Need Advice & Input Versa A/C Unit

[zingercan]

Hello All ~~ I really hope someone can give me some advice on my a/c unit.

I purchased a 2010 Versa in October 2010. Didn't use the a/c as the weather was cool & headed directly into winter. I did test it before purchase and it blew COLD air!

In March we had a few hot days & returning from a vacation, we used the a/c. It didn't keep the car cool at all.

I checked with dealership - they tested and said it was blowing 32 degree air. I explained the events with it; they said to use it consistently for 1 month; and at next oil change give them an update.

Oil changed on July 15; they tested it again; it was blowing 48 degree air; and told me there was nothing wrong with it. I spoke to manager who said to leave car there; they would look it over. Today-car comes back with nothing found. It's blowing within their spec of blowing air 15 degrees lower than outside temp?!?!?

Overall - this is what I experience. IOn hot days - It puffs out a burst of cool air - then returns to hot - it blows hot for quite a while - and then another 'puff' of cool. This is on MAX a/c - center vents.

Today the manager told me the specs for this model is the a/c is to blow air 15 degree's cooler than the outside temperature. Now, it was 100 degrees here in PA today; so my a/c is to blow 85 degree air???????!!!!!!??????

What the heck's the point of having an a/c?

I get the feeling someone is trying to blow air up where the sun doesn't shine! Am I crazy here in thinking it should blow COLD air - I'm not talking freezer cold - but - at leasts enough to be comfortable.

Dealer told me to use a meat thermometer in center vent; and test it on my own. Well, on the 20 mile trip home - it never went below 90 degrees.

Any advice / idea's????

Thanks ~
Candi

[Promise Land]

15° below outside temp is junk info. Find another dealer if possible. I assume you didn't use the defroster settings all winter, just vents? It sounds like you have a small leak in the system somewhere to continually lose freon from the system. That will give you false positives, come and go, of the system working. The freon is what keeps the system cool and also lubricates the seals. When you don't use the defroster settings in winter, you don't cycle the system (make it run) and it doesn't keep the seals in good condition.

If you have a leak, a competent dealer can use a dye on all the connection points and find any leak. It should be an easy fix and then re-charge the system.

[MSCOFF]

buy yourself a cheap probe type thermometer. it looks like a small meat thermometer with a dial on the head for reading temperature. about $5 at Wally's. Put it in the center AC vent and see what you get. Remember that hot air, whether from the outside(engine compartment) or recirculated inside air will pass over the coil to get cooled. So the hotter the entering air, the warmer the air on the passenger side of the coil. I insulated the suction line for the AC system (the smaller cold line in the engine compartment) and dropped the temp coming out of the vents by almost 10 degrees. On really hot days with 45 degree air coming out, the car has a difficult time keeping cool.

[Andrews Chalmers]

Did you set the air conditioning to recirc? Sounds like something is wrong with your AC unit.

[zingercan]

Yes - the a/c is on recir......in fact, the last 2 times it was checked at dealer - I kept it on the same settings the tech put it on.....read the book like 3 times....

I take it to a different dealer on August 2; told them the situation and they told me the "it should blow 15 degree cooler air than the outside temp" is wrong.........

I've been charting the air temp blowing out - it hasn't gone below 85......lol.........

[daan]

Is the car making any weird noises while the AC is on? (Groaning/wheezing, etc when the compressor is going.) Mine did that last year, and stopped blowing cold air. Normal engine noise until the AC button got pressed, then the compressor made tons of noise that would stop when I turned the button off again. This summer it's loud again, but still blows cold. The problem last year was a leak in the high pressure hoses, and once everything was fixed the noise went away. I haven't taken it in this year yet because it's still blowing cold. Well that and my warranty is up...
Good luck with your air, the dealer sounds like they don't wanna fix it.