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Honda Civic Climate Control System
morganscivic
Member Posts: 6
I am taking my '06 EX in for the second time today to have the A/C problem addressed. I've found that it blows hot upon acceleration. Definitely not pleasant on a hot day when what you want, and expect, is cool air! It's nice - in the relative sense - to know that someone else is experiencing this also.
I was also told I had a power steering fluid lead at my first oil change! The part is in, so hopefully that will be repaired.
I haven't had a Honda since the early 90's and I definitely expected more than what I've experienced so far. I paid for the top of the line Civic and never expected to have any problems so early on.
I was also told I had a power steering fluid lead at my first oil change! The part is in, so hopefully that will be repaired.
I haven't had a Honda since the early 90's and I definitely expected more than what I've experienced so far. I paid for the top of the line Civic and never expected to have any problems so early on.
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Comments
When accelerating briskly, the AC compressor is temporarily disengaged to give you full power for acceleration. The discharge air temperature does go up and "feels" hot, but is still cooler than ambient. Once acceleration is completed, the system returns to normal operation.
You can prevent this from happening by accelerating more gently. Go try this and you'll see it in action for yourself.
Perhaps you should've gone with the Si for a peppier takeoff! :P
I am very surprised to hear about this feature when accelerating briskly the AC compressor turns off as I have merged on the highway pretty quickly with AC on and never noticed the compressor turn off.
I actually turn the AC button off when getting on the highway now to get that little extra juice I need on LI.
Is this fact about the compressor turning off when accelerating hard??
I have had numerous 4 cylinder cars and have never had warm (not cooler than ambient) air come out when accelerating.
Well, if it's a "feature", it's a damned poor one! Who wants to feel hot air in their face on a 100*+ day!? :sick: I'm very happy with my '06 EX except for this one major flaw. It's just not right.
I've never heard of or experienced such a thing in any vehicle and it's simply not acceptable in a brand new 2006 car, no matter how my cylanders it has. :mad: :lemon:
i have noticed that ac blows colder when the engine rpms are up (like when you take it into 3 or 4k rpm and don't bother to shift up). and a lot less cool when you just idle - i have to rev the engine and maintain it there for a while to get cool air again.
a "design characteristic" does not imply that it was "engineered in". to be sure, this engine miss is not engineered in and definitely not intended, but something that happens when it does as a result of something else - i've experienced it as well, and other than the brake handle digging in to my knee, my biggest complaint - I believe that it is a programming error or blip or bug or whatever - related to the fly-by-wire throttle. i will mention it to my dealer the next time i get there (which may be a while since they are some 4 hours away), and i'll let you know what they said.
Mine does blow less than cold air upon acceleration and not even at full throttle acceleration. At 140 hp the engine should deliver acceptable acceleration AND be able to power the AC compressor while doing it. It isn't that weak. I had a 1990 Taurus S.W. 3.0 V-6 that was rated at 140 hp (it had more torque though).
At my most recent service (which there have been far too many of for my 7 month old car), they drained the AC in an attempt to fix this problem. They were unsuccessful and the problem remains. :mad:
Anyone else having this particular a/c situation?
The Sandman
I don't like this "feature".
It's not too bad because my car does get chilly, and this just keeps me from having to adjust the temp. knob.
Honda really has just done me a favor. :P
The dealer has looked at 3 times and we tell them about it ever time we go back to do normal service. They always say it is in specs. I don't know what else we can do at this point. Does anyone else seem to have the same problem that I do? :confuse: I have seen several messages close to mine.
I had my wife go look at a used Landcruiser the other day and the Toyota dealership she was at had three 2006 Civics that had been traded in
I bought my '06 in January when it was cool. Had I known this was a "feature" of the car I most likely would not have bought it.
My last car was an '01 Pontiac Grand Am GT. That car had an AWESOME AC system! The Civic doesn't come close.
I had my first Honda in the early 90s and it treated me well. I've driven several different cars since then and at the suggestion of my SO - who's driven nothing but Hondas since the mid-80s - decided to go with the Honda EX w/ Nav because I liked it's sporty look and the fact that it really doesn't feel like a small car.
This AC problem is a Big Deal to me because my own internal temperature generally runs warmer than the average bear. I like and depend on a cold air conditioning system. Anything less is unacceptable! :mad:
Does anyone know what, if anything, would be accomplished by going to Honda corporate with this problem? Is there any recourse for those of us who are highly dissatisfied with this?
