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Climate Control Problems (Air Conditioning, Heat) - All Cars
Anyone have a problem with their 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo air conditioner? Mine leaks into the passenger compartment and soaks the right front side (carpet/floor board). I have had it back for dealer service and they can't find/fix the problem.
Wet Feet in Georgia.....
Wet Feet in Georgia.....
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This is the same issue with fresh air vent hoses and with sunroof drains (and even convertible top drains on some cars, which have hoses running down the rear quarter panels.
sounds like another "elegant" engineer who doesn't want to leave any evidence they were designing things. shoot, if it's gotta drain, make a drain hole that you can see, poke, and point to with pride.
I guess I'm getting to be an old fart, but I like serviceability.
what could it be? bad thermostat, dirt/bugs/guck blocking the radiator fins, bad fan motor or relay or dying fluid clutch, water pump marginal or worse, gutless coolant that is no longer a 50/50 mix due to age, internal blockages of the radiator, collapsed hose due to bad radiator cap... lots of things.
a temporary aid is to put down the windows (so you don't die when you do the rest of this,) and turn the heater up full to act as an auxiliary radiator.
but you will need to get after the real issue, which is the cooling system is not doing its job under stress.
Anyway, the problem appeared to be the AC switching from vents to defrost intermittantly. Actual problem seems to be (per dealer) the AC reversing somehow, and sucking air back into the engine?? Doea any of this make sense (I really need to get a better explanation).
ANyway, dealer was stumped, and actually decided to replace the engine! Chrysler corp. seems to have come up with another possibility that involves replaceing some sort of module.
I will try to get a better explanation and post it tomorrow, but any initial thoughts will be appreciated.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
I would suspect what's going on is the damper door system is not working according to hoyle.
as for sucking air into the engine compartment... nah. not unless somebody took the input manifold hose off the air cleaner and took out the fan motor and duct-taped the hose into that big old hole.
bad communications here from the shop.
Every year approximately 5% disappears due to radiator external corrosion and fin bending blockages from dirt, etc. Poor internal coolantant maintenance can accelerate this loss of reserve.
Normally the correct thing to do is replace the radiator at around 5-6-7 years [examine the AC condensor for bent fins, dirt blockages, corrosion not shiny anymore as this may need changing out to restore as new performance [help AC cooling also].
Be careful about non oem cheapo rads as they are only warranteed for 12/12 they use thinner metal fewer fins and inexpensive construction {weigh them] they may not provide oem reserve when brand new and age very rapidly! Made primarily for people who need to fix to sell a car.....there are quality replacements out there but you must examine them closely [always ask if there is a better quality unit available than the offered unit as most shops buy cheap to help the customer who complains about costs.
A factory unit may be $400 retail and cost dealer $200, a cheapo aftermarket may cost shop $90-115 and a premium unit available for $145-165-175 [shop cost].
When I have the A/C on at bi-level or just on my face it changes direction to the defrost vents when I accelerate the truck and get to 2k RPM's & around 40 mph. Once I let off the gas and the speed dials drop, the air goes back to the settings they were supposed to be at.
The Dodge dealer originally thought that the problem was my "A/C Vacuum Resevoir". Can't remember the exact makeup of it, but anyway it still had a problem after they fixed that. So that's when they said: "Replace the engine"
They then called and said they'd like to try to install a second check valve to help keep the air from changing vents? I have no idea how that would help.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
the damper doors that direct air from various sources to various places have spring returns to some master mix, generally fresh air. virtually everything now uses vacuum motors to make these changes, and there is a vacuum switch or switches to distribute the vacuum.
if you don't generate a good engine vacuum (bad hoses, leaking input manifold or attachment to same, broken vacuum motor or control), you won't hold those doors in position under all conditions. there are check valves that are installed several places on a lot of cars that help to keep the door closed for a short time if you are idling and the vacuum drops below what it takes to swing the motor. there have also been any number of vacuum tanks to maintain that pull on the motors.
it is not impossible for a vacuum motor diaphragm to get pinholes or cracks and leak all the vacuum out. that should be expected under the hood, however, where conditions change from one extreme to another, and techs spray cleaning chemicals now and again.
