Hi Everybody.
The receptionist at work mentioned that her wifes car a/c wasn't functioning properly when her car was at idle, and was slow to cool down when she started driving. Knowing that I do my own repairs on my cars, and light stuff on my work truck, wondered if I'd take a look. They've recently been burned pretty badly by some local shops, so she's wary and hoping to have a rough idea of the issue before going in.
A manifold set showed that the low side pressure would drop down into the appropriate range when the compressor was on, but would immediately start to rise when the compressor disengaged, going well above 150psi, with corresponding changes on the high side dropping and rising.
I wasn't able to easily locate appropriate pressures for low/high on her car via the internet, and told her I'd ask around to see what the general idea of what's wrong might be before they take it to a shop. If does blow hotter-than-atmosphere air from the vents when idling, as if it's not being cooled before entering the cabin, and seems to get hotter.
So, any ideas? I couldn't find if the compressor fan was also the radiator fan, or if it had a separate one, and didn't think to check when I was there. So I'm not positive that the necessary fan(s) are running as they should. I plan to stop back by tomorrow and check that.
So, if the refrigerant is at the appropriate charge (a more basic gauge put it at 50psi on the low side running), and there doesn't seem to be a blockage preventing build up of pressure with the compressor on, what are the possible problems, and their potential fixes?
The receptionist at work mentioned that her wifes car a/c wasn't functioning properly when her car was at idle, and was slow to cool down when she started driving. Knowing that I do my own repairs on my cars, and light stuff on my work truck, wondered if I'd take a look. They've recently been burned pretty badly by some local shops, so she's wary and hoping to have a rough idea of the issue before going in.
A manifold set showed that the low side pressure would drop down into the appropriate range when the compressor was on, but would immediately start to rise when the compressor disengaged, going well above 150psi, with corresponding changes on the high side dropping and rising.
I wasn't able to easily locate appropriate pressures for low/high on her car via the internet, and told her I'd ask around to see what the general idea of what's wrong might be before they take it to a shop. If does blow hotter-than-atmosphere air from the vents when idling, as if it's not being cooled before entering the cabin, and seems to get hotter.
So, any ideas? I couldn't find if the compressor fan was also the radiator fan, or if it had a separate one, and didn't think to check when I was there. So I'm not positive that the necessary fan(s) are running as they should. I plan to stop back by tomorrow and check that.
So, if the refrigerant is at the appropriate charge (a more basic gauge put it at 50psi on the low side running), and there doesn't seem to be a blockage preventing build up of pressure with the compressor on, what are the possible problems, and their potential fixes?