Your AC died, now what?!? CAR WIZARD shares several reasons why it dies & the repairs to fix it
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- Опубліковано 4 жов 2024
- It's the first real day of summer and you turn on your air conditioning to only be hit with a face full of hot air! Let the CAR WIZARD 🧙♂️ walk you through the numerous reasons why AC systems stop working and what is needed to get you cool again.
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Used to love the old GM vehicles that had "Frigidaire" labels under the hood on the compressor. Frigidaire was owned by GM back then.
Did you know...? Back in the olden days when you would see a company build a product that was used in just about every household in America, there was an actual man (owner) you could point to and probably drive to his house. Someone told me that Bridgeport milling machines was build by someone who took his machine down to Ford in an attempt to sell it to him. Henry Ford was so impressed he wouldn't let him leave before he promised to deliver x machines to him. The Bridgeport created an industry town and an old machinist told me he could get anything he needed in that town. One of those tool companies started building metal toys (cars) and another built Lionel trains. They were still children at heart. Now... back to your comment. General Motors needed a/c in their cars. Since they were already set up to build that type of equipment, they decided to build household refrigerators, hence the Fridgidaire name. Ford did the same under the Philco brand, Chrysler under Airtemp and American Motors under Kelvinator...all fine U.S. made products. Did you know Philco built one of the world"s first satellites? They evolved into Space Systems Loral, originally based in Mountain View, Calif.
I used to feel cooler just seeing the Frigidaire name 🤭🤣
Ah, the good old days when things made sense, back when there were only two genders and we knew which was which.
Same for me too. I also like the Chrysler Air-Temp labels.
@@stuffhappens5681 .. these days a holes a hole 🕳
For those of you who live in snow-land, the road salt can corrode the metal parts in the AC system until they leak.
Oh yes I know this all to well. My 04 trailblazer beater farm vehicle/ winter vehicle that is about to fall apart all the nice silver ac lines are crusty rusty falling apart. I'm amazed it can still blow ice cold ac in 90+ f here in Chicago land suburbs. Moving to TN soon and don't have to worry about salt bucket ruin all my vehicles that are driven in winter.
When I had my my 2001 Lincoln Ls. I had the car rust proofed and always cleaned. It lived in the winters of Canada. When I sold it in 2020. The ac stilled worked and wasn't corroded. You are right, the salt does corrode the lines.
so nice seeing wizard having fun in the videos and not stiff as a board
Number one check is if there is pressure in the lines.#2 check the fuse that controls the compressor clutch.#3 check the belt and tension on the clutch pully.
Little over a year ago I had my ac go out. I started with having the ac recharged. That lasted about an hour. I had my ac system rebuilt for around 1300. I also had to replace the blower motor once. I was able to do that myself for about 80. Living in Texas where we are in 100's I'll gladly keep my ac running even if it means worst gas mileage.
Car Wizard rides again. Watch this baby all the way through. You said exactly what hit my 2007 Mazda 3. I went to pep boys and after 2 hours the tech said I need a new compress etc. $600 ish parts and another $600 labor. I'm in Tucson, Arizona (you should visit in your winter; Hotel Congress) and it blew last year. Nobody beats the Wizard! I wrote that for a t-shirt. Right on the mu'lla'lla 😃
Since 20ish years (at least in Europe) you can also have variable pressure compressor on which the pressure solenoid can stick, and they're really sensitive to the freon charge
Thats the failure I see in the newer ac systems. In the US, that variable pressure solenoid is not sold separately so you get to replace the entire compressor.
I have had the clutch gap get too big on an 02 Civic and 07 Corolla. Classic sign is that when the car is cold, the AC works until the clutch coil heats up and the resistance goes up until the magnet is no longer strong enough to keep the clutch engaged. Will work again when the car is cold. It was easy on these cars to remove the armature plate on the clutch and simply put in a thinner shim. With the Civic, 6 years later and still working. 08 Honda Fit had 3 pin hole sized leaks in the suction hose to the compressor. UV dye could not find the leak. Good old soap and water found the leaks. Replaced the hose. All good.
