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With the engine running, have someone in the van turn the AC on and off while you are looking at the compressor and compressor clutch. The compressor clutch should actuate and cause the compressor to start turning. If the compressor does not kick in and start turning, the most common problem is that there is a low freon level in the system. Your van uses R-134a type freon. There should be stickers under the hood that tell you this. Low freon is not the only thing that will cause the AC to quit working. If you put too much freon in the system, it will screw up a lot of things. It should not cost too much to have a pro look at it and check the pressure. If you want to try it yourself, you will need a R-134a freon recharge kit. They are around $30. Get one with a gage. Do not get just the hose. The kit will have a 14 oz can of freon included. Your system holds 2 pounds of freon (32 ozs). If you have the rear AC also in your van, the system holds 3 pounds of freon (48 ozs). Under no circumstance put more than this. You will need to jump the low pressure switch to get the compressor running. At the left side of your engine compartment (with the hood open, from the front of the van), there is a silver cannister. This is the accumulator. It will have a couple of lines going to it, a low pressure switch on the rear with a couple of wires plugged into it, and a black cover over a valve. This is the low pressure side of the system, and the valve is where the recharge kit attaches. Unplug the connector to the low pressure switch and use short piece of wire to jump across the two wires going to the switch. If you start the van, the compressor should run. If it doesn't, low freon is not the problem. If the compressor is running, hook up the recharge kit to the valve on the accumulator and check the pressure on the gage. Follow instructions with the kit to add freon if it's low. After you add a can or two, you can stop the van and hook up the low pressure switch. The compressor should then run normally when you turn on the AC. DON'T ADD FREON UNLESS THE SYSTEM NEEDS IT. You may have a leak that a pro needs to fix. This is the low pressure side. The high pressure side has a lot higher pressure, so if you add too much freon on the low press side, the pressure goes sky high on the high pressure side and will destroy something. Again, it shouldn't cost too much to have a pro add the freon if that's the problem. If that's not what's wrong, you probably don't want to buy the tools required to fix it Good Luck.
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06-06-2004, 07:30 PM
