Here was my first post about this issue
FIXED!
Edit: I am just dumb, after having been inoperative for months if not a year or more, the ac was just low on refrigerant and was (rightfully) choosing not to engage. After fixing the coil I only had to refill the refrigerant 😅 It engages now but I'm having alternative issues I won't bother y'all with since I only posted to figure out the clutch not engaging issue. Thanks guys
I finally got to repairing my A/C compressor. Replacement was going to be costly for both time and money, and I am glad I went the repairing route instead. In summary, YES, the coil was bad.
How do I know this? Well - the proof was in my original post the whole time. When I had tested the OG coil's resistance and only got "OL" I was thrown off since instead of getting a result '
out of spec', I was essentially receiving no result at all.
Recently, I purchased a compatible A/C Clutch Kit
linked here and I tested it's resistance, which provided a result and AND was within spec. This meant that yes, no doubt about it, my OG coil was bad. So I went through the not-as-bad-as-I-thought process of replacing the coil - and hell - since I had it, the entire kit. New a/c clutch plate and all.
The only difference is the pulley has 5 grooves instead of 4, which is a non-issue as far as I can tell and as far as the seller describes.
Now, when I follow step 10
(img below), THE A/C CLUTCH CLICKS. I was hoping my issue was fixed and the A/C works now, but no, unfortunately not.
Now this is where I'm stuck. I haven't seen the car choose to engage the clutch even though the clutch is now fully capable of doing so. The car just simply is not sending the signal to the clutch. The relay is fine - I know this since I tested it. Service manual image will be below for your purposes. This issue is something between the car and the relay. I know this since when I use the jumper cable, the A/C compressor engages. No further testing needed.
(I also know this since months ago, I tested all the wires TO the clutch. Trust me, the A/C compressor is a non-issue now.)
So my question for you experts is this: What is likely to be the cause of my current issue? I have the relevant pages of the service manual printed out, and unfortunately, I do not own an HDS. Because of that I cannot proceed further with DIY diagnosis. Unless anyone has recommendations for an HDS that's not $2000
Here are some of the pages:
Only able to do steps that are non-HDS focused.
Step 1: Fuses are OK.
Step 8: Relay is OK.
Step 9: Battery voltage OK.
Step 10: Clutch is OK.
Step 13: Battery voltage OK.
Step 17:
Unable to proceed.
Thank you for reading.
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