I am not so sure what is going on with my A/C, even though I already pressed the A/C button, and the light is on, and set to the blue, there is no cold air flowing in at all...

Please advise!

 

No "cold" air, or no air at all? Open your hood and see if the a/c clutch is engaged when you have the a/c on. Also, will your fan speed control still operate at all it's settings?

 

Just no cold air. And the fan speed still works.

May I ask where is the a/c clutch is under the hood?

And what if the clutch is engaged, and still no cold air?

Thanks for your reply!

 

The clutch will not engage if there is no refrigerant....If it is on AC and you do not here the typical compressor cycling sound then there is most likely:

1. No or low refrigerant which causes the low refrigerant switch to keep the compressor from cycling and damaging itself.

2. Faulty Low pressure switch.

Most likely it is no refrigerant. This is usually caused by a stone chips or other damage to your condenser which is located in front of you radiator....most often confused as the radiator when looked at through the grille. Look to see an oily or dirty spot which is where the refrigerant leaked out (including the oils it is carries to lube the compressor which leave the oily spot).

If this is the case then its a pretty advanced repair since you would have to change the condenser ( the easy part). Then pull a vacuum on the whole system, flush it with nitrogen to absorb any additional moisture and then replace the lost refrigerant and oil. Best thing to have is a reclaimer, which most decent shops have. If you are tight for cash just go to a mechanic that specializes in ac work...the dealer will charge you at least 1k I assume since the condenser is a $600 oem part. Aftermarket should be half or less if you look in the right places.

Of course the first thing to do is having a mechanic leak test it.This is definitely not a DIY job unless you want to break multiple EPA regulations about refrigerant venting.

Also, what ever you do DO NOT BUY the ac system leak seal kit at your parts store, that just gums everything up setting you up for disaster later!


Good luck

 

You can also make a quick test for free....

Look in the small sight glass in the refrigerant line, and watch it while someone turns on the A/C while the motor is running. If you hear the A/C go on and see bubbles in the small glass port, you have refrigerant, but not enough of it. It is a much less expensive to re-charge the system than replace the whole condenser. Sometimes the seals leak when the A/C is not used for a while and the freon escapes.

 

+1

 

Thanks! I'll give that a try!

but then what if no bubbles?