Lately I've noticed a rattling sound coming from the passenger side of the engine of my '97 Max (5spd). At first I thought it was the timing belt tensioner, but from research on the forum I've heard that you normally hear this rattling when the car first starts and it eventually goes away. The rattling noise I'm experiencing continues as I'm driving down the road.

I took it to a trusted Nissan mechanic that gave my car a quick (1 min) look under the hood while trying to pinpoint the origin of the noise. After he looked it over, he said that it was my air conditioner compressor.

Has anyone else had this similiar problem and was it necessary to replace the whole a/c compressor unit?

Is there any way to rebuild it? Looking for the cheap route before trying to fork out $420.

 

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=394012

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hmmm sounds like the same problem i had
a really look rattling noise continues as i drive
yeah its the ac compressor i got it changed for around $600

 

i have the same thing in my i30, but i can get the compressor for 180, then 50 to empty, clean, and refill the system.

 

That's a great deal.

I paid $340 for a Nissan one from my local dealer, and about $100 bucks for the install and emptying/refilling of the system.