I had a 2004 Volvo V70 that had this same issue with the clutch gap getting too big. The AC worked just fine until the temperature got past 80F or so and then the compressor wouldn't engage. Volvos from the mid 90s to late 2000s are notorious for this issue. I was also to shim the compressor clutch with zip ties and I never had another issue with the compressor not engaging. Took me 10 minutes to fix it and it cost me about $1.
thank you - 20 yo XJR here in the UK - and probably does need some attention - that video was worth itss weight in gold....
Blessings
Trevor
What a wonderful video. Kudos to all the Wizard family and crew for producing videos with such useful information. I'm a bit "old school" and used to drive a green Hornet with an aftermarket AC system, installed by Sears. It's very helpful to understand why your R2D2 is such an essential tool. I still have vintage cans of Freon for recharging this system in my shed. Because of the Wizard, I know to only add 3 cans of this Freon to my truck.
My parents had a Hornet with no A/C when I was a kid. Vinyl seats too - which were a scorcher in the summer on the way to and from the pool.
Speaking of Freon (R-12), the EPA hates this but a lot of people swap out the R-134a in their systems for R-12a (a mix of propane and isobutane) or R-152a (the propellant in Dust-Off) and get a 30%+ boost in cooling capability of their A/C. Just make sure at least the technicians know so that you don’t contaminate their reclamation systems!
Don't necessarily give-up on an old automotive A/C system. My story might encourage you with the results I had.
My 25 yr. old Toyota Paseo convertible has the original A/C, and it still works. It didn't work when I bought it, and my mechanic found that the system needed a recharge. It uses 134a refrigerant, and he charged it up. About six weeks later the output wasn't getting as cold and my mechanic found the system needed a top-off. He then explained that (in my case) losing part of the charge that quickly was due to the system having gone years without being in-use and that caused all the seals to dry out. He went on to say that now with the system having a charge in it, the seals will absorb the refrigerant/oil and swell-up thus sealing-off better. And that the best way to accomplish swelling the seals and the system holding the charge long-term, is to use the A/C all the time. He went on to say that, as all automotive A/C systems age they develop a lot of micro holes that really can't be found, and they can't be fixed other than replacing just about all of the system components. He told me to keep up with the recharges as needed and the refrigerant loss would ease up. He was right.
After that first top-off the charge held to late springtime the following year, and he topped it off again. Then it needed one top-off that fall after heavy summertime use.
Understand the top-offs are just that. Not for a total loss of refrigerant, only a partial loss when the output wasn't as cool as it could be.
On very hot days I do have an issue with the output warming up more than I'd like when I'm stopped at a light and in heavy traffic. It's not awful, because it's still a lot cooler inside the car than outdoors. My mechanic said, that's normal because the system is so old and there's a lot of wear on the compressor. I say, any car that's 25 yrs. old with miles on it and has A/C working that good is just fine with me.
During the winter I left the A/C button activated because I do that in any car because we have dampness here in New England. In leaving the A/C activated during the winter doesn’t use much in extra gasoline if at all, because the system doesn’t run much in cold weather but enough to remove dampness for a nice comfortably dry cabin. And below 40F outdoors the A/C compressor mostly won’t turn on at all. Other than the times sitting at a traffic light without any wind the under-hood temp rises enough to pop it on.
The top-offs lasted longer each time and reached a point of going almost two years before another top-off, and that seems to be the point that it's leveled off at now.
I need to say that I have a good mechanic that isn't the type to just throw parts at a car, and he only charged me $25 for a top-off. I was pleased that the system never had to be opened-up (so to speak) because it's an original untouched system. It might just be me, but I'd have a concern in replacing, say the compressor, and causing other parts in the system to fail under the full pressure of a new compressor.
Great story. Hope my beloved ‘03 Toyota Tacoma goes 25yrs!!
@@benaldredge2671 Thank you, Ben. I've always thought the Tacoma is the best that Toyota makes. Follow the maintenance schedule. Rust will probably be your most challenging issue.
1990 Toyota Camary. AC never touched 200,000 miles still ice cold.
@@discerningmind if he always rinses the salt off he will never have a lick of problems. His truck will last him a LONG LONG time.
