My AC is gone!!!

OK, Ive noticed for the last few months that my AC wasnt cooling as well as it had in the past. It couldnt really crack a dent in the 90 degree days weve been having unless the car was moving. Yesterday while driving it just stopped all togeter right in the middle of a 95 degree day. I figure OK, its been losing performance for the last few months, I must have a bad o-ring or something somewhere that letting the 134A leak out. This mourning I go out and buy a kit to check my low side pressure and refill it with refregerant and a leak stop. My AC compressor still kicks in if I push the AC button and the engine will idle up to counter the power drop caused my the compressor so I figured it was still ok or it wouldnt be working at all. I hook up the pressure guage and low and behold its pegging out at over 100 psi. Now its only 77 degrees out right now so it should be reading somewhere between 40-45 pounds according to the instructions that came with the kit. The wifes not home right now so I cant hook the guage to her mini-van to make sure the guage is working correctly so assuming the guage is correct has my compressor waved good by to me and stuck me with a 600-1000 dollar repair bill? Before someone says Im hooking it up to the high pressure side the instructions say there is no way to do this as the guage will not fit the high pressure side I only see two service ports on my 97 Aurora and it will only fit one. Can anybody help me or is money the only thing thats going to do that?


BKVic

Maybe I didn't read this close enough. But, here goes...

Your compressor will always kick in as long as there is a sufficient charge for it to do so. My car did this once and it took me a while to figure out. It's when the compressor does NOT kick in that you have a problem. OK, I gotta ask a few questions to better understand here. No offense to you or anything, just gotta make sure.

1) When you recharged the system, was the car running. Also, you need to connect the recharge canister to the system after you start the car. If you do it before you start the car you may get air in the system. In my last car, after I did a full recharge, I lost cooling within a few days...

2) If you think you may have a leak, I'm pretty sure they sell leak finding kits at most auto stores. There is a UV reactive dye presant in the refrigerant that is supplied with this kit. There's also usually a UV light with it. It can be VERY helpful in locating leaks. On mine, port ports very leaking, and the condensor was leaking like crazy (it sprayed that UV reactive dye all over my engine). If your compressor still kicks on, it may be a slow leak, and you might have caught it in time to do something.

Also, in my past experiences, the leak stop stuff doesn't always work. If you do have a bad leak, it won't do anything.

3) Kind of related to the other two. I'm assuming that you have the pressure guage attached to the lo port when you are taking a reading? And of course, you've attached it AFTer the car was running? The guage should wiggle around a little bit. If you really want to make sure it's working, then have your wife step on the gas. It should cause the pressure to jump.

4. I'm no expert here. Just trying to help. There are plenty of other things that could be wrong. (dirty condensors, plugged oriface tubes, faulty compressor). Oh, btw, I know that there's a way to test the condensor to make sure it's sound. I think it involves jumpering the electrical connections in some way.

Hope you get it worked out.

Shaun

... I only see two service ports on my 97 Aurora and it will only fit one. Can anybody help me or is money the only thing thats going to do that?


BKVic

Wait, I didn't see this part before. Your compressor is charging the system to over a hundred PSI? Is it supposed to be that high? I've heard of systems not cooling because they were way overcharged.

zephram22

Yes you are correct that the low pressure side is reading over 100PSI, it should be reading around 45-55 PSI right now with how hot it is outside. My wife just got home and I hooked my guage to her mini van and it is reading between 45-50PSI and it does go up and down as the compressor engages and disengages so my guage is working correctly. I HAVE NOT put any 134A into my Aurora because when I hooked my guage up to see if it was reading low and saw it pegging out at over 100PSI I knew something was wrong. I hope this gives you some ideas.


BKVic

zephram22

Yes you are correct that the low pressure side is reading over 100PSI, it should be reading around 45-55 PSI right now with how hot it is outside. My wife just got home and I hooked my guage to her mini van and it is reading between 45-50PSI and it does go up and down as the compressor engages and disengages so my guage is working correctly. I HAVE NOT put any 134A into my Aurora because when I hooked my guage up to see if it was reading low and saw it pegging out at over 100PSI I knew something was wrong. I hope this gives you some ideas.


BKVic

Eww... Do you know mechanics that could evacuate the system? After that, it would be a simple matter of recharging the system by using a kit. I guess it's possible that your compressor could be faulty. But, let me look and see if I can find anything relating to this.

Well, if the system needs to be recharged you might want to look at <A href="http://www.duracool.com/Duracool/faqs.html">this site </a> for information about refrigerants. I looked very quicky at the site, but Duracool might work much better than 134A, and it says on the sight that you don't have to do anything special to your system before using it.

Symptoms of a bad compressor or compressor clutch include poor or no cooling, and a noisy or seized compressor. Have your vehicle?s air conditioning system checked yearly by a professional technician. The A/C system also operates when the climate control system is in the defroster mode to remove moisture from the interior, so A/C is more than a summertime creature comfort. Operating an A/C system low on refrigerant not only results in poor cooling, it can also damage the system due to poor lubrication flow. Make sure that the technician servicing your car uses the correct refrigerant and refrigerant oil. Use of the wrong refrigerant or oil can reduce system performance or even cause damage.
<a href="http://www.vehicletip.com/forum/Vehicle_Makes_and_Models_C3/Honda_F39/88_Honda_Civic_AC_Woes_P437/">; This site </a> talks about a honda AC system. But, it's got a few things you might want to take a look at. Namely, possible blockage in the system....That would actually make real sense based on your problem. If you had a partial blockage just past the LO & Hi ports, your guage might read high, especially if the compressor kept building up pressure behind the blockage.

BTW, are there any rattling sounds coming from the compresor area?

Also found that overcharging, no matter how it happened, can make refrigerant pool in the condensor, which would pretty much make things grind to a halt. Good Luck, Shaun

I dropped it off this morning at the local Pro-Care shop and Ill let you know what the damage is going to be when I get word.


BKVic

Well I just got the call and the total damage will be $1028 out the door. They said my compressor was bad and needed replaced. I havent gone to pick up the car yet so I dont know how every thing breaks down with parts and labor but I told them I couldnt afford that right now so I could call around and get some more estimates before putting down that kind of money. The good thing about the Pro-Care place is they do give you a 2 year-24,000 mile warrenty-which every comes LAST. I dont really drive my Aurora that much, less then 15,000 miles in just over 2 years so the warrenty could last around 3 years. What do you all think? Is $1028 a good price or is it to much?


BKVic

That sounds like a reasonable price to have someone else do it. I had the same problem in my 92 Dodge van and they wanted around $1500. I did the job myself for about $300. If you don't know much about a/c, don't have a vacuum pump and a set of manifold gauges, you're stuck. Pay the money and enjoy the cold air.

In addition to the compressor, make sure they replace the receiver/dryer and the expansion valve. These parts usually need to be replaced to ensure the guarentee on the compressor.

Greg

Well I just got the call and the total damage will be $1028 out the door. They said my compressor was bad and needed replaced. I havent gone to pick up the car yet so I dont know how every thing breaks down with parts and labor but I told them I couldnt afford that right now so I could call around and get some more estimates before putting down that kind of money. The good thing about the Pro-Care place is they do give you a 2 year-24,000 mile warrenty-which every comes LAST. I dont really drive my Aurora that much, less then 15,000 miles in just over 2 years so the warrenty could last around 3 years. What do you all think? Is $1028 a good price or is it to much?


BKVic

Ouch! My system went bad last year on my other car and it came to aorund 900 dollars. I do know this. On my car, about 40 percent of the cost was labor.