Weird A/C issue

The A/C in my 2000 XJ has always worked fine, blows cold, etc.. Yesterday evening after about 60 miles of highway driving the compressor just stopped functioning. I got to my destination and parked it. When I came back a few hours later for the drive home, the A/C kicked back on and gave no problems for the 80 mile drive. It worked fine today as well. I've made longer drives before, with more load on the engine and roughly the same temperatures without a bit of trouble from it.

I haven't checked the pressure yet, but I'm wondering if it tripped the high pressure switch since it was pretty hot yesterday, though I would have thought this would have happened before now if that was an issue. I'll get my gauge manifold set out tomorrow I guess.

Anyone got any ideas?

Hole in one of the vacuum hoses causing an over strain in the compressor? Just a guess

Iced up evaporator due to low charge, and water not draining out?

Corrosion on the back of the AC clutch. This happened to my 98 and I chased my tail replacing the low pressure switch, checking for leaks and topping off the freon.

1. Remove fan shroud
2. Remove bolts holding on compressor clutch (You do NOT need to evacuate)
3. Gently slide clutch from compressor housing
4. Observe how many shims you have between the clutch and the compressor.
5. Gently sand back of clutch to remove corrosion.
6. Carefully blow all dust out of clutch
7. If you have multiple shims, try removing one but ensure clearance and free spin
8. Re-install clutch
9. Re-install fan shroud

I did this process 2 years ago and my AC has worked perfectly ever since. The corrosion on the back of the clutch prevents the magnet from energizing the compressor when it gets hot. I had sporadic function that sometimes lasted 10 minutes, and other times hours. This took 10 minutes, cost me nothing and fixed the problem 100%

Check my thread with more detail:
http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1038440&highlight=sanden

I haven't had a chance to mess with it yet. It's been working fine, including on another 160 or so mile round trip. I'll check it when I get a chance.