Anyone who doesn’t know how ac works should watch this. Really solid stuff
Had to replace my compressor last year. Actually is pretty easy. You can go to the auto parts store and they will loan you the AC gauges and evacuation pump to reload the AC134. Cost me a $150 (and a couple hours work) instead of $700 at the local repair shop! 🙂
Don't forget to check the condition of the cabin air filter.
and that the fan switch is on any position other than "off"...
if the fan motor resistor is broken then on the highest setting it should still work?
FWIW, my AC guy recommends running a vehicle’s AC at least 5mins each week (even if you don’t need it) to keep things lubricated and to help prevent leaks.
s we so
It keeps the compressor shaft seal lubricated so it doesn't dry out and leak.
I had a 2003 Toyota avensis here in europe, sold it las year and it never had a leack in his entire life. Most of the time, the A/C sistem breaks because the people when it's cold they turn it off, and didn't switch it back on sice half a year or more when the summer comes, when the sistem doesn't have the frion circulating, tends to get cracked and then start's the leaks on the pipes, or the compressor get's stuck... If you make sure to turn it on at least once in a month for a little time, I'm sure it's going to last much longer. Had no problem with any other of my cars, since I never switch it off for so long.
Just spent $900 on a new compressor install. (2001 Buick) Compressor was leaking and I "thought" they could replace the seals "only" but.... Mechanic suggested new Compressor. Well... Still having a problem with temps in the 60's. They also replaced an Orifice Tube. Well... after this great video, I'm sure I'm looking at a condenser, drier, and more to get it back to normal.
Used to be able to replace just the seals, but these days the labor to do so is too high and the failure rate is too.
@@hotpuppy1 Interesting, I did not know that. Cars only got 60,000 miles on it.
My A/c went out in my car on the same day that you posted this video. No joke! Thx for the timely video Wizard.
Back in the day I had a 1990 Volvo 240 that had a bad switch on the dryer/receiver. The Volvo Parts Dept. put up a big stink when I tried to buy a replacement saying that it couldn't possibly be the problem. I finally had to drag the manager out and showed him that when I 'jumped' the switch the AC worked. He finally sold me one - it did the trick.
I only worry about the A/C in my house cause I don’t live in my car. When I was a kid maybe half of the new cars had a/c and many of the cars that were more than a few yrs old that had a/c were “ broken “ unlike like smaller lighter compressors today. The old boat anchor A6 compressor comes to mind. My 18 yr old Accord with 200k still on original compressor with one top off of “ freon” and had to change the clutch out 3 yrs ago
Yup, back in the 80's-90's none of the ac worked in any of the cars my family or I owned. It was a luxury item unobtainable to repair due to $. I guess thats why I learned how to fix it myself, and have all the tools to do it for pennies on the dollar today.
I have a 2001 Subaru Outback LL Bean edition with the H6 and the AC was broken when I bought it. The diagnosis was a failed RPM sensor attached to the compressor that prevented a seizure from destroying the belt or the clutch. The replacement was a $600 episode, but now you can just about freeze meat in that thing~
Great video!
Have the H-6 in my SVX & yes its AC is a total freezer. Not bad for a black car.
Spent about a grand getting my 1988 MR2SC converted to R134A and new compressor and seals throughout. Blows freezing now and is so nice having on long trips. Don't give up on old A/C systems and good shop that's worth their weight should be able to get a R12 system converted properly and working great.
Nothing wrong for being humble, I have had a lot, and now I am in a trailer and I am just as happy as before, I think I am happier to tell you the truth, the neighbors and the laws are so much nicer and freedom is in the air. We even have more animals roaming free, and I mean or wild or domestic. I really love leaving here.
I was one of those guys that tried to recharge my truck. Got one if those cans with the built in guages. Tried to get it to the recommended psi. After a while, it stopped working. Took it to shop and they did a proper recharge. I had ended up over charging it.
Very easy to do on newer cars.
@@CarWizard yea. 2005 GMC. Luckily no harm done, so it was a good 'live and learn' moment
@@crazyeyez1502 lol I had a 95 Chevy pickup and it wouldn't blow cold air anymore. My Dad automatically assumed it was low on freon. He charged it up and later I noticed one of the lines leaking compressor oil. Turns out he busted the o-rings by overcharging it. Luckily I knew a guy who owns a shop, he replaced the o-rings and recharged it for $70. All that was wrong with it before my dad broke it was the pressure switch which would have only cost $25 to replace.
