Warm air from Air Con

N

nlldavies

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Hi, I have a problem with my air conditioning system, when set the air flow to "Lo" I get nothing but warm air from the vents etc. which is unbearable in the warm weather.

Anything I can look for before having to send the car to a repairer and face a hefty bill?

Any help appr. Thanks
 
Bit extra info. In past cars with air con I noticed a clicking sound and a slight change in revs when switching air conditioning on and off.

I've not heard anything like this on my Audi. Is suppoed to change engine revs when switched on/off?
 
its supposed to click - this is the compressor clutch kicking in. The revs dip because of the extra load exerted by compressor.

what age/model car is it?
 
Cheers, should have included it:

A4 Avant 1.9TDi 2002 (B6)

N
 
Sounds like you need a regas. Go to an aircon specialist and they'll do it for around £60-£70. That's all it may be, but you could also be facing a leaky component somewhere which gets expensive as the gas should last about 6 years based on 12k miles per year with it on all the time. Turning off the aircon (eco mode) for extended periods is actually really bad for the system as it starts to dry out and crack.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Turning off the aircon (eco mode) for extended periods is actually really bad for the system as it starts to dry out and crack.

[/ QUOTE ]

AndyMac is right there, the aircon system also includes a lubricant which will only be distributed when the aircon is used, so you should always turn it on every couple of days for a few minutes even in winter to keep those seals well lubricated.

Other possible reasons for warm air, could be a bad actuater for the warm air flap, an electrical connection or relay / fuse might be faulty controlling the compressor. Lastly the control unit itself might be faulty.
 
Same problem on mine too, the car was in for service earlier in the week and when my wife picked it up they said the compressor clutch was gone. Is this common on a 51 plate 70,000 mile S3?

Anyone had to buy/fix this themselves, what's involved?
 
I wouldn't take a dealers word for anything to do with the aircon, they generally haven't got a clue.
Take it to an aircon specialist, it'll be cheaper and at least they know what they're doing.
 
Will be doing as soon as I get near it, same thing as the CD changer I asked you about the other day though, I'm seven thousand miles away from the car the next month!
 
Got it booked in with a aircon specialist. He's going to vacuum the system @ £35 and then if there are no leaks regas it with a total cost of £75.

I'm doing 45k per year in the car with the aircon always on so I'm hoping this just needs a regas.

Thanks
 
on the b6 tdi's the clutch is inside the pump/compressor and will not make any clicking and the rev's should not change on or off, if it still don't work after the regas see if the middle of the compressor pully turns on its own if so you will need a new compressor ( just fitted one to mine at 4 years old and just over 60k)
 
The aircon has a pressure sensor which prevents the compressor engaging if the gas pressure in the system is too low, so you could have a damaged condenser.
When the aircon guy vacuums the system out his kit will show how much refrigerant is recovered, and if it is held at a vacuum all the moisture in the system will evaporate as its boiling point will be lowered and this will be sucked out also. If it holds a vacuum it has no leaks and is safe to regas
 
Had car looked at on Friday. Air Con guy connected up some hoses and opened a valve, found some gas still left in the system so looked hopefull.

He did a load of stuff with gauges and weights, re gassed and air con started working.

Performed a leak test around all components, meter started going nuts but could'nt locate leak....he mumbled "you must have a hell of a leak here", started to sound expensive...turns out he had low battery in his meter, new batteries inserted and all ok....phew!

So after a bit of a scare a regas has sorted the system out. £65 all in all.

Arctic Air Conditioning, Llandudno
 
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