Iām looking for technical help or recommendations on: __A/C
Morning all, as above, just after a steer in the right direction regarding air conditioning on my car. Iāve lived without it since getting the car over two years ago but with the latest hot spell, Iāve been faffing about trying to get it working properly.
I had some spare refrigerant kicking around in the garage (not much TBH) so put that in and the compressor then started to work switching on and off as it should but obviously not enough in to chill the air.
After a week or so, compressor still working but to be certain of no leaks, nipped to Halfords and bought a trigger gauge, can of stop leak and a large bottle of R134.
Followed all the instructions to the letter including putting enough new refrigerant in to the top end of the green scale on the gauge.
Circulated for 15 minutes to mix both stop leak and refrigerant but itās only blowing ācoolā not chilled which I donāt think is right
All the vent settings click in when changed, auto gets the fan blowing at full gallop when temp at 15*, manual same but by increasing temperature settings, blower reduces in speed which is correct I believe.
Now, with the almost 30* temps outside when testing, the A/C would be hard pushed to get temps right down I reckon although it should be blowing cold shouldnāt it?
Canāt help Barrie with yours, I was thinking of having mine regassed (daily driver) but testing this morning itās pretty cold so will do. Itās been ok for 7 years, never touched so if it donāt need fixing Iāll leave it for now.
Your mate Geoff had a regass, the carš, pretty good price, is it close enough for you to use?
Hi Mick, yes, Geoff got his done recently. Problem Iāve got is it doesnāt need a regas as itās just had one, (admittedly DIY) and holding pressure? Just not cold was hoping for some advice as what to do next, apart from going in to a garage, having the new refrigerant removed and replaced like for like and back at square one thought there may be a common issue such as failing evaporator/condenser/etc or whatever
Brilliant TBH, the other day when I went to get the gas and stuff, the heat in the engine bay was phenomenal! So when I got going with the regas everything was HOT Been out a short while ago, reversed car far enough out to not poison myself and sat with roof and windows up (before I read your reply Richard) ran a/c and whilst not refrigerator cold it seems to be getting better? Ambient was displayed at 25* and I was trying to get it down to 15* set on the car. Didnāt wait long enough but TBH, car interior wasnāt warm and was comfortable. Bonnet still in garage but rest of car was in bright full sun. Iāll keep at it thank you.
The other thing, is the condenser the radiator part or the vertical tube? Iāve had my torch in from the top and not sure if I was looking at the radiator for the car or the a/c bit either way, the bit I was looking at wasnāt too bad in and around the cores? Some crud apparent on the fins but nothing āsolidā
After an hour at Kwikfit and Ā£59.95 lighter my NC chills again, purged and refilled.
When I collected the car the controls were on min temp, max boost, and recirculate and it felt nice and icy, but then I had been waiting in the heat in the shade reading July Classic Bike.
Turn off recirc and it was not so chilly, but the blower was happy to throttle back on Auto everything when asking for my usual 19C, all the way home with lid up.
I think AC is one of those things that you can end up chasing your tail trying to fix.
I always believe that getting an AC expert to vacuum test your system, fit any new seals, add the correct lubricant to the system and re-gas it properly can actually work out cheaper.
Hmmmmm Iām Ā£100 in at the moment. Ā£10 deposit back on the bottle when itās done, so Ā£90 really, and Iāve got a pressure gauge that will be of use again sometime, another Ā£20. So, Iāve spent Ā£10 more than RichardFX (who had a working system already). Iāve had another look at the condenser through the front grill, a lot better than looking down from above . My next move is to get at it with the pressure washer through the front grill to see if I can clear 11 years worth of road grime. I wonāt start on full pressure (in case anyone wanted to chip in on that one) and see if that helps. Condenser and dryer together, arenāt as expensive as I imagined too, so one step at a time. My biggest concern would be evacuating the system of refrigerant if needed, Iāll cross that bridge when, or if itās required. I certainly donāt mind having a go myself
Iāll post up tomorrow if I get chance to clean the condenser.
Good luck I hope you sort it.
My son spent huge money trying to sort the AC on his Polo GT. Even ended up buying a new condenser, lots of gas, vacuum gauge. But ten minutes with a mobile expert, job done. You can lose lots of gas in the meantime, sounds like your bill is already mounting. Check prices below.