This is one of your best videos in recent memory! Detail you went into is awesome to share with us. Thanks
Been 20 years and A/C working great without ever having a charge or any maintenance but a drive belt. However I rarely use it
Strange occurrence one time when it came to warm output air conditioning. Everything was working; controls, clutch, properly full system, no leaks. it just wasn't producing enough cold air.
The issue was isolated to the condenser itself. Turns out an impact with a foreign object in just the perfect way to collapse but not pop the veins created a pseudo orifice tube/expansion valve. The refrigerant, when pushed through this orifice section, would expand thus causing the cooling effect after the collapse vein. Only the cooling effect was occurring in the engine compartment and not inside the evaporator. By the time the refrigerant made its way to the expansion valve there was nothing left to cool off the evaporator.
One of my favorite videos. Love learning about the systems this way.
I’m currently an ISS at O’Reilly and on Tuesday I start as a Service Advisor at a Ford Dealership. We have condenser samples showing how small the holes are demonstrating why they can’t be flushed. Usually after showing someone that, they start to buy condensers more often. Older condensers they say around 2001 was the transition period have huge holes comparatively.
A friend of mine bought a forester with the loudest screaming A/C compressor I’ve ever heard,looked it over and I recovered 4x the charge amount, vacuum and recharge the correct amount and worked perfect, i was impressed nothing exploded!
My Old 74 Olds. Cutlass Supreme had the Long GM Compressor, it put out the coldest air of any car that I have ever owned and I have had over 25 vehicles in my 60 years of driving...
A data point in support of Wizard's assertion at 1:42: Many years ago, I moved from New England out to California for a job. I had a few weeks to kill in between, so I decided to drive out. The AC in my car worked perfectly until almost exactly the moment I crossed the city limits of Albuquerque, New Mexico, with nothing but hundreds of miles of desert to go--at which point one of the hoses blew and vented the refrigerant.
Time for 84 A/C at that point! 80 mph & 4 windows down!🤪😅
@@MM_in_Havasu Fortunately, that's even more or less legal in Arizona.
Keep your cool. Cyberdyne Systems top man is on the job eliminating the threat and exterminating the problem!
I have just replaced an O ring at the AC system and put some freon in. :))
wizard these videos are invaluable! your knowledge in the mechanic field is second to none! that simple trick of checking the condensation with a UV light is genius. easily one of if not THE BEST mechanic on youtube! keep it up
The warmth of recalling an old memory from a much younger version of this mind through a delightful childhood reappraisal mechanism exercise.... when a Dodge-Chrysler AC compressor and a fab.'d/modded bracket were not uncommon add-ons (in addition to the working existing AC of a farm or ranch truck or, if the existing AC system was no longer used, the compressor and hoses being ~repurposed).... along with a regulator/blow-off or..... simply a switch to control the clutch 🤔🤷♂️ where the AC compressor served duty as an onboard air compressor for airing up everything from a puncture kit repaired pick-up truck tire up through farming implement tires and tractor tires when far and away from any services and an air bubble was simply not going to hold enough air to get the jobs done.
....Anyhow, nowadays, we have transferable / portable air compressor options that are powered off the 12-volt accessory jack and, yet, those AC compressors flowed alot of air volume quickly to get the farm back into operation but you had to be careful to stop the compressor before over-pressurizing. 🍻
I had that exact problem with the condenser fan. It was fine until summer started getting warm last year. I think I probably killed it when I wound up driving through deeper water than expected.
Thanks Wizard! The Evap Core information was very helpful as mine just went out. Fortunately covered under warranty and was diagnosed correctly the first time.
On for series 12 of Trailer park boys me and the wife have been binge watching over the last few weeks I had never heard of it until recently came across it while looking for a film to watch , watched the Europe one had me crying with laughter .
This video is perfect timing for me. I know the clutch isn't engaging every time. It's intermittent. Now I just need my stupid aftermarket warranty to pay for it.
When I bought my 1979 Toyota 4x4 truck it did not come with factory air. Air conditioning was dealer installed. The compressor was permanently engaged. I lost the system in Blythe California. When had it repaired at another Dealer they told me that first dealer had installed junk. The fix was very low charge of coolent. Air con worked for the rest of the trucks life. It was a great truck and someone 12 years latter wanted it more then me.
