A/C Not Cool

CRuD Bucket · **Posted:** Mon Nov 09, 2009 6:53 pm

I was playing Sirius pretty loud during a two hour project in the garage yesterday and I ran the battery down. Little Mack wouldn't start so I charged the battery for an hour and he fired right up. Today I was on the road and turned on the A/C but it just blew warm air. I checked some fuses but nothing jumped out at me. Any tips? Thanks!

CRuD Bucket · **Posted:** Tue Mar 09, 2010 6:24 pm

A/C Season is here. Haven't taken it in to the local shop yet. Any ideas? My loss of "coolness" seems too sudden to be a leak???

BVCRD · **Posted:** Tue Mar 09, 2010 7:25 pm

Next time, don't have it on quite so loud.

kapalczynski · **Posted:** Tue Mar 09, 2010 7:39 pm

I would check the system pressure with a gauge. Autozone, advanced, checker, etc sells the gauge/fill hose and the R134-A for replenishing a system (about 10.00 a can). If the pressure is low, try refilling it. If It holds you are ok, but if it leaks out it will start to get warm over time and you will have to find the leak, fix it and recharge.

I have had to recharge mine twice since I purchased it due to disconnecting the lines a couple times. First time to get the intercooler out to clean it (I found a leak in the intercooler) and a second time to replace the intercooler with a new one.

AZ CRD · **Posted:** Tue Mar 09, 2010 8:14 pm

Just had my A/C serviced. The tech said it was down to 0.7lbs of refrigerant when it should have 1.1. He recharged it and I should soon see if it have a small leak or if it were simply depleted over time.

BlackLibertyCRD · **Posted:** Wed Mar 10, 2010 8:03 pm

Mine needed a leak fixed over a couple of years ago. Took the dearler three trys to find the leak and I had to live with it for a month. :furious:

danoid · **Posted:** Wed Mar 10, 2010 9:48 pm

Check to see if your electric fan is working. Mine was disconnected by a dealership and I had no cool under 70 mph.

CRuD Bucket · **Posted:** Thu Mar 11, 2010 8:29 am

Thanks for the help on this. I'll check the pressure and the fan. I wondered if a relay didn't get fried during my "power outage." I would normally have a hard time relating the dead battery and the dead A/C but it seems a little ironic that both failures occurred at the same time.

CRuD Bucket · **Posted:** Thu Mar 11, 2010 3:44 pm

The fan isn't working. Short of taking it to the stealership, is there a simple process of elimination? I looked at the fuses under the hood but I can't tell if those big black ones with all the prongs are blown. Could it be the fan motor itself?

danoid · **Posted:** Thu Mar 11, 2010 7:09 pm

Mine was simply unplugged. Has the fascia been removed lately?

CRuD Bucket · **Posted:** Fri Mar 12, 2010 9:15 am

Nope. The only thing I did was charge the battery after I ran it down. :cry:

kapalczynski · **Posted:** Sun Mar 14, 2010 12:24 am

CRuD Bucket wrote:

The fan isn't working. Short of taking it to the stealership, is there a simple process of elimination? I looked at the fuses under the hood but I can't tell if those big black ones with all the prongs are blown. Could it be the fan motor itself?

Many of those relays are the same part number you could switch the fan relay with a known good relay. If that doesn't work I would pull the fan out and run 12 volts to it and see if it spins. If not theres your issue, if so its somewhere in the wiring between there and the dash heater controls I would bet.

Also of note...the AC compressor will NOT turn on if the AC refrigerant is low. There is a pressure switch for the AC that if its low pressure will not allow the compressor to run.

The fan may not come on if the compressor is off due to the low pressure if that is how the circuit was wired. But it could also be strictly the circuit from the blower controls that controls the fan.

Hope all that helps u get it going!

