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One last chance for this A/C !!!

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Old 08-21-2008, 10:52 AM
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Originally Posted by matty
Update.

Alright brought the car to a local place by me and they evacuated the system, and there was only .5lb of freon in the system, from when Nissan tested it. That means nissan totally didnt do anything on the car.

Well I got it back from after being being put on vacuum for 1/2 hour and charged up and its still not all that good. Set at 65, full fan, really isnt pumping cold but the line going into the car is Freezing Cold!!

Is is possible that heat is mixing with the air ?? Where do I go from here ?

I tested the auto climate again, and still 30 is showing up. I took some dash peices out and started looking at the door and the armatures for the doors are moving freely. How do I know there is no hot air mixing ??

-matt
I had a problem with one of my manual cc where the hot cold switch wasn't working and stuck on hot. When the fan was off you could feel the warm air coming out of the vents. Remove your glove box then remove the intake sensor and see if cold air comes out of the hole. This is before the heater core so if warm air is being mixed it will be after this hole where the sensor is.
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Old 08-21-2008, 01:09 PM
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You mean remove that little rubber grommet on the black box and see if cold air comes out there ??
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Old 08-21-2008, 01:41 PM
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Originally Posted by matty
You mean remove that little rubber grommet on the black box and see if cold air comes out there ??
Yes.
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Old 08-21-2008, 01:46 PM
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I just really want this thing to work. Its litterally blowing 51-55 degree air out of the center vents and I know thats not correct.

I pulled off the plastic under the wheel and looked at the doors operating when I do the test, and they all seem like their moving ok, and 30 still popps up on the diagnosis for the doors. When I turn the system off, and turn it back on, I dont see anything moving under there. I just dont know what else to do here.

-matt
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Old 08-21-2008, 01:47 PM
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Originally Posted by Maxima_Joe
Yes.
Well thats the evaporator box, shouldnt that be ice cold coming outa there ? what will this tell me ?
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Old 08-21-2008, 02:27 PM
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Originally Posted by matty
Well thats the evaporator box, shouldnt that be ice cold coming outa there ? what will this tell me ?
Yes it should be ice cold coming out of there. If it's ice cold it will tell you that one of the doors is staying open allowing hot air to come thru the vents along with the cold air. If it's the same temperature as what comes out of the vents then theres some other problem.
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Old 08-21-2008, 02:45 PM
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This will be the next thing I check tomorrow. I did run all the codes on the Auto Climate control and 30 is popping up for the doors and motors working properly.
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Old 08-21-2008, 03:12 PM
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When your driving at highway speeds and have the temp set on the coolest setting and the cc off is the air coming through the vents cool or warm? Same thing for the hottest setting is the air cool or warm?

Also does the ac blow cold when you first get in the car after it has been sitting awhile so the engine coolant is cold.

Just seeing if maybe your air mix door motor is not functioning properly and allowing hot air to mix with the cold air.

Last edited by Maxima_Joe; 08-21-2008 at 03:18 PM.
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Old 08-21-2008, 03:30 PM
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Originally Posted by Maxima_Joe
When your driving at highway speeds and have the temp set on the coolest setting and the cc off is the air coming through the vents cool or warm? Same thing for the hottest setting is the air cool or warm?
Highway speeds = Cool after about 5-10 miles of driving. Not Cold cold. If I set the Auto Climate to 65, it will blow FULL fan the entire way to work to try and catch up. Might kick down to 3rd fan, but blows the same cool air. No where near cold. It will kick down if its a cooler temp out, 65-75 out.

Originally Posted by Maxima_Joe
Also does the ac blow cold when you first get in the car after it has been sitting awhile so the engine coolant is cold.
No. Engine coolant temp has no bearing on it. I even went as far as clamping off the upper heater hose and drove like that for about 10-15 miles and made no difference.

The place I just picked up the car from is stating that the system is fully charged and that line going into the car is plenty cold, but the air isnt which makes him think its a mixing door. I really dont think its that though.
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Old 08-21-2008, 03:41 PM
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At highway speeds I was asking with the climate control turned off and no fan on. If the air mix door motor is working properly and the cc was set to 65 before being turned off cool air should be coming through the vents. As with the cc on the hottest setting before being turned off warm air should be coming through the vents.

