Hi
Looks like the Air Con unit could do with a Recharge
It's working but not what i'd call Ice Cold.
As their seems to be no prospect of a Summer at least in Glasgow.
I was wondering if it would be cheaper to leave it till the Winter and see if any place were doing a special on Air Con Recharging. Any thoughts on this
Ian.H
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How old is the car? Depending on the age, the next quetsion is, if it needs regassing where has the missing gas gone? There is little point in regassing a system which has leak in it.
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I had the Scenic done at Kwik Fit about three months ago for £45. It went in there not working at all and I can report that its still icy cold and working well three months on.
What appealed to me was the completely automated system they use (reducing scope for muppetry), and the fact that they can't repair the systems so there's no danger of them "finding" leaks or other work to bump up the bill.
They did a grand job (or, more accurately, their machine did). I'd use them again.
Cheers
DP
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Was thinking of Kwik Fit will pop down and see what they say.
As for the Gas disappearing I've no idea ?
I though that over a period of time the Gas gets used up.
Regards
Ian.H
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"I though that over a period of time the Gas gets used up."
No, it's a closed loop system, much like your fridge/freezer. The gas escapes through the joints/seals in the system, but if too much gas goes, then the seals tend to harden, and then no amount of gas will stay in, ever. This is why you should use it regularly, even in winter/dry weather.
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Thanks for the Info
Cars not done a lot of Miles and as it was bought from a Couple
in Glasgow, I doubt if the Air Con was ever used. So hoping a Charge Up
will set it right
If not I can live without it..
Regards
Ian.H
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From what oldnotbold says, taken in context with your final post, I don't think a recharge will do it. The gas has leaked away through seals hardened by lack of use by the previous owners, from the look of it
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I've also used Kwik Fit for a Honda Accord - went in there not doing anything and came out icy cold. Was still working a year later when I put the car to bed for the summer. It's only £45, and they don't charge you if it doesn't make an improvement.
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Please let us know if the re-charge fixes it for you. Naturally, I hope that the answer is the cheap but effective one!
Edited by Armitage Shanks {p} on 14/07/2008 at 23:30
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Will try and get down to Kwik Fit this week
their not to far from me.
Will give an Update on whether or not it can be brought back from the Dead..
Regards
Ian.H
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I recently had my aircon recharged by kwikfit and watched the machines display while it did the job. It measures the amount of gas removed, and does a vacuum test to check for leaks before the recharge among other things. My system was down on performance before the recharge and working well after, it was about 20% down on gas after three years of constant use.
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If you book online, Kwik Fit have an offer on where if you book an MOT (£39.95) they will do an air con recharge for £25 during the same visit.
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Get it done now not in winter as the system needs the oil and gas to lubricate the componants etc. Its not just a question of gas.
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I've often wondered why car air-con systems lose enough of their gas to affect operation in just a few years, yet domestic refrigerators normally last 10 years or more.
Is it just a case of frequency of use/running, or is there something else behind it?
Cheers
DP
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Domestic fridges don't go at 75 mph down the motorway, live out on the drive, and only get used for an hour or two each day in the summer months!
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Domestic fridges usually have the pipework joints brazed/silver soldered together. By necessity car systems have some mechanical compression joints. The compressor, for example, is mounted on the engine, which moves on its mounts but the rest of the system is fixed to the bodywork. there must be some flexible pipework between the two. These pipes are usually mechanical jointed. The domestic fridge will have a hermetically sealed compressor, ie all the moving bits are sealed inside a welded shell with just static seals to allow connectors into it. The car compressor has an open drive, the shaft has to pass through the compressor to drive it. This needs a seal onto a rotating shaft, another possible leak point.
Add in vibration, which is minimal on a hermetic compressor, and you have some causes.
Of course, the car can be driven at speed over rough, potholed roads. This is difficult to do with an average kitchen! :)
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Dropped the Car in to Kwikfit,this afternoon. Waiting for a call to go and pick it up
So I'll find out for sure whether it can be Recharged. Or the Seals have gone.
Will let you know.
Ian.H
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Picked the car up.
Tested the Air Con on the way home.
It's a definete improvement. Wouldn't say you could hang Meat in the back
but better than I expected..
Regards
Ian.H
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Very pleased for you. I hope the fix is permanent.
Edited by Armitage Shanks {p} on 17/07/2008 at 14:51
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Got my Fingers & everything else Crossed.
never had much faith in Kwikfit maybe they will prove me wrong for once
and I'll have Cold Air for the life of the Car..
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I think the only things that the operator of kwikfits machine can screw up is to select the wrong car, or put the two different lub oils in the wrong dispensers.
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