'01 Ford Focus AC Help!

[clembrewer]

The AC in my wife's Ford Focus has warmed up a bit. I'm trying to find the high and low pressure ports to check the system pressure. I found the high pressure port right next to the radiator. Where the heck is the low pressure port?

 

[Chris142]

Gotta be in the suction line between the evap and compressor.

 

[clembrewer]

I know it's there somewhere. Following the line coming from the compressor to the firewall, there is one spot that may be it. It has a sensor attached to it. Does ford do this? This has been bugging the ____ out of me. I'll have to get a shop manual for this car.

 

[clembrewer]

http://www.focushacks.com/index.php?modid=85

Google! The add port is in the front passenger wheel well! Galdarn Ford!

 

[Drew99GT]

Measure the vent temp. 35 to 40 degree drop compared to ambient and you should be good (40 degree drop if it's fairly cool out; 35 degree drop if outside ambient is pretty high). If you can get 45 degrees while cruising down the road after a while, it's good. Even 50 is fine if outside ambient is really hot.

Those low side guages are pretty hard to use accurately.

 

[clembrewer]

I added a 13oz can of interdynamics (ID) "ultra synthetic"w/stop leak. The car was COLD when I was finished, and the needle was just staying in the green on the gauge.

I'll see how long this lasts. It is not possible for me to have a mechanic look at this, so hopefully it'll keep working.

 

[Drew99GT]

What was the ambient outside temp?

Check the pressure next time it gets to 90 or so and you've been using the A/C a bit. Also, check at 2,000 rpm with the system on full blast.

I'm telling you, it's easy to overcharge the ____ out of an R-134a system. It takes a while for pressures to stabalize after adding refrigerant, and even if you end up with a low side of 35 or 40 psi, you may end up with a high side well over 300 (which the little toy guage won't tell you), and if you get into 100+ degree ambient temps, you could make your car into a convertable.

If it "feels" a bit warm (or, not as cold is a better description) on a superhot day and it actually is a bit low on refrigerant (which it may not be), a couple ounces at most will bring it back to spec.

 

[clembrewer]

It was more than a bit warm, there was no cooling at all. When I started adding it, The car was barely letting the compressor cycle. I had stopped adding once the compressor would almost stay running, This is with the AC on Max/Recirculate.

I'll check it again today and see what it says.

 

[clembrewer]

I believe the line was at 25psi. The Add mark on the gauge is 0 - 25psi, The good mark on the gauge was 25 - 40? psi. The gauge's needle was just staying a wee bit over 25.

 

[Drew99GT]

If it was really warm, then you should be OK.

Just trying to help you avoid doing what I did with my car...............overfill it so much it about exploded!

Felt a bit warm to me even though the vent temps were 50 on really hot days and I ended up adding about 12 ounces; that put my high side pressure well over 300 psi and made mince meat out of my compressor.