dpool34

I got my 4th gen Maxima a few weeks ago. The other day it was warm out, so I turned the A/C on, but no cold air blew out.
I turned the fan on all the way, then selected the where I want the air to blow from, then I pushed the A/C button. The A/C indicator light is on when I push the A/C button.
About 1-2 seconds after pushing the A/C button, there was a change in fan (it slowed down for a second, then kicked back at full force), which I'm pretty sure is normal.
I went to autozone to have them test the refrigerant, but they said they didn't have the testing equipment out yet cause it's not A/C season yet. So I'll have to wait until they do. [I'm trying to be as frugal as possible, and not buy the pressure gauge myself].
My question is, does it sound like it's simply a case of needing more refrigerant? I'm asking just for piece of mind, because if it's the compressor, clutch, etc, I'm gonna have to live without A/C cause I can't afford non-essential parts right now.

JvG

Generally people do not run their A/C in the winter. So the seals are not kept lubricated. Then the refrigerant leaks out. There is a pressure sensor in the A/C system. It will prevent the compressor from turning on.


The fix is usually just adding more refrigerant. Can you borrow a refill kit from someone?


I have noticed that Amazon or e-bay have good prices on refrigerant.

deezo

iTrader: (3)

Just buy the refill throwaways from Autozone to fill it.

Turbobink

iTrader: (2)

I'm not sure which AC set up your car is equipped with but try running it on fresh air intake and then on recirculate.

If your system is so low that "no" cooled air is generated then I'd think that it'd be low enough that the compressor would fail to operate.

Notwithstanding the fact that you clicked the AC button and the indicator illuminated and the fan activated, did the compressor clutch actually engage and did the compressor actually activate?

If the compressor is still activating I would still go ahead and have my pressures checked out. But I'd also investigate the possibility that my fresh air door is stuck open.

cashoit

get a can of refrigerant and fill it up. See what happens after and report back

JvG

Agreed on the concept of adding a can of refrigerant. Instructions on you-tube no doubt.


Might as well look for a kit with the meters on amazon or e-bay. I was able to buy a dozen cans for about 7 bucks a pop. R-134 is supposedly going away. Might as well stock up like some did on R-12 in the past.

DennisMik

iTrader: (2)

This is true. Most of Europe has banned it already. The US will be doing a "me too" any time now.

asand1

iTrader: (1)

AC cycles anytime the defrost setting is used, so this is just false information.

Refrigerant does not disappear, it leaks. If you do have low pressure you need to have the leak found and fixed.

bewrong

Why would the AC run every time the defroster runs?

PowerTotheMax

Less moisture coming from the ac.

bewrong

Mine must be broken, because it doesn't do that.

DennisMik

iTrader: (2)

It should. Are you sure that it doesn't? Have you tried your a/c yet this year?

bewrong

Since I'm in Texas, I absolutely have used and know that my AC works.

Just to check, I put it on defrost and set the mix control all the way to the left, and it does come out cold, as you said it would. However, I still don't understand, because if you need to defrost your windows, you're also going to have it on full heat, so the AC runs for no reason.

DennisMik

iTrader: (2)

When you need to use the defogger, that means that you have too much moisture in the air and it is condensing on the windows.

Cold air cannot hold as much moisture as warm air, so the defroster setting turns on the a/c so that the air in the ducts runs through the cold a/c evaporator which chills the air to remove moisture. The air then goes through the heater core to warm up and blows into the car where it can now absorb/evaporate the moisture off the windows.

I also live in Texas and I haven't used the a/c in my car or house yet.

bewrong

FSM says the AC only operates during defrost if the ambient temperature is 35 Fahrenheit or higher. Texas, so i won't be able to verify that for a while.

asand1

iTrader: (1)

Yes the ac draws moisture from the air to dry the interior if the car.

The ac condenser runs so cold that the humidity in the air condenses and freezes on the condenser. Then the air is reheated by the heater core.

97_GXE

I think you guys are making this issue a bit too complex lol...

Did the OP check his center vent's dust screen? When I first bought mine, that screen was never cleaned and totally blocked by dust. I couldn't clean it, so pulled it out. But, then I kept getting sick from pollen allergies, so I put it back in. Maybe try cleaning that because it may be blocking your airflow.

I wouldn't go messing around with refrigerant levels, unless it's a shop that can measure the levels. I've never touched my refrigerant in over 2 years...and it's fine. I live in a winter climate and run the a/c during snowy days like today to keep the fog off the windows.

I will say, I