The "smoke" was probably ac coolant escaping from a major leak. Once the coolant pressure drops due to the leak the ac compressor pulley clutch will start turning off and on every few seconds. This is probably the "flywheel" the man was talking about. You've got to take it to a good ac shop and have them id the leak, replace the defective part and recharge the system. This is going to be $300-400 or more depending on the part. You may be able to id the leak by adding some coolant yourself. If it's one of your compressor hoses you may as well have them replace both at the same time.