I watch all your videos Wizard. I learned more in this video than almost every other one.
Great job explaining
My son's 2011 v6 mustang had the high side line crack near the compressor. $30 part so am easy fix. Something to watch for. Daughter's 2010 mustang had evaporator leak. Used the Red Angel stop leak, the 2oz bottle, worked great. Highly recommend instead of tearing the whole car apart.
Wizard your comedy is getting a lot better.
I am a residential maintenance man I have come across Chrysler airtemp air conditioner for homes and Colt firearms fuse boxes the best refrigerator I ever had was a Crosley
I came across a Savage washing machine.
I had ac problems with a Honda it Was rely that blew, and then found the valves for filling falled too...
Guy showed and explained it all to me.
Looked like tyre valve.
Had my 90 Geo Storm a/c replaced after it died from a t-bone. They tried to fill it with modern refrigerant. It had to be R-12 or it didn't get cold. They got caught and ate it. Go to an A/C specialist or get screwed. Thanks Wizard!!
Hey Car Wizard, I just lost my AC in my 2001 Ford Ranger. By the way, the reason it is not working is because it threw the AC Compressor clutch while driving down the road. And it can do that if you have a manual transmission and miss a gear causing you to over rev an engine, or if the AC Compressor locks up. In my case I am thinking that the AC Compressor locked up. And for all you kids out there that like to hot road your car, as well as Drag Race it is a good idea to turn that AC off if you have a manual transmission so you do not cause an AC Compressor clutch to be thrown due to missing a gear and over rev-ing your engine, or just choose not to go drag racing.
This vlog have me the chills
I find folks who "top off" with little cans of refrigerant to generally be bad idea, usually they will put way too much in, low pressure will be way to high and possible damage to occur. Pay a mechanic to evacuate your system and fill to factory load if your car is 10+ years old. You can get away sometimes with the cheap little cans with cheasy guage but if it's never been touched in 10+ years, just pay someone to do it properly
Had a 2004 Chevy Impala LS that wife drove for 18 years, never any problem with AC in all those years, it was a 3.8 liter, best car that we have owned...
That final shot of wizard talking shows how high the production and overall quality is now
My 2006 Scion XB had a rock puncture in the condenser when I bought it. The front of this car is almost flat, so i'm not surprised. When I replaced the condenser I put some black gutter mesh in behind the bumper to possibly prevent rocks hitting it in the future, so far so good.
Good stuff, very informative video.
Thanks Wizard and Mrs Wizard!
I remember the good ol' days when AC systems had a sight glass to check the quantity of liquid freon in the system. You could add freon to your system, by yourself, if you saw too many bubbles in your sight glass. I still have the kit to do that, along with a 40 year old can of R12.
Cool stuff! Had the same equipment in mom's 69 442 Olds so easy to top it off. That a/c lasted until 1981 when I traded for a 280zx. Too bad it was rusted!!
R 12 is extremely expensive these days, not worth keeping installed.
My son's '02 Toyota Tacoma PU truck has a receiver/dryer w/sight glass on it, reminiscent of the good ole days with R12 freon. Works just as good, and made it easier to check after complete A/C system overhaul last spring for him. He says he has to turn down the A/C output on hot days as it will freeze him out of the truck, LOL.
I had an a/c compressor clutch fail on our Forester. Something with the magnet wasn’t working properly. It worked fine in cooler temperatures but if it got hot it would fail to engage or only engage sometime. I later found out it’s a sorta well known issue with a few model years of the Forester.
Official fix from the Subaru dealer was to replace the whole compressor + clutch assembly for like $2k. Parts catalog confirmed the clutch isn’t sold by Subaru at all except as a full assembly. I ended up buying an aftermarket replacement clutch and installed it myself. It’s been working fine ever since!
I went this route since I didn’t have the money to do a whole compressor assembly and I knew I didn’t have the equipment either. The clutch was something I could do with the tools I had. I can see why at a shop though it’s just better to do a whole assembly.
Derek, spambots are posting s*** all over the platform and I am sorry for my french
Great job I love it when people get to do it themselves and cheaper then the shops
My 2003 Baja had the same symptoms. The gap on the compressor clutch had worn and got wider over the years. It would not pull in. I found a hack for the 3 tang clutch design, you slip plastic bread wrapper tabs under the three tangs to increase the pressure against the clutch. Been working for nearly 10 years.
