1996 AC Warms-up

[winkleboy]

Help! I live in Texas, and the AC on our
V6 will quit working after we've been
driving it for a little while.

It'll just stop and blow warm air.

Then the Temperature light will pop on.
(but i'm not sure if that's related..)

It seems that if we turn the car off for a while, it'll work
again, nice and cold.

I've recently replaced the battery
(could that be related?)

I do know that the AC and the Radiator fan are
on the same fuse, but am not certain if that could
be the problem..

thanks
-winkleboy

[boschmann]

Perhaps running the A/C is overloading your cooling system. The A/C pressure will then get too high & the system will shut down. I'd have the cooling system checked first.

[winkleboy]

do you know off-hand what that might set me back?

getting the cooling system checked out?

i just shelled out 800 bucks to replace the heater core
so i'm not too thrilled about this new problem..

especially considering that its about 900 degrees
here in texas..

[boschmann]

It shouldn't be anything like that. If I had it I would put a set of A/C gauges on it & let it idle for a while in the heat to see if the system overpressurizes & cuts off. Do the cooling fans come on when A/C is on?

[winkleboy]

yes, the fans seem to work fine.

i had my mechanic look at it..
it stumped him.

he let it idle for a while, and it didnt quit/overheat
until he got it on the road.

he advised me to take it to the dealership.
when i called them, they said it may be
a thermostat..

i'd hate to have to get it to the dealership..

[boschmann]

What does the coolant temp gauge go to when it cuts out? What were the pressure reading on the A/C system?