When your able to pull the glove box and grommet that will tell you if there's a problem with the air mix door motor if the air is cold.
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Old 08-21-2008, 04:17 PM
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Originally Posted by Maxima_Joe
At highway speeds I was asking with the climate control turned off and no fan on. If the air mix door motor is working properly and the cc was set to 65 before being turned off cool air should be coming through the vents. As with the cc on the hottest setting before being turned off warm air should be coming through the vents.
Ill test that on my way home.
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Old 08-21-2008, 07:21 PM
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Matty, did you replace the tape on the expansion valve thermal probe? Tape is insulating while the metal clip originally used is thermally conductive.
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Old 08-21-2008, 08:04 PM
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Originally Posted by SVI30
Matty, did you replace the tape on the expansion valve thermal probe? Tape is insulating while the metal clip originally used is thermally conductive.
I have the end of Expansion valve taped with two peices of black tape onto the evaporator tube. I have NO metal clip on there...$1 from nissan.

What do you think ?>
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Old 08-22-2008, 12:30 PM
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I'm not sure it's the expansion valve, because with ice cold refrigerant lines, it would seem to be doing its job. No-one asked this yet - do you get drips of water coming out from under the car, particularly on humid days? Just checking that your evaporator drain is not clogged.

My wife's max is pretty similar to yours. I have reasonable pressures and replaced the compressor/dryer/ex valve/condenser a couple of years back. We saw an improvement but really it's not the same as modern day a/c units.
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Old 08-22-2008, 04:46 PM
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Originally Posted by matty
I have the end of Expansion valve taped with two peices of black tape onto the evaporator tube. I have NO metal clip on there...$1 from nissan.

What do you think ?>
I would go ahead and buy that clip.
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Old 08-22-2008, 04:52 PM
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Originally Posted by SVI30
I would go ahead and buy that clip.
You think that would have a major effect on the system blowing cold
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Old 08-22-2008, 07:22 PM
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The expansion valve operates by that probe. If the probe is not at the right temperature, the valve would not operate correctly.
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Old 08-23-2008, 05:31 AM
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Originally Posted by SVI30
The expansion valve operates by that probe. If the probe is not at the right temperature, the valve would not operate correctly.
You would see that problem if you looked at system operating pressures. The suction line (low side) wouldn't be ice cold as Matt say's it is.

Even if the servo motors are moving correctly, that doesn't mean the doors are really moving. I just replaced a mixing door on my Ford Explorer. It was broken inside the HVAC unit, actuator worked just fine but the keyway shaft on the door had split.

I really think you need to look inside the HVAC unit and verify the doors are swinging correctly. I didn't have the pull the entire system out of my Ford, it was a common problem and thanks to an Explorer forum I was able to cut a hole in it, verify the problem and replace the door. It took me just over an hour and the door was $8 bucks. I can now regulate the temp in my truck and the A/C is ICE COLD.
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Old 08-23-2008, 07:38 AM
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I got to thinking. Don't you have our emanage or j & s sageguard mounted to the top of your ecu? I thought I remember seeing pictures of that.The air mix door motor and linkage is at the bottom of the cooling unit and either of those two could be in the way.
Maybe the problem started right after you installed those?

Have you removed the glove box and grommet yet or checked out the temp differences on the highway?
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Old 08-23-2008, 07:54 AM
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Originally Posted by njmaxseltd
Even if the servo motors are moving correctly, that doesn't mean the doors are really moving. I just replaced a mixing door on my Ford Explorer. It was broken inside the HVAC unit, actuator worked just fine but the keyway shaft on the door had split.
I really think you need to look inside the HVAC unit and verify the doors are swinging correctly. I didn't have the pull the entire system out of my Ford, it was a common problem and thanks to an Explorer forum I was able to cut a hole in it, verify the problem and replace the door. It took me just over an hour and the door was $8 bucks. I can now regulate the temp in my truck and the A/C is ICE COLD.
Now the million dollar question is, where is this door ???
When I run the diagnosis on all the doors and I look on the Drivers side, all the doors swing freely, but what door is the air mix door ??

Seems like I dont get cold cold air when its HOT out. Like today, its 70's and the air is cold coming out.

Originally Posted by Maxima_Joe
I got to thinking. Don't you have your emanage mounted to the top of your ecu? I thought I remember seeing pictures of that.The air mix door motor and linkage is at the bottom of the cooling unit and either of those two could be in the way.
Maybe the problem started right after you installed those?
Have you removed the glove box and grommet yet or checked out the temp differences on the highway?
I have my emange on the floor of the pass seat. Theres nothing mounted on top of the ECU. I do have wires running through the arms of the doors on the drivers side, but nothing is getting in the way of the operation.

I couldnt do it on the way home from the work the other night cause it was cold. Today, I def will look into that and get back to ya.
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Old 08-23-2008, 07:55 AM
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Tom,

What was his air temp like when the door wasnt operating correctly ??

-matt
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Old 08-23-2008, 01:27 PM
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Alright on the way to work today, bright sun and about 85 out, never really got cold.

I tried turning the entire system off, got cold air at my feet. Then I turned it to 85, econ, heat blowing, and turned it off, and got heat on my feet. So it seems like the doors is working if thats a good way to test it.

