Best source to buy Quality RV2 compressor without sending yours

[DAMatt]

I have just about had it with shoddy parts, my THIRD compressor gave up the ghost. My mechanic warned me before the install that he found rust everywhere inside, and the oil was shot.

I bought this one off of ebay, total cost with importing to Europe a little under $1000. I think it was not rebuilt, just given a shot of paint.

Trouble is places like Original Air ask you to send them yours, so they can rebuild it. Is there a reputable source where you can buy a great quality rebuilt rv2 without sending yours in? Shipping from here to the US makes it not worth it.

I have had great experiences with FirmFeel for the sterring box, Barry's 8 track for the radio, crackedback for the headlight harness. By the way, if there is a member here with a good reputation for rebuilding the RV2s, and who can source me a core, fix it & ship it to my forwarding address in NY, it would be also a great option for me.

It's very hard being a mopar guy in Europe, having to wait 2 weeks for parts, then only to find out they're junk, and that you've been taken for a ride. I want to get the best compressor I can buy, and be done with it forever.

What advice do you have for me?

Here's a pic of the clutch which turned white in half an hour running the compressor. That is after I replaced the previous, failed clutch with the one in the picture.

 

[69a100]

My mechanic warned me before the install that he found rust everywhere inside, and the oil was shot.
What advice do you have for me?

And you still went ahead and spent the money for the install even after being warned about it? WOW
With that mentality and mindset, I ain't got nuthin that you would heed!!!

 

[DAMatt]

Well he also said he cleaned everything up as best as he could, and put good oil in it. Maybe I deserve a bit of scolding, but when your options are severely limited, you tend to want to believe the seller's description.

 

[Michael_]

I can't help but i might be in the same boat. My AC is currently not working and i have not looked into it yet.
I'm currently looking at 150$ shipping cost to ship a new starter for my 72 cutlass supreme to germany. That's without import tax.
You know just to get it to where i live. Not the product itself.

So i'm following this thread.

 

[DAMatt]

I feel you Michael! Worst thing is dealing with customs red tape & general BS...

Are you coming to the Mopar Nationals on Aug 5th in Marl? I have this crazy idea to go 1800km to Germany, without knowing anybody, and without knowing the place!

 

[RT SE 440]

You should try shipping to australia and wait at minimum 1 month for parts it's madness. I'm doing a full rebuild on a v2 compressor at the moment & I've sourced all the parts nos one by one yes i'ts cost a crap load but in the end i know it won't be another horror story with these so called re-manufactured compressors. best of luck

 

[Michael_]

Are you coming to the Mopar Nationals on Aug 5th in Marl? I have this crazy idea to go 1800km to Germany, without knowing anybody, and without knowing the place!

While i'm not as far away as you it's still about an 8hr drive.
No i will be going to the general us car show in sinsheim instead (as every year):

US-Car Meeting | Technik Museum Sinsheim | Germany

The museum calls all fans of classic American cars to its grounds. Historic US dream cars will be on display to the public and can be partially seen in action. Come admire the legendary Model T and the the notorious Pink Cadillac.

sinsheim.technik-museum.de

 

[Some Car Guy]

I’d see about a rebuild kit and have you or your guy give it a go. Original air has a YouTube video of the teardown.

 

[Jeremiah]

Buy a rebuild kit. The FSM will walk your mechanic through it.

 

[DAMatt]

I did try to fix my original 8 track, and it worked for a while. Bought the replacement parts needed, asked my uncle for help with the capacitors etc. However the results were sub-par, and eventualy the sound got lower, and lower, till nothing happened anymore. Bought a great looking, non functioning unit from the US, sent it to barrys8trackrepair, and the result is spectacular.

Similarly, I revived the suregrip with an overhaul kit, initialy it worked, but in a few hundred miles serious binding began to occur. All that yellow paint to see the propper tracking of the cogs did not help the fact that I was not a specialist. Bought a 3.73 pumpkin from Dr.Diff, zero problems ever since.

Keep in mind that everything I order from the States takes a couple of weeks to arrive, so I'd rather only fix stuff once. A/C is on my 4th attempt, so what I did now was to buy the correct clutch & compressor off of ebay, and send them directly to Classic Air in Tampa.

Car has been restored since 2021, I want this to be the last summer without A/C. Got a taste of it this June, before the compressor began to sieze. I learned my lesson that if you're not an expert, or if it's not simple enough for yiur level, best (and perhaps cheapest!) is to let the pros do their work.

 

[Demonic]

Buy a rebuild kit.

Good luck finding one. Do you have a source?

 

[DAMatt]

*ANYBODY, PLEASE TELL ME WHO DOES A GOOD JOB REBUILDING THE A/C & CLUTCH* - be it a company, or a person with good reputation (like crackedback headlight relay harness)

I am at my wit's end.

I ended up calling Classic Auto Air (Original Air Group), and asked the rep whether they sell already done a/c & clutch units. No they don't they only do rebuilds - told me it costs $550 to rebuild a compressor, and $240 for a clutch. Bought the correct units off of ebay, and had them sent to their address in Tampa. I opened a ticket, telling them the tracking no. & other details, got no reply. A couple of days ago, I checked the tracking, it said delivery exception. Called Classic, the rep told me the ticket no. isn't good, and that she doesn't recognize the email address associated with the ticket ([email protected]), asked me if I had the right company. Backtracked, checked again, YES, it was the right company. Called again. She said the address on the website is not correct, and gave me their new one (they moved).

So I'll update the delivery, and that's it, right? Wrong! She told me they stopped taking orders since December, and they would not even accept mine to hold till they have a spot. She also insisted that at that first talk a couple of weeks ago, I was clearly not given the OK to buy the parts & have them sent. THEN WHY DO THEY TELL ME THAT IT COSTS $550 FOR THE RV2 & $240 FOR THE CLUTCH?

In any case, I am stuck with 2 items bought from the States, in transit, and nobody accepting them.

So do you any of you guys know somebody that would take my clutch & compressor for a rebuild? This is the 4th unit I bought, and I would really want it to be the last, so I would want to have the work done by a reputable company or person. Got fried too many times, and paying 1000 Euros each time for the darn compressor to reach my door is talking its toll, both financialy, and emotionaly.

 

[Some Car Guy]

My advice here would be to peruse Hemmings and see if you can find an AC specialist that isn’t classic/original parts group. Maybe a resto shop for mopars could do one up for you?