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My a/c unit works nicely, but what doesnt seem to work is the outside air duct when i put it on, all i get is cold a/c air coming circulating. Im running around with full a/c on all the time when all i want is just outside air.
Heard it might be a relay switch. Any helpful knowledgeable comments?
Thanks.
I have a 1998 Old Intrigue 3.8L and everything regarding climate control, cruise control, etc has been working perfectly fine until this spring.
In this spring 2010, I noticed that my a/c compressor was not kicking on when I would press the a/c button on the control panel which was weird (everything worked fine last year). Over time, things have generally gotten extremely worse..
-AIR FLOW DIRECTION: I have no control over fan direction. None of the climate control lights seem to work when you press any of the options. Including rear defrost.
-FAN: The fan blows if the fan speed is at full blast ONLY and usually when you set the fan speed it takes 2-5 minutes for the fan to even start blowing. Plus it seems to be blowing through all directions, as it will not let me select any specific air flow.
-HEADLIGHTS: At night when driving, my headlights will only work when the fan is on (like mentioned before is only on full blast) if I lower the fan speed to anything else other than full blast, my headlights go out but the yellow driving lights stay on. I then turn it back to full blast, drive around with no headlights for a few minutes waiting for the fan to kick back on, then my headlights will turn on.
-BUTTON LIGHTS: Originally the a/c light would come on when you push the button, but now the a/c light doesn't even work. The rear defroster worked when the a/c light worked but now that light does not work at all and cannot turn on either. The only button lit is the 'fresh air intake' button but nothing else is on and you cannot select anything else. I also noticed that the 'fresh air intake' light flickers when switching the fan speeds from one to another. Also the backlit lights for the climate control still work.
-Heat: The heat seems to still come through the vents when I turn up the temp but I would assume that is mostly engine heat coming through so I dont know for sure if the heat core(?) is still working or not because of all these other climate controlled issues.
-CRUISE CONTROL: The cruise control button light on the dash still stays lit when pressed but when I try to set a speed the green light that says 'Cruise' on my dash flicks on for half of a second and never fully engages. So whatever this problem is, is affecting my cruise control also.
I did however change my stock cd/tape deck for an aftermarket cd player this spring because I had a stinkin tape adapter stuck...but I'm pretty knowledgeable on how to install those. Plus they make it pretty fool proof to install those with all the wiring harnesses so no wire cutting is required. I just hope I didnt cause anything because of it. Plus the cd player functions perfectly fine!
In the beginning of this spring these issues were intermittent and just gradually got worse, but now they are happening more often or its not working at all..I did read many of these forum posts and I would assume that it may have something to do with the Ignition Switch because I am having some of the same or related issues.
Any ideas?
Where do I start to fix this problem ? I was going to replace the switch in the dash.
Thought I would ask here first.
Thanks
Also here's a discussion on a different forum that may help:
http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=951142&highlight=actu- ator
Also thanks for the great link
Mark
Any ideas which one maybe my problem.
the first two were a
1. mode
2 . temp
3. i forgot the last one
1. mode
2. air Inlet
3. temperature
4. Defroster
My guess would be to replace the mode actuator . And let me add that is just a guess.
Some help here would be great on which one is my problem.
Mark
It actually was the ignition switch that fixed most of the small electrical problems I was having.
I have to wait for the weather to get a little warmer to check if the A/C works. Weird thing is I turned on the A/C and didnt hear the compressor kick on so I may be just be out of freon... or its just still too cold outside for me to tell a difference.
ctdunnagan- I appreciate the info, and I may contact you if i need anything to see what parts you have.
Now A/C and cruise control are back to normal.
Same story, shop initially said ignition switch could not cause these issues-well they had to take that back but at a $500 bill to diagnose and changeout.
It is also possible for you to check by the fuses to make sure you still have 12 V to the fuses. That is what causes the problems is a voltage drop. Hope that helps. Good luck.
after I buy and install my new ignition.
And I cant believe it...! My cruise control and air conditioner vents
work nomal again. And the Air is no longer cold on one side and
hot on the other. And it now blows good.
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