Got to work after running the a/c for 35 min, and took the grommit off on the front of the evap box. This is air AFTER the evaporator and before the heater core, and it was the same temp as the vents. Actually seemed a bit warmer but thats only because it was a small stream of air coming out.
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Old 08-23-2008, 02:11 PM
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Yep your air mix door motor is working properly.
It has to be something with the evaporator or expansion valve. I would get that clip for the probe. Maybe you got a bad expansion valve or the PAG100 clogged it?
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Old 08-23-2008, 03:15 PM
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I just dont know where to go from here. Should I have the system evacuated, pull the evaporator box out, install that clip. Then drop the compressor and completely drain the system ? Then spend another 100$ on a new dryer ? Do I replace the expansion valve as well ??
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Old 08-23-2008, 04:24 PM
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First step would be to install the clip. You wouldn't have to remove the evaporator box to do that. Just remove the blower motor and you should be able to reach it. Also every temp probe I have seen has been wrapped with foam. Do you still have foam around yours?
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Old 08-23-2008, 05:12 PM
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No. I have nothing wrapped around the probe but tape thats holding it to the evaporator. I dont think Ill be able to reach it with it still in the car and be able to install the clip and foam.
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Old 08-23-2008, 05:31 PM
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You will be able to install the clip for sure. I'm not sure about the foam. You may be able to remove the bottom portion of the evaporator box as well.
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Old 08-23-2008, 05:37 PM
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You think the clip will make THAT big of a difference for lets say roughly 10 degrees ?? What does the clip actually do ??

To remove the lower half of the box, you need to unsrew the bottom half and theres no room to fit a screw driver in there.
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Old 08-23-2008, 06:34 PM
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The clip just holds the probe to the low pressure line. Without it it may not get an accurate reading. I'm sure the foam is there to keep the reading accurate or the blower motor may give it a false reading. Does it blow any colder when the fan is on setting 1 compared to 2,3,or 4?
Your probably right about the box. The back screws would be hard to get to.
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Old 08-24-2008, 12:05 PM
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Originally Posted by Maxima_Joe
The clip just holds the probe to the low pressure line. Without it it may not get an accurate reading. I'm sure the foam is there to keep the reading accurate or the blower motor may give it a false reading. Does it blow any colder when the fan is on setting 1 compared to 2,3,or 4?
Nah not really. Just a smiggin over warm, I would guess its blowing 51-54. Then without the sun blairing, prob gets to about 46-48.

Im gonna order the clip and some O-rings from Nissan to break everything apart. Ill bring the car to get evacuated, bring it home, drop the compressor, and the evap box out. Do I order another dryer too ??

Where should I get the foam from to wrap the probe ??
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Old 08-24-2008, 01:20 PM
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.
Hose insulation is primarily used for two reasons. It is used to reduce noise or control condensation.
Insulation can protect hoses, reduce noise and control condensation, but, it will not improve performance of an a/c system by more than a fraction of a degree. In fact, the only area that really needs to be insulated in regards to performance is the sensing bulb at the evaporator outlet of the thermal expansion valve system. The bulb needs to be insulated from ambient air so it will only sense evaporator outlet pipe temperature.
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Old 08-24-2008, 01:36 PM
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Well there you go. Where did you find that info?
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Old 08-24-2008, 01:40 PM
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http://www.aircondition.com/tech/que...ses-in-Foam%3F
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Old 08-24-2008, 01:49 PM
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While I have the system open do I drop all the PAG100 oil out of the compresser and install PAG46 ? Do I buy a dryer too ? When I get the system evacuated, does ALL the R134 and Oil come out ??
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Old 08-24-2008, 05:54 PM
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what do you guys think ??
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Old 08-24-2008, 06:37 PM
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You can reach the expansion valve probe by dropping the lower half of the evaporator box.

The mixer door is just after the evaporator box in the air flow.

Let's hold on the thermal (freon) side until you try these cheaper fixes.

Last edited by SVI30; 08-24-2008 at 06:40 PM.
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Old 08-24-2008, 07:05 PM
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What am im buying the wrap the probe (tar tape and foam ) ? Am i buying that clip as well from nissan ?
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Old 08-24-2008, 09:04 PM
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Yes buy the clip from Nissan. They may even have the foam. Heres some pictures if you have forgotten how it looks.

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Old 08-24-2008, 09:58 PM
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K thanks...might need to pull the box. Ill see tomorrow but ill order the clip tomorrow and get that on the way.
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Old 08-25-2008, 04:53 PM
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SVI30,

I was reading an earlier thread and you said you didnt have any of that foam or tar stuff on the probe ?? And your a/c is ice

-matt
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