The air conditioner compressor on my '87 560SL gave up the ghost last year. When I asked at the dealer, they quoted me about $800 to replace it.

Are there lower cost options? Rebuilts?

Any and all advice is appreciated...

Check Auto Zone, Advance Parts, etc. to see if they have a rebuilt unit. It will probably be less than $200. Some have a lifetime quarantee.

P E H

A/C compressor kaput
 

Can you be more specific on the reason your compressor 'gave up the ghost' because it leaves many avenues open for repair. Is the clutch OK and energize?
Is the RPM sensor defective? Is the compressor locked up/frozen? What was the prognosis given?

If it froze up then the lines probably have trash in them which needs to be addressed. Also the expansion valve and drier should also be replaced. Nippendenso compressors are built like an aluminum engine block that can't have its cylinders lined or replaced. Because of this, some rebuilts use cores that should have been trashed and not put back into service as they will repeat themselves and cause more headaches. One headache is the finger pointing saying it wasn't installed correctly and the lines flushed properly so the warranty is void...fun!

So tell us what the reason of failure is for better advice.

Tobias MB
4 MBs

Click on "catalogs" first
 

http://www.alleuro.com
Looks like 388 with clutch, these guys like to deal with professionals, they might hang up if you ask dumb questions.