AC Mystery leak

iaind

iaind

iaind

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So when I got the car, the AC didn't work at all - a kwik fit regas later and it was fine...for two weeks!

So took it to a local bloke who does AC repairs and he looked it over, couldn't see anything obvious so filled it again but put fluorescent dye in it too. After a week or so, it stopped working again so took it back to him. He couldn't find a single spot of dye anywhere around the system.

The only thing he could think of was the O rings for the evaporator, as it's the only bit he couldn't get to easily with the torch. So I picked up the O rings from honda and took it back to him yesterday to fit them, but after he got the evaporator casing out he calls to say there's absolutely no sign of any dye in the casing either.

He said the only part of the system that doesn't look perfect is the condenser, so he advised that's the thing to replace. But he's absolutely baffled at the lack of dye so it would definitely be a replacement by trial and error, which I'm not keen on! There's definitely dye in the pipes, so its not that there's no dye at all.

The only other thing i could spot was a bracket for the cruise control throttle cable was rubbing against one of the rubber AC hoses and has worn it down a bit, you can just see the metal lining of the pipe. Surely if it was that, it would be covered in dye though?

So any thoughts on where to go now? I can source the condenser for 80 quid, he hasn't charged me yet and said he'd fit the new one and refill it for 100 which includes the work he did yesterday too.

Thanks :)
 
Ah good plan - yes he had a combined torch/sniffer gooseneck thing but he didnt have it up on a ramp or anything

Would something like this be sufficient? Edit - arse, competitor rules. Little keyring UV torch thing
 
I'd hazzard a guess at the condenser or evaporator, but you'd smell it if it was one of them, I think - especially the evaporator. I recall getting a whiff when my front aircon pipe split on the VXR, and whilst its not a potent smell, it was obvious to me.
 
Failing that, is the pump "servicable"? (ie. can you get in to it?)

The problem you have is that two weeks to leak out on a system under that much pressure is a long time, and would indicate a very small breach wherever it is - as stated, this could be impossible to find.

Is this guy an AC specialist or is he just a mechanic?
 
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The compressor? It's a relavely big job to get it out though

The thing it, it seems to be a very sudden loss - it just gives up all of a sudden

He's an AC specialist and certainly seems to know his stuff
 
I don't think the loss is sudden, it'll continue to work as the levels get lower and lower, until they are eventually too low for the system to work.

The compressor is a likely point of failure due to its nature of high speed moving parts directly in the system, leaks are easy, can be very small and small traces of dye can go missing very easily.
 
I've had systems that gradually deteriorate over time, this isnt like that at all. I can be driving along with freezing cold air and it will then just go warm. It's not the pressure switch tripping it out either as the compressor still cut in at this point.

How would you advise diagnosing it further then?
 
Without knowing much about air conditioning or mechanics this surely sounds like an electrical fault to me? A connector became dodgy on our focus' system which stopped it working, a quick repair of the wiring saw it working again.
 
Unforuntately not, when it's stopped working the gas has been low (pressure tested and weighed when removed) - a recharge later and its freezing again
 
Jez said:
Without knowing much about air conditioning or mechanics this surely sounds like an electrical fault to me? A connector became dodgy on our focus' system which stopped it working, a quick repair of the wiring saw it working again.
Click to expand...

Doesn't to me - not if the compressor and fans are kicking in. There's thermostats and pressure switches "high up" in the system to stop that happening. It was an electrical issue with my air con (On the Accord too, incidentally) but it doesn't sound like one this time
 
Oh and this morning I noticed I couldnt get warm air from the vents...grr. Hoping thats just a fuse or connector as it was working before! Dont think its related though
 
Does it have climate control? Maybe your mechanic disturbed the servos / arms that control the mixer valve when he removed the evaporator
 
Yep its climate. I think all the servos and motors are behind the center console so it probably wouldnt be possible to disturb the servos or anything, but its quite possible that its a loose connector as you need to remove about 5 different plugs to get the evaporator housing out
 
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