Sorry to hear that you are experiencing issues with the aircon on your MK3.
Please get this into prospective. We have experienced very hot temps over the last couple of days but this is the frustrating UK where nothing works as it should and when it does, it shafts us. From my experience, it takes around 10 days to get used to this heat and guess what, we are unlikely to get to 10 days. Famous last words as we will now have a three month long heatwave:-)
Assuming your aircon is circulating correctly the only issue really can be a leak that causes a pressure drop and loss of efficacy of the aircon. Your pressure guage should prove that the system is fully charged but low pressure = low performance. I am told that without the right equipment, accurately measuring the system pressure is not as simple as you and I would assume it to be.
These systems work really well provided they are free of leaks and contaminants. Leaks found with a pressure test combined with dye that shows leaks up easily. contamination is much, much harder to exorcise.
Thanks folks I know Iām chasing my tail possibly here. I got chance to blast the condenser but grandkids turned up for BBQ so had to turn to more important things! so not tested yet dye in the seal stuff, nothing detected with UV light but donāt know about inside the car? Glovebox out next to have a peak in there. If all else fails, I can always (possibly) spend a load more but might get a result as rhino666 says, itās not always this hot!
Before I took mine to KF I operated all the knobs and buttons without engine or blower running, to make sure I could hear the motors (actuators) moving, because I wondered if it was always getting full heat all the time - no chance for the air-con then.
There are only two actuators, one on top of the heat/chill box directing air from inlet or cabin, and the other on the side of the distribution box for all the vents.
So then how does it decide between air-con and heat and inlet and cabin and get the right temperature with just the one vane on one motor?
Iāve no idea, but I could hear things working and stopping (ie achieved purpose) if I moved Temp from either end to the other and waited, and also when pushing the Recirc button on or off and waiting.
Distribution happens further on in the second box, and again you can hear the motor and the flaps clunking, and also later feeling the air when the blower is running.
Mine had enough pressure to allow the system to ask for the pump, but not enough air mass to transport sufficient energy to chill. Pressure and mass are two different things with air-con gas! It is why they always extract the old, do a vacuum test, then put in the right weight of new, while monitoring pressure.
You might have a point there Richard all the stuff you describe, is working, vent stops then fires up again when a different selection is made, same with recirculating or not and temp where fan slows the higher the selected temp etc. Compressor kicks in straight away when A/C selected and off when deselected. I āchargedā as much as I could, reading on gauge got to the top end of green and I couldnāt get it any higher, or put more in? So pressure from refill bottle isnāt the same as the machine pumping it in I would have thought? Plus I put a ābitā in from what I had plus the leak seal contents plus what I could squeeze in from the refill bottle so who knows what that lot adds up to
Hi, I echo what @rhino666 said, the system is working as the pump is pumping and the pressure is holding, the issue may be what is circulating inside.
A proper aircon refill involves draining the refrigerant and drying it. Pressure test with nitrogen, then a refill with the correct weight of gas and oil.
It is not expensive to do but they need the correct machinery.
I would invest in a proper regas to improve matters if it was me. My 3.5 is lovely and cold, had no issues at all.
Iām leaning towards this more and more! Iām away on a family holiday from Friday (not in the 5) so wonāt have time to book in somewhere until I get back. That will also give the system a chance to reveal any pressure drop (leaks). Then I might just have to bite the bullet. Thank you to all contributors to this thread Iām going to check things out tomorrow after blasting the condenser today in an attempt at cleaning it externally and if no change, will report back when itās been diagnosed.
switching on and off as it should but obviously not enough in to chill the air.
Been out a short while ago, reversed car far enough out to not poison myself 
and sat with roof and windows up (before I read your reply Richard) ran a/c and whilst not refrigerator cold it seems to be getting better? Ambient was displayed at 25* and I was trying to get it down to 15* set on the car. Didnāt wait long enough but TBH, car interior wasnāt warm and was comfortable. Bonnet still in garage but rest of car was in bright full sun. Iāll keep at it 
and see if that helps. Condenser and dryer together, arenāt as expensive as I imagined too, so one step at a time. My biggest concern would be evacuating the system of refrigerant if needed, Iāll cross that bridge when, or if itās required. I certainly donāt mind having a go myself 
so not tested yet