plenty of access to undo the jubilee clips to the plastic and metal pipes to the turbo
.12. working from the left hand side of the wheel arch locate the end of the metal inter-cooler pipe and undo the clip to the rubber pipe find the end of that pipe on the inter-cooler and undo then remove the rubber pipe
.13. on the metal inter-cooler pipe where you remove the rubber pipe there is a expanded part to the right of this there is a bracket with several bolts undo them all 2 for this pipe one for the plastic turbo feed pipe and one for a water pipe.
.14. you can now disconnect both pipes from the turbo there tight but they will come free, I recommend you cover the turbo opening to stop anything dropping in there. Both pipes are still in the way but leave as they are for now.
.15. working from the engine bay locate the coolant pipe that comes from the thermostat housing and joins into a metal pipe that goes to the side of the air con pump and disconnect it from the housing and drain the coolant.
.16. working from the right side of the wheel arch locate the coolant pipe that comes off the engine block to the right of the power steering pump undo the clip.
.17. working from the left side of the wheel arch again locate the power steering pump and undo the feed pipes be prepared to catch the oil,
.18. working from the right side of the wheel arch locate the back of the power steering pump towards the bottom on the outside of the cradle there is a single bolt you will need a universal joint on your socket to get this off but its tight but doable especially as you now have the ability to wiggle the pipes from the turbo and with no upper suspension arm access is pretty good.
.19. working from the front of the car locate and undo the three remaining bolts holding the power steering pump to the cradle you get to these through the cutouts in the pulley, be aware that the lower two bolts hold the bracket that you undid the inter-cooler pipes on in step .13.
.20. you can now lift out the power steering pump, and you can remove the water pipe, then you can remove both the plastic and metal turbo pipes, all three need to be carefully removed via the engine bay.
.21. (you dont need to do this part but i wanted all the room i could get) from the left side of the wheel arch you can undo two of the three bolts holding the power steering cradle to the block the third is accessed from the right side there all very easy to see and get too.
.22. from the left side of the wheel arch you can easily see the Air Con Pump, you can undo the high and low pressure pipes
.23.from the engine bay Undo the high and low pressure pipes from the condenser, i had to do this but you only need to undo the one that is connected to the pump to help get it out.
.24. from the right side of the wheel arch locate and undo the rear pump bolt, then from the left side locate the front top and bottom bolts and undo them
.25. working from the engine bay lift out the pump i was expecting a problem with one of the bolts being trapped between the frame of the cat but all three of mine came out.
Thats the pump out, re fitting is a reversal of the above guide making sure to renew all O rings and lubricate them with air con Oil, give yourself a few days and when you get stuck and think its impossible have a brew and try again, i tried first without removing the upper suspension arm but its too tight for me, if ive missed anything or anyone can add too this please do i hope it helps and if you need help just ask
dont forget to replace the power steering fluid and coolant and bleedRange Rover Westminster 4.4 TDV8 what a car
Discovery 3 HSE 2006 gone but never forgotten
Member of the 234,567 mile club😎
3rd Jun 2020 6:48 pm
JMack
Member Since: 02 Aug 2014
Location: Edinburgh
Posts: 1517
How did you change the drier?
I thought it was integral to the condenser assembly.
No it’s a bolt on part just remove condenser undo lip that holds dryer on and swapRange Rover Westminster 4.4 TDV8 what a car
Discovery 3 HSE 2006 gone but never forgotten
Member of the 234,567 mile club😎
4th Jun 2020 9:48 am
PROFSR G
Member Since: 06 Mar 2017
Location: Lost
Posts: 5024
Re: How to Guide to replacing the Air Con Compressor on a D3
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29th Jul 2024 3:55 pm
pigeon_voyageur
Member Since: 30 Dec 2018
Location: Le Cheylas
Posts: 102
Hi furnitureman,
Great writeup. Thanks a lot.
I have just finished changing my AC compressor on my 7 seater.
I did not remove the upper suspension arm.
But I removed the left engine support nut and lifted the engine with a jack (about 3cm).
I makes a little extra room that allows to remove and re-install the 2 turbo pipes + the coolant hose.
Once the heat shields are off, the engine support nut is quite easy to access.
This extra action is really worth doing to feed space, save time, scratches on the hands and swear words ... D3 TDV6 for holidays use,
D3 TDV6 7 seater (for sale)
RR L322 3.6 TDV8 : to be fixed (torque converter to change)
Series 3 pickup : to be fixed (chassis corroded)
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