I have been getting just over 37 mpg on a regular basis, although I do drive mainly highway miles.
My only issue so far with the Civic is a plastic piece covering the seatbelt on the driver's side has either popped out, or has been that way since I took delivery and I never noticed. I called the dealership, and they will obviously fix this for free. Other than that I am (so far) very satisfied with the ride in general and very pleased with the mileage.
Some general tips. I am sure you already know these but just in case......
1. Run your a/C on max/recirc to start and open the sunroof a little to get all of the hot air out.
2. Keep it on max/recirc.
3. Park in the shade.
4. Consider window tinting
5. Consider wearing sandals and going with bilevel cooling in hot weather. Your feel dissapate a lot of heat and the Civic vents direct air right at them.
Had you decided not to get the civic because of the A/C, you might have ended up with a Mazda3 where by all accounts, the A/C is worse.
Marc
Just for information, I owned two 98' civics (1-ex, 1- hx), both black. The AC in both had a very hard time cooling the car, but I always attributed it to the cars being black which absorbs heat. My silver 2006 EX sedan AC has been very good. I also have not noticed the "blowing of hot air during acceleration" which I have been trying to pay attention too.
You said " Had you decided not to get the civic because of the A/C, you might have ended up with a Mazda3 where by all accounts, the A/C is worse."
All accounts? I have to disagree here. There are many Mazda 3 owners who have no issues with their A/C. In fact, my son owns a Mazda3 in Tucson, where we have 4 or 5 months over 100 degrees, and he is very comfortable with his A/C.
I previously owned a 2001 Civic EX dark Blue, and I found the A/C to be weak, after the car sat in the sun all day. In city driving, it did take along time to cool the car. After me, my son then drove that Civic for 2 years before buying his 06 Mazda 3, and he states that the 3 cools better than the 2001 Civic.
I believe that in trying to squeeze every last mpg out of these small cars, they have downsized the compressors and other parts of the AC system, to where it may be just marginal in many cases...perhaps undersized in desert conditions.
Also, it has ben a design feature for MANY years to have a cutout function on the compressor for strong acceleration. I have had many cars over the years, even US made cars have had this...a throttle position switch that actually turns off the compressor under strong acceleration to aid the performance. It was able to be disconnected on many of my vehicles, but I don't know if this is possible today with the computers controlling so much in the cars, but it might be worth investigation for those of you who are bothered by this behaviour.
I have to say that my car did a decent job of cooling. I put my hands to the vents during acceleration and I didn't really notice any major change. Perhaps it is an issue with your individual cars. Best bet is to act like you are interested in a purchase and take a test drive. Compare the two. Or, if someone you know has one, take it out and see what happens.
Oh...and just so you don't get jealous...I have the idle vibration and perhaps the suspension issue. So, I am not blind to the shortcomings of the car.
Marc
I've always driven 4-cylinder cars and I've never noticed any problem with the engine not being able to supply enough power for the AC compressor. (including an '00 EX coupe)
I do seem to remember reading somewhere (it might have been in the manual or on one of the Honda info pages about the redesign) that the compressor has two modes of operation to save energy under light loads but provide adequate cooling when necessary. Sorry but that's all I remember. I'll try to do some digging. But might it be that the cars experiencing these problems have some type of programming bug that is preventing the higher-energy mode from kicking in? Does anybody remember reading anything about this?
Based on what I've said above, here's my two theories about what could be causing this problem:
1-A flaw in the temperature control knob or its supporting systems that keeps it from registering that you want the coldest setting.
2-A programming or electrical problem that stops the dual mode (?) compressor from getting out of its power-save mode.
3-referring to another thread somewhere on the internets, road debris has damaged your unshielded compressor.
Most people out here in AZ use high quality window tints to deal with the solar gain. They work well. However, when you are headed toward the West or have an overhead sun, the 06 Civic's A/c will struggle as the front windshield makes for an excellent greenhouse.
I suppose that if Honda engineered their A/C for the most extreme conditions, it would be oversized and impractical the rest of the time. With the population growth in the Southwest, perhaps Honda should consider a Desert option that would consist of an Eglass windshield and ventilated seatbacks, which are terrific.
I think its interesting that Honda offers heated seats on many models, but not one Honda offers the ventilated seatbacks. I know roughly the size of desert communities such as Palm Springs, Las Vegas and Tucson/Phoenix. Is Fargo, ND really that big?
The huge windsheild does lend its self as a good green house. Window tint helps alot in all cars. The better the tint the better it works.
