AC problem

[EniGmA1987]

So my air conditioner started having issues a few days ago and I am wondering if any of you have a more expert opinion on what it might be. I am hoping I just need to recharge the R134a levels, as I dont think I have ever turned off the AC in the 3 years I have owned the car and have never had to recharge it yet. Anyway, the first time it happened was about 5 minutes after I started driving one day (in 105 degree heat), it was blowing a bit cool for those first 5 minutes and then just started blowing normal air. later in the day when I started driving it was fine, but after 5 minutes the same thing happened. The past 2 days since then the same thing goes on and then today the same thing happened the first time I turned on the car and when I was leaving the restaurant after lunch it wouldnt even blow cold air the first 5 minutes anymore. My guess would be either the refrigerant or the compressor, Im hoping for the refrigerant because that would be a lot cheaper. I would just take it in and have the problem fixed, but someone stole $1100 from me a about a week ago so I dont have any extra money for the next month.

I already looked at the FSM for the car and how to recharge the R134a in the AC system, but the manual is talking about a lot more equipment and gauges than I have access to, so in order to recharge the system am I going to have to take it in so everything gets set right and at all the proper levels? Or is it plenty easy to do without the full setup of things and in a garage?

[maximus35]

does your condeser cooling fan come on when you turn on our a/c? in those tempertures that fan should be running countinueisly once you turn on your a/c.

[cruzad3r]

not sure if you have walmart near by but they have this tall can of r134 and gauge integrated... buy one can and recharge. unless you want to do a dye test to see if there's leakage... i doubt any of the parts are broken, probably just low on refrigerant.


oh recharge is just plug onto the low side and let the can loose. that's it nothing else cuz you already have the gauge on the can itself to check for pressure. oh crank up the AC when you charge so everything is running.

[wingFeather]

Either pay a shop to do it, or at least buy these and learn how to use them: http://www.harborfreight.com/a-c-manifo ... 92649.html

Those Walmart cans damage s***.

[cruzad3r]

Either pay a shop to do it, or at least buy these and learn how to use them: http://www.harborfreight.com/a-c-manifo ... 92649.html

Those Walmart cans damage s***.

have you used these refrigerant can with gauge integrated? walmart just happen to have these on a discount; you can buy these cans anywwhere, autozone, pep boys, advance auto. etc...

also i'm interested in knowing what type of damage have these cans done to your car.

[EniGmA1987]

I am too, I dont want to damage my car. I love this baby. I honestly would never buy something from Harbor Freight though. We go through them for stuff for work and all the things we get from there is complete crap. Either doesnt work well at all or breaks really easily. Ill do some research on the cans a bit, but might just take it in to someplace and have it done there. Spending $50+ on some gauges doesnt seem worth it to me because how often am I going to be checking the pressure while refilling the AC? Probably never again in my time with this car.



And ill be checking on the condenser cooling fan later today once it cools down some.

[wingFeather]

The cans with gauges attached only tell you what the low side is reading, which is why I included a link to the Harbor Freight set (low & high). It helps to see the high side to know if there is an issue. Too much psi & you can blow the system. Also allows for a vacuum to be attached, which is what the techs do (vacuum the system before introducing new freon, to test for leaks and eliminate any o2/H2o). Without seeing both sides it might be possible to overfill. Even seeing the right levels, if there are any other substances in the system not eliminated by a vac, the a/c still won't blow as cold as it should.

Here is a reasonably helpful article: http://www.wikihow.com/Recharge-the-Air ... r-in-a-Car but instead of "feeling" the temp with your hand, I would use a thermometer to measure the air in the vent before/during/after.

If you have a leak, here is something to consider: r134 is 870 times worse for the environment than equal volumes of car exhaust, give or take (according to the 2007 IPCC AR4).

[cruzad3r]

hey if you already decided to take the car to the dealer then it's a done deal. no point of trying to offer any advice

[wingFeather]

Not sure I'd recommend the dealer unless they'll match competitor prices. The dealers I've been to are all so high (probably more ways then one).

[GQM45s]

have you checked your belts? they might be really cracked and wont push hard enough

[lovemycarM35]

Dude you have a leak

[EniGmA1987]

So as an update for what happened, it was actually a radiator leak. One of the fittings into the radiator was apparently cracked and fluid was coming out. Must have been slow and been like that for a little while because the car never overheated, didnt have any weird problems other than the AC no longer blowing cold, and no CEL or SES light on dash. Never noticed any puddles in my parking spot either so it couldnt have been a very big leak, just enough to lose very small amounts of fluid when driving and the system was in use. I didnt even notice the engine temp because the gauge is so far over and small. Because the engine temperature was getting higher, the AC was blowing less and less cool. This also explains the ever degrading performance of the AC over the few days from when it started, because I was getting less and less coolant in the radiator to cool the car, thus it was reaching higher temps and faster. Anyway, radiator was replaced and the car is fine, AC is back to blowing nice and cold like it should be. So I guess the guy above me was right, it was a leak. Just a different kind of one than I was thinking it was going to be.

[wingFeather]

...HUH???