it is much more likely to have a loose or deteriorating hose at a master vacuum nipple under the hood, or perhaps a vacuum switch in the temp controller was iffy or being pushed around by a lever bent in installation. somebody playing footsie at the firewall might have kicked a hose off a vacuum motor or bent the hose fitting so it leaks.
the shop can put a hand vacuum pump and dial on the rig at the engine side of the firewall and see if they can draw and hold a vacuum on the geegaws going into the passenger compartment. if that fails, fix stuff. if it works, an ultrasonic listener can find little leaks in the works inside, like at the vacuum switch or at a motor with a fading diaphragm.
rather than replacing parts until the shelf is bare, an hour or half an hour spent in these tasks should be quite useful in diagnosing just what the heck is really wrong.
Stickguy... when describing the AC problem, you didn't say whether the air was still blowing cold when it switches to the defrost vents.
On many vehicles, the AC system has a cut-off switch that will temporarily shut down the AC compressor when a demand is placed on the engine... such as passing a vehicle, climbing a hill, hard acceleration, etc., so your engine will have nearly all HP available to meet the demand for the task. Your second post sounds a little like this may be happening.
You also weren't clear as to your AC control settings when this occurs... are the controls on any setting that allows defrost operation? You said bi-level, but DC vehicles have 2 bi-level positions... floor/defrost and floor/dash vents.
It's possible that the controls are designed to direct air through the defrost or floor vents whenever engine load trips the compressor cut-out switch so it keeps the warm, moist air from slapping you in the face. That may sound unbelievable, but it may be "normal" operation. I've owned vehicles that did this and I was told that they were designed to operate for this reason.
Definitely check for vacuum problems as swschrad says. I just offer this as another possible cause to look into.
A side note here... many people also don't realize that the AC runs to provide dry air for the defroster, no matter what your heat settings are when in defrost mode. If the outside air temp is above 45-50 degrees, the AC runs in defrost mode.
Thanks for the replies. I'm pretty sure the coolant level is ok - I just had an oil change and they re-filled. Also, I've checked it a few times when I was having the problem and it seemed fine. My next step will be to check to make sure the radiator is not blocked with bugs, leaves, etc.
If it is something bigger, such as faulty thermostat or any of the other things swschrad suggested, how much will this cost, approximately? How will I know if my mechanic knows what he's talking about when I take the car in (any specific questions to ask that he should know the answers to?). I don't know much about cars so I have to rely on the mechanic's word. Is this a problem I should take to a Toyota specialist, or should any general mechanic know how to identify and fix this?
Thanks again - you're all extremely helpful.
it will then kick back in for another 5 minutes burst of cold air ,HELP Just had the coolant flushed and replaced.
I am not sure under what conditions your a/c compressor would be switched on and off automatically by the car's computer or sensors or whatever, but for some reason I think this is what is happening.
high-head is usually a sign that you can't get rid of the heat the evaporator picked up from the interior car air, and I would first consider this as the issue. in particular, is the radiator assembly clean, with no [non-permissible content removed] between the fins? use an old toothbrush on the outside (road side) of the radiator assembly to brush with the fins and get the cottonwood fuzz and dead bugs off, then back flush the radiator assembly with the garden hose...again, with the fins, not crossways against them, because the nozzle pressure can push fins closed... until you have water bubbling out the front.
if you still have issues, you need somebody with a full gauge set to clamp onto the system and see what both the high and low pressure sides are doing. if it's not just a charge issue, it is likely that it's repair time. the best hope is that the clutch coil is overheating, popping a breaker, which then puts the a/c back into service. replacing a clutch or a clutch coil doesn't require dismounting the compressor, and won't require work on the pressurized system.
anything else likely means pressure work. low gas is not likely to cause this issue as I remember.
now, failure of a compressor because of insufficient oil or refrigerant, or because it is being pulled on at an angle and the bearing fails early, or because of excess dirt in the system, are all likely causes. most of which have other symptoms, and servicing the system before the drive belt burns up or the fuses blow would have caught that.
whose fault that is, we don't have enough info.
but as for failing in use... well... yeah, that's the reason all mechanical equipment fails, sure enough. around here, we don't take that baloney with a smile
When I returned to the dealer, they offer to give me 25% off of $1,600.00 !!!! My opinion is that this shouldn't have happened so soon. Nothing was used or remanufactured to avoid this very problem.