Just to keep the record staright, in my post I said "in Tucson, where we have 4 or 5 months over 100 degrees" which is accurate. It gets over 100 in May, June, July, Aug, September, and sometimes even in October.
I have lived here since 1992.
I do agree with the rest of your comments, about tinting and solar heating being a big factor here. Tinting, and the use of a reflective sun shade for the windshield when unavoidably parking in the sun makes a big difference. Makes it easier for the A/C to cool the car faster.
This power-saving design accompanies another trait (fault) in Honda's electrical system: power to electrical systems (most noticeable in headlights and stereo dimmer) gradually increases over 20-30 seconds, then drops again. Just watch your headlights... they'll get brighter and brighter, and then BOOM- back to normal. Very strange.
You can buy a simple cooling system pressure tester that you put over the radiator as an air pump and this will find any leaks you might have that you won't see when the car is just cold and idling.
can anyone explain how a huge chunk of dead leaf blasted out one of my vents the other day?
or better, can anyone w/a shop manual tell me where this supposed filter is located?
thanks...
Art
Since I posted here is what has happened.
- Car currently has 84,000 miles. (03 Civic EX coupe 5spd.)
- Car will not blow hot air in cabin unless car has been driven at cruising speeds for several minutes and then goes cold again when stopping at a light or stop sign, traffic etc.
- Ran self check of electronics on the dashboard heater controls as listed in the service manual. Everything checked out ok.
- Car has overheated twice while at idle sitting in traffic. It would go to the "H" within 2 minutes. Car's temp gauge will IMMEDIATELY go back down to normal while resuming cruising speeds (25 and up mph)
- Replaced thermostat and filled myself thinking that was the problem after it overheated the second time and it was a cheap try to avoid high costs of labor at dealer. After that job, car ran fine for about a day, giving heat all the time. After about a day, car started blowing cold air while sitting at traffic lights etc. and only works while cruising. Smell coolant and a small amount of smoke coming from the vicinity of radiator cap and overflow bottle.
- Take car to dealer.. Dealer says engine is NOT burning coolant and does not notice any visible leaks but does not do a pressure test on system to verify. Dealer diagnoses that I installed a defective thermostat and I did not bleed system of air properly cause of that service bulletin they had posted about the heater core trapping air in system due to part of it being above the radiator cap. I listen and let them do the work taking their word for it. (You can see where this is going). They charge me $160 for all that. Drive the car home, heat works great every time for the night. Let the car idle for long periods of time with the fan blowing on high and hot air still blows out. I think the problem is fixed.
WRONG
- Get in car the following morning. Get to the first traffic light. The car was blowing hot air and the temp gauge is at operating temperature. Car starts blowing ice cold air into the cabin.
- I drive it for about 150 miles throughout the day. At the end of work I drove it down to school. I let the car run as I parked and called the dealer stating the problem was still there. Smoke and the smell of coolant again and no hot air at idle. I also noticed this time the overflow bottle was almost filled to the very top like it was ready to spill out onto the ground.
Bottom line, I am desperate for anyone's help with 2 problems now...
1) The heater problem.
2) The dealer
- I am wondering who I can talk to about getting my money back for doing unnecessary work on my car and if anyone has ever had success with this.
- How can I be assured that they are going to fix this problem the second time I take it in, or are they just going to keep guessing with my money? The only reason I am taking it back to them is because I want to try and get my money back from the first repair and prove that they did not fix the problem the first time.
Any help would be MUCH appreciated. Thank you.
The car is one year old this month and so far:
Two trips to the dealer to have sun roof rattle fixed
One trip to have the A/C repaired
One trip to have the back tires replaced because they were out of round
Tomorrow the car goes back for reoccurring rear tire problem (can`t drive above 110kph for shaking), A/C repair and discussion on why there is a oil film all over the rear bumper when you drive on the highway
All in all I am not at all impressed with my 2006 Civic :mad:
Tint and windshield shades help a lot as do light colored paints and interiors.
On the simpler side, drive for the 1st few minutes with AC on high but NOT recirculate and ALL THE WINDOWS DOWN. get the inside temp down to at least what it is outside, it can be 30-40 degrees hotter in a closed car!
If it is 100 outside, let the AC work on cooling 100 degree air, instead of trying to work on 140 degree air.
After a minute or so, close the windows and switch to max/recirculate.
Park facing away from the sun so the seats aren't absorbing all the UV heat, unless you use a windshield sunscreen, in which case you should park facing the sun.