Maybe someone can chime in to confirm or deny that I saw certain R4 compressors made for GM applications mount in a different orientation than the R4 on our cars do.

There is an oiling hole on the front bearing/seal that would normally be facing down, but due to the difference in mounting, getting the wrong one would have that port facing up, and the front seal would not get lube/cooled by the oil which tends to lead to premature seal failure (I've had 3 or 4 R4 compressors that all died from front seal failure despite being charged with the proper amount of the correct type of oil)

Am I insane, did I dream that or is there some deal with the front seal having a different orientation on the MB R4 compressors vs the ones assembled with GM cars in mind?

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1982 300D (w123, "Grey Car")
1982 300D (w123, "Blue Car")
2001 Ford F150 "Clifford" (The Big Red Truck)
1997 Dodge Ram 2500 12V Cummins
1996 Dodge Ram 2500 12V Cummins
Previous Vehicles:
1995 E300D, 1980 300SD, 1992 Buick Century, 2005 Saturn Ion