CRuD Bucket · **Posted:** Tue Mar 16, 2010 6:37 pm

I switched fuses and relays around and they all seem good. I was able to unplug the fan and get 12V to it and it spins. Also bought a test kit/refill at Advance and the pressure is good. What's left? The compressor itself? I think that's beyond my capabilities. Sigh... :cry:

kapalczynski · **Posted:** Fri Mar 19, 2010 5:12 pm

CRuD Bucket wrote:

I switched fuses and relays around and they all seem good. I was able to unplug the fan and get 12V to it and it spins. Also bought a test kit/refill at Advance and the pressure is good. What's left? The compressor itself? I think that's beyond my capabilities. Sigh... :cry:

OK, now were gettin somewhere. You know the fan is good. It probably ONLY comes on when the AC compressor itself is activated. Since the compressor and fan aren't coming on, something is preventing it. Only thing I can think of is your AC coolant is low(low pressure) and the switch is not allowing the compressor to turn on, or there is a wiring issue (not too likely given the newness of the vehicle). Your pressure reading you took, I imagine was when the compressor was off?

You could:
(1) Empty the system and refill ~3 cans refrigerant (push down the center of the valve like a tire valve to release refrigerant) or
(2) Try one can with the refill kit and see if the compressor starts coming on...if so, it definitely needs refrigerant (usually takes 3 cans from empty).

I had same issue of a high pressure reading until the compressor came on. the gauge does not seem to be accurate w/o compressor running and should read in the "high" or "unsafe" area w/o compressor on.

PM me w/your phone number if you have questions or want me on the phone while you trouble shoot or try to refill. I'm happy to help

- Mark

CRuD Bucket · **Posted:** Sat Mar 20, 2010 9:16 am

Thanks so much for your offer but I figured I had gone as far as I could go, given my limited abilities and (no) testing equipment. I took it to a local shop. They've done a great job on everything I've taken to them so far and they are only a mile from my house. They said the refrigerant was low (I tested it per the instructions on the kit which said to test the pressure with the A/C going full tilt). It's kind of an idiot test (low/normal/high) and it fell within the normal range but it still may have been low. The main culprit though, was some type of sensor or switch that was preventing the compressor from engaging. When the mechanic bypassed the switch, the compressor would kick on. They showed the part to me and they got one in but it was the wrong one or the threads were different. They may have ordered an aftermarket part because the mechanic said he might have to get it from the stealership. Problem solved, or at least it will be within a few days. I'll get more information on the part itself and post; hopefully it will help someone. Thanks again for all the input!

kapalczynski · **Posted:** Sat Mar 20, 2010 2:14 pm

CRuD Bucket wrote:

Thanks so much for your offer but I figured I had gone as far as I could go, given my limited abilities and (no) testing equipment. I took it to a local shop. They've done a great job on everything I've taken to them so far and they are only a mile from my house. They said the refrigerant was low (I tested it per the instructions on the kit which said to test the pressure with the A/C going full tilt). It's kind of an idiot test (low/normal/high) and it fell within the normal range but it still may have been low. The main culprit though, was some type of sensor or switch that was preventing the compressor from engaging. When the mechanic bypassed the switch, the compressor would kick on. They showed the part to me and they got one in but it was the wrong one or the threads were different. They may have ordered an aftermarket part because the mechanic said he might have to get it from the stealership. Problem solved, or at least it will be within a few days. I'll get more information on the part itself and post; hopefully it will help someone. Thanks again for all the input!

The compressor pulley is always turning so you may have thought it was "on", but the clutch on the pulley only engages the compressor itself when there is enough refrigerant because of that switch/sensor you mentioned which may explain your false reading. It is most likely one of these. Please let us know what you find. I am curious to see if this is going to be a regular component to fail on our jeeps. I'm glad they got it figured out & you're up and running!

AC pressure sensor:

A/C cycling switch

CRuD Bucket · **Posted:** Sun Mar 21, 2010 9:32 am

Yup, that's what they showed me!

kapalczynski · **Posted:** Sun Mar 21, 2010 6:17 pm

CRuD Bucket wrote:

Yup, that's what they showed me!

Which one failed? Just curious.

DOC4444 · **Posted:** Sun Mar 21, 2010 6:36 pm

CRud Bucket,

Sorry i did not look at this thread sooner. I hope the AC shop included some dye when they recharged. This way, when the AC stops working next time, you can go over the system with a "black" (UV) light and find the leak. If they didn't, have them do it the next time it needs to be recharged.

DOC

CRuD Bucket · **Posted:** Mon Mar 22, 2010 9:00 am

I'll get a part number or whatever when I go back in to get the correct part installed. They did put some dye in when they recharged the system. They said it was low and that I may have a small leak.

A/C Not Cool

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