Its a record hot day in the UK today. Had the air con on full whack and it doesn't seem that cold.


Its the 3 zone climate control on a 55 3.3. Closed other vents, sent temp to low, and the air coming out was colder than the outside air but not freezing.


My last car would make my hand start to go numb after doing this.


Is this a symptom of needing a recharge? Or is this just as good as the voyager is? If I get a recharge should it also be cleaned and lubricated? Sometimes in the winter there is the occasional rotten smell from the heater and the car struggles demisting. Gets lovely and warm though.


Got a very long drive coming up and if I can make it more comfortable in this heat that would be great. But I don't want to waste my money. If there is a leak is it expensive or can it be bandaged like an exhaust?


Sorry if this is a noob car owners question!

 

This does seem to be the time to notice this. It was 82deg outside today even under cloud its raining now however. Had the blower on and its in LO setting. Not that frosty cold blow of air I notice more an outside intake of air that seems colder as its being blown. Looks like it needs a recharge but will I bother as I don't travel big distances except for Flee-bay Items.

 

I had a steady 89. Don't often travel far, usually just flee-bay too! But going on holiday to Wales and will be in the car for 5 hours each way.


Many of the quickfit \ f1 style garages don't charge if there is no improvement so I think I'll get it done as if it works great, if it doesn't no charge means I haven't wasted much, and if there is a leak they'll prob find it with their dye anyway.

 

It is standard in all air con systems to lose a percentage of refrigerant per year. I imagine that if you have never had your car recharged then it will probably just need the system evacuating followed by a recharge. Positive news that it is still blowing fairly cool air.

 

A lot of things I read online suggested that it blows hot when it needs recharging? I would say mine blows cold like in a car that doesn't have air con, or maybe just the slightest hint of aircon.

 

Not necessarily. It would blow hot if all of the refrigerant has leaked out or when running there isn't enough pressure, so the low pressure sensor will disable the clutch on the compressor from engaging. Or there could be a series of electrical faults. Or maybe the receiver drier or expansion valves could be blocked. Aircon is slightly more complex than just blowing hot it needs a recharge. The fact that yesterday was so hot, if it wasn't working you would have really just had warm air blowing through, slightly cool if it was set to full fan. If it is still feelings slightlly cool just not as cold as usual then it probably just needs a recharge. One way to check if there is sufficient refrigerant in the system to allow it to operate is to;
- locate a/c compressor
- have someone sit in the drivers seat with engine running
- whilst watching the compressor get the helper to press the a/c button. Do you hear a click? Notice the compressor clutch engaging? A slight increase in engine revs? If so then you have enough refrigerant in the system and just need a service to get it back to the correct charge.

 

My ac was running empty and the result was poor cooling. The problem is you start to question yourself.. is it cooling or not? Is it really cooler than before, or is it just the cooling of the flowing air?

AC stations can test your airco and they perform a vacuum leaking test (to see if there are any leaks) before doing a refill. As already said, over the years every AC system leaks a little.

I was stunned by how well the ac cooled after a refill! Now I drive around with a big grin, windows closed, in todays tropical heat

 

Just echo'ing what others have said. I have an 05 2.8crd and if I put the air-con on lo and set blowers to full blast I wouldn't like to sit in the car too long, I'd freeze to the seat!

So yes, I'd say get it down to a garage and get a recharge. If you're in the UK try kwik-fit (I know, I know!) but they do a deal, if it doesn't make the car cooler, no charge for it, which is handy if you're not 100% sure if you have a refrigerant leak or if it just need a recharge.