@@martinmicheal4595 also, you will deal with spambots ruining the channels nowadays, must've been Enclave owners and spambots are troublemakers
I'm probably not the first to say it, but you have a great selection of sci-fi movie shirts.. I look forward to seeing what's next.. Elliot has cat shirts & you have scifi.. lol
Always check your AC Schrader valve esp after you fill it because those things are notorious for leaking your freon out. Usually it's the one on the low pressure side but there is a high side.
Something shops never talk about...If your AC only quits in very hot weather, check the gap between the compressor clutch plate & the pulley. It should be about .020" As it gets up to the high 30s, approaching .040", the compressor clutch will not have the strength to pull the clutch in. Hot weather will open up this gap more than moderate weather, so the problem first becomes visible in very hot weather. You can address this by removing the clutch plate and taking out one of the shims. Button it back up and you are good to go. If you do your own work, this is something you will want to check and address yourself. If you take your car to the shop, it only makes sense to do this if the compressor clutch plate can be removed without pulling the compressor. If they have to pull the compressor to get the clutch plate off, you are back to the question of whether the labor cost is so high that you might as well get a new compressor.
David please tell your customers the evening winter they have to fire up their AC at least for one minute per day to prevent the seals from leaking
Yea. Finally more mechanical discussions.
Had an AC pressure switch fail on my audi 3.0tdi, caused the radiator fans to go max speed all the time and car not warming up regardless of the AC on or off. also climate control auto modewas setting the blower motor to almost full blast as well
gotta love German engineering. I had a bmw z3; spent more on replacement parts than all my other cars combined. Hope yours was better.
Great video. These mechanical videos are the best
Good tip on the evaporator, Going to have to check that. Can't find any leaks around the AC lines or compressor or condenser.
Just think if you were doing service on a home dehumidifier or refrigerator when it only holds a tablespoon or two of refrigerant. No margin for error>>works fine, freezes up or is warm is all close.
Just goes to show you how much harder things are to fix than they used to be. You can't even fill up some of your fluids properly without having some ridiculously expensive piece of kit. I am beginning to understand why garages charge such ridiculous sums. Glad I can do a lot of lesser jobs myself.
Very complete, Professor Wizard.
How do you never say "um"? It's really impressive, and shows you have a lot of confidence in the things you, um, say. 😀
EXTREMELY PERTINENT video !!! You are sooo right with the WalMart refill cans ! Stay away from those ! It is a precise science. I changed the whole system on my 1996 318iC. Like you said, did everything right and had it filled with the machine at the garage. Works perfectly....The mechanic was sure I had done something wrong along the way, but no!!! Blows COLD !!!! AND I can confirm why it is expensive work, because those parts are not easy to reach, specially the expansion valve under the dash !!! And don't forget you have to use the right amount of oil which is impossible for me to know because there is no way to mesure what's left inside the system....
Great video. I've done 5 vehicle ac swaps myself, 4 successfully. Lol. Ac doesn't work in my truck because of the clutch. Does work, but it sounds terrible. Have the parts to fix it, may take it to a shop. Being a 90 Dodge Cummins, I can run the non ac belt.
As a mechanic I've done tons of AC jobs and these are all good tips. AC is one of those jobs where doing it right the first time will save a lot of headache and money in the long run.
The driver side wiper always wears out first because... you look out the left side more
Over 102° here in Ballinger everyday, I wear a suit in the funeral business and my 2000 DTS that I Love its hot..my identical '08 is perfect..have several other newer cars...but they are collector cars under covers...been over 106° lately...aaargh!
Dealing with this on my mother's 12 Juke. No apparent leak in the engine bay as far I can tell, not getting any built up residue or dark spots but it's losing 134A fast.
I've seen leaks in the evaporator. A detector can tell
@@ne2i that's my next step, getting one of those refrigerant sniffers. How have you seen them in the evaporator? I imagine that's not too easy to get to
@@CAepicreviews You can use a sniffer in the vents or in the ac drain. Also if the system has dye, you can check for dye in the drain tube of the evaporator. Also, check the service ports closely. Thats where I find the majority of leaks.
