My A/C recently went out. Luckily it happened at the end of summer(just two seasons here in south-central Texas, summer and "winter"). Before it went out, for the longest time, it would make a sound similar to if you would stick an aluminum can next to the spokes of a bike, kind of. This sound would happen only when the compressor would kick on. More recently the a/c would stop blowing cold air. So I would turn it off and then on again and it would work for a little bit. This "little bit" had been getting shorter until eventually it just wouldn't blow cold air. Not only did it not blow cold air but "it" started to smoke/smell bad. So when I got home I took off the belt and that's how its been til now.
So my question is, is this the compressor or the clutch? If it is the clutch can I replace it without discharging the refrigerant?