I took my 2000 Durango 4.7L SLT in to the dealer yesterday for a bunch of work since we are going on a long trip soon. Amongst other things I asked for the A/C to be checked and serviced. It has not been getting as cold as it used to.

The service writer told me today that it needed a bunch of freon. He said that they cannot find any freon leaks but the compressor itself is making some noises. I thought he said that since they filled the freon the compressor got noisy....but I am not sure why merely filling the freon could make the compressor act up?

He said it might be okay but if it goes on the fritz during my trip it could seize up and fry the belt etc. So I am going to have them replace it.

He told me that if they use genuine Dodge parts, the compressor is around $800 I'm guessing that is just the part?

He mentioned I could get an aftermarket one quite a bit cheaper and I notice there are refurbished for very inexpensive......$195 to $400 or more.

Can anyone who has had an OEM compressor fitted, tell me if this is an average cost of this repair?

Also, I'm guessing with all the freon pressure, pipes, hoses etc etc etc that this is best left to them to replace, yeah?

Thanks.

 

yes this is definitely something best left to the pros to replace, in order to do it legally you need to evacuate the system before opening it up as (i believe) freon(technically r-134a is not freon, but refrigerant so close enough) is considered a toxin by the EPA (yea dont get me started on that one)

you can get a brand new denso brand, OEM recommended replacement for 270.79 at rockauto.com, 800 for just the part is too much IMO

 

Thanks very much. Yes I need to call him and get the breakdown. From what I see, 1 to 2hrs seems the labor time.

Thanks for the info. I might ask about the Denso or I hear the 4 Seasons one is good also.