GF's tiguan kept having A/C quitting when it's hot. Turned out it was the main fan controller (built into the fan). When she got home it would always work. Took me longer than it should to troubleshoot that one.
If your doing it at home invest in a vacuum pump and manifold gauges. I had bad O-rings on my Subaru Outback. They were the 2 located right at the compressor. Since you now have exposed your system to outside moisture and humidity you need to suck that all out. In my case 45 minutes. 30 minutes at the correct negative pressure. Basically suck it down until the desired reading and shut the pump off. If the system is sealed correctly it should maintain the desired reading. Then run the pump for another 15 minutes to ensure all moisture is evacuated from the system. To fill you want to see how much refrigerant you need plus the PAG-oil type and quantity. Get a small digital scale and weigh the full cans and deduct the actual fluid ounce marked. It will make life alot easier. My Subaru now has ice cold Air Conditioning at about 39 to 42 degrees after a 30 minute run time.
air conditioning is a must have here in AZ!
unbelivable!!! i have the same brown colored CROCS MYSELF i bought them about 2004 ,,,so they getting near antiques @ 3:40
The car wizard is so classy. What a great guy.
The Car Wizard is rocking a Skynet t-shirt that is so kewl.
great video Mr. & Mrs. Wizard. lots of good info !!
I once went through 3 compressors in less than 6 months because the parts the shop was getting from their supplier were defective.
They finally forced the distributor to replace it with a better brand. Then it lasted 2 years before it stopped again. A diffrrent shop looked at it and said it was the compressor again. I took it back to the first shop to see if there was any warranty left. They said it wasn't the compressor but a line. The other shop first thought maybe it was a line but then said it was the compressor. So 2 shops in 2 days said 2 different diagnosises. Finally the shop that had replaced all those compressors in the past said they were so confident it was the line that if I paid the $375 to replace the line and it ended up.being the compressor that they'd replace the compressor a 4th time. It turned out it was the line and it's been fine for the last 8 years. But I am on my 6th compressor counting the factory one that was in the car when I bought it 18 years ago. This is a 95 Pontiac Trans Am I still own. I've probably spent upwards of $2500 on the A/C system over the years.
Just roll in this monday...1995 W140
Evaporator is leaking.
It's a common failure in Taiwan for these European cars.Workshop says it's because evaporator's material made by aluminum ,if it's made by copper it can last almost forever.
And mono valve is a common failure too, just replaced few month ago.The part is super expensive about 600 USD labor is only like 35 USD.
When mono valve fail the cold and hot air will blow out at same time.
So many people choice bypass mono valve, cause AC is a big deal in Taiwan but heater is not.
In the shop an GL450 is replaceing evaporator too...the thing only had 40k miles...
I know the car is leaking freon about 3 monthe ago.
I notice engine temp goes up to about 100°C when idle and fan didn't work , asked workshop they recharge it everything goes back to normal.
Last week came to workshop to do regular service, find out evaporator is leaking really badly.
The car needs 1.15kg it leak 300g in 3 month.
Car still in workshop need about a week have to take whole dash out.
The bill for whole job is about 700 USD Include labor.
My '94 Chevy Suburban w/rear air has yet another bad compressor unit(the dreaded "pancake" or radial compressor once again), still blows cold but sounds like it's going to shell out any time now when running, and the rear evap core expansion valve has ceased to work again(a 6 hr. job to access requiring removal of half of the interior trim in back and cutting open a fiberglass housing), so fun time! Another $500 for a compressor, expansion valve and receiver/dryer plus hi pressure switch and low & high side fill ports(hi side uses a rubber check ball that has failed in the past for me with normal system pressure)., plus a trip to my local A/C shop to evac the system for me to save a bit on freon costs. I have my own vacuum pump so I can replace all said components and leak check it. Use green dye to color the system gasses, easy to leak check w/blacklight at night. Barrels of fun!
Here in Lake Havasu, summer temps are routinely 105-110 days and 85-95 nights so A/C is a must-have here.
I've got an A/C issue on my Merc... The A/C sounded like Darth Vader and then the light flashed 3 times and stopped.
It was low on freon, had it filled back up and result! A/C working... For 2 days!!! Darth Vader returned and now it's flashing red, 5 times!
Code says check refrigerant level but it's just been done, no signs of a leak so more to this than meets the eye.
Will give this a watch and will hopefully get some tips!
Some cars will disable the A/C if there are certain check engine codes to make you get the car serviced.
Here to say General Motors has the 🥶 coldest AC . Some have 35 degrees on center vent
Best auto shop teaching explanation👍👍
My dad's car had a leak after i replaced the all like the 3 rubber lines it has and there was a leak still but was under vacuum. On a whim i thought well how about I checked the valve, so what i did was I pulled off the low side coupler and loud hiss it was still under vacuum. And i suspected it a valve was bad and lucky i purchased a kit to replace a whole bunch a valves and it came with a tool to take it off change it also on the high side, fixed that no more leak and held vacuum beautifully and fixed it
Rockin' the jorts, Wizard. Nice contrast with the zombie white legs. Carry on, son.
I have an old 911 that has AC, it was empty when I purchased it. Being a tradesman in that field it was instantly apparent that the cost of recharging for an old R12 setup was too much. Remove the compressor , condenser. Took about 25 lbs off. Did not by it for AC anyway.
I had a 1984 Ford LTD for a week when the A/C turned warm. Turned out the low-pressure governor failed. The mechanic jumped around it, warned me to switch the A/C off if it turned warm (because he had bypassed the safety cutoff), and I had A/C again. I can't remember if I ever replaced the governor or not before I wrecked it a couple years later.
I had a 2010 Ford Taurus that wasn't cooling right on a hot day and the car was still brand new. I took it to one dealer and they wouldn't even look at it so I took it to another dealer and they rode around in it and took it back in the shop and came back the problem was it came from the factory with TOO MUCH FREON. TOO MUCH is just as bad as not enough. I had a mechanic in Louisville KY that told me that isn't a car on the road that he can't find a leak on. He said he was at a seminar at a Ford Dealer and while they were on break, they went out in the showroom and found leaks on brand new cars.
I've also seen where people use their car like a snow plow and it smashes all the cooling fins on the condenser flat making it worthless at slow speeds or traffic.
I had a millenial workmate who didn't know how to look after a car..he had never even changed the oil himself...didn't know how the coolant recovery system worked...didn't even keep the windscreen washer bottle full.
He had bought his 1994 Nissan some 5 years previously and had never had the airconditioning working because "it was broken".
I asked to take a look at it.
He switched the engine on and hit the a/c switch....no a/c.
I looked at the fan switch...on "0".
I asked him to switch the fan to "1"....a/c blasted cold air......
He had driven a car without a/c (unnecessarily) for 5 summers...and also had not had the benefit of dried air on the screen in winter....
No surprise there!
Here's a novel idea>>read the MANUAL! It's amazing what you can learn!
@@hotpuppy1
JDM car...can you read Japanese????
Actually, even with him reading the manual...he still has so little background in mechanical things (but a degreee in computer science) that it would be gobbledegook anyway...
Car dad AC talk. Love it
I have found that overcharged AC units are usually due to a "loose nut" behind the wheel. Thanks Wizard and Wife as always.
There is no correlation between your statement and the end result.
Good information to know, will keep in mind at my shop. We have seen a few evaporator core leaks here, a majority of them on Toyotas.
I had a car aircon system that was not running at a cool eneough temperature. A local shop checked it out and found that the evaporator (this is the part that the fan in your car blows or sucks the air through to cool it down) was clogged with dog hair (I have 2 border collies in the car most days). The shop blew the hair out using a high pressure air hose and the problem was fixed. Fluffy lambs fleece seat covers are also a common cause of this problem.
I would say watch out for the type of A/C compressor that doesn't have a clutch. VW definitely used them between 2010-2020, and potentially other vehicle manufacturers as well. I was buying a pre-owned car that had one of these (little did I know at the time). It was January in a northern climate when I took delivery of the car. I wanted to confirm the A/C worked before I signed off on the deal. So I switched on the A/C and took a look under the hood, and the compressor was quite obviously turning. Come spring time I switch the A/C on and it has no cold air to give. And this is when I found out about externally controlled variable displacement A/C compressors :/
Mrs. WIZARD reminds me of Mrs. Incredible every time she speaks