Someone has told me that the dealer CAN send back for warranty coverage. That plus a break on the labor for goodwill reasons would this repeat performance acceptable.
Does anyone know if this warranty story is true?
the fact that it's surging back and forth is a sign to me that there are iffy signals and responses from other systems. rather than say it's a good bet the spark is weak and may be blowing out in some cylinders and that the 02 sensor is lazy and maybe the EGR valve is plugged, all of which are plausible... I am going to say this truck needs to be put on the box and have a full computer diagnosis run, and see what it turns up. bad idea to throw parts at the truck randomly until you either get lucky or run your credit cards to the limit.
Now after using for a while I'm convinced a/c is always on. Perhaps the compressor clutch never disengages? Is there any way to test this? Can the compressor be visibly verified (with a/c switch off)? If the clutch is stuck (engaged) - any way to manually disengage it?
Car performance seems about the same with the a/c switch on or off - another reason I'm wondering if a/c stuck on. Thanks for any help.
shut off the car and determine which is which (I would bet there is a front clutch plate.) put a contrasting paint or crayon mark on it.
now start the car and look. you would have to select between any a/c mode (defrost, max, auto or cool) and a non-a/c mode (vent, heat) to determine what's running.
if the clutch never pulls out, even in vent or OFF, you probably have a bad switch or a wiring fault in the dash controller.
verify that by shutting off the car, and unplugging the wire connector to the compressor clutch. start 'er up again, and see if the clutch plate is still spinning. if so, it's a stuck, burned, or welded clutch. if not, it's wiring.
This March my airbag light would not go out. Dealer said my heater core was rusted out and the seat bag sensor shorted out from the water from the heater core. How can a heater core go in a cre less the 4 years old? It cast me over $1300 for a new heater core and air bag sensor. Anyway in June my AC drain plugged again. Now my air bag light doesn't go out again and my cd player doesn't work. They fixed the air bag senser free of charge this time, but I don't want to spend any more on this if the problem is the result of the ac drain. They tell me tis is quite common and the only thing I can do is continually check my drain. This sounds like a design flaw to me. My car is garage kept and I have never experienced this with any other car I have ever owned. Feedback anyone...
if it was me, I'd have the a/c drain hole enlarged in the evaporator case.
the idea is to keep the core dry all the time on the outside, and wet all the time on the inside with fresh good new (under 2 years) coolant to cut the corrosion issues to a minimum. if you are in a slush-heaven with road salt, it isn't a bad idea to run the hose into the vented front cowling once in a while and run the crud out of the vents.
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I just realized that I've never added R-134a to either of my cars, a 5 y/o Audi and a 7 y/o Saab.
A/c works perfectly on both.
2001 BMW 330ci/E46, 2008 BMW 335i conv/E93
very ugly and expensive things happen real fast if you just decide to start drilling some more holes, and happen to punch into the coolant line. so don't go there. use a little chunk of coathanger wire or similar to go up no more than a third or a half inch from that hole and tickle the junk out of the way.
if that doesn't clear it up, I would have an a/c professional take the removeable case half off and clean it up.
I think the systems are a little better now, and we aren't taking as much damage hitting the same or worse shell holes on the road.
the same result will occur if you leak R134a, no cooling. my sister had to convert her car over when a hose flare cracked and the receiver sludged up. they fixed the receiver and converted, but didn't catch the bad flare nut until leaking put the R134 into the air within a week. a charge with red dye found that, and she hasn't had issues in three years.
no issues year to year is how it's supposed to work. I suspect jiggering the controls around and making the a/c work in defrost so it is going year round has also helped. if the refrigerant is not circulating and carrying oil, seals in the compressor dry out and start leaking within weeks. the manuals have always said run it weekly or monthly, but who did in the 60s and 70s if they didn't have to, right? forcing that has made a few tree-huggers upset, but the a/c systems leak less, and that is a good trade for the environment.