2006 Mazda 3 Touring 4 door -
My A/C died after what sounded like the belt giving way/breaking... I didn't look at it, I just shut my A/C off and went on with life, since winter was starting, I figured I'd check it out later... well a couple of weeks later it sounds like some kind of external bearing is having problems... a mechanic listened to it and said it might be the water pump bearing??
I took a second look and it sounds like the lower of the 2 lowest pullies is having issues... there's a short belt attaching the two, and I'm wondering if that's where the A/C compressor is... can I cut that belt temporarily so I can drive my car? Then have the compressor and belt replaced in a few weeks?

Thanks for your help.

 

I found a video that shows exactly what's going on with my car, and someone posted that the compressor pulley bearing needs to be replaced at a cost of about $20 for the do it yourselfer...Mazda3 AC compressor pulley problem - YouTube

 

samething happened to my 06, the compressor clutch is rattling around, not the bearings, you need to replace the pulley but no one sells just the pulley for this car, so you have to get whole a/c compressor unit. Mine failed because of a wiring issue that caused the pulley to slightly engage and eventually fail, had to tear apart the whole engine harness to find my problem

 

About a year and a half ago I did the AC clutch bearing job on a 98 Mazda Protege. I found a site "coldzone777" that sold me the bearing for about $20.
I don't know if that site is still up and working alright. I either found it by way of Ebay motors or by googling for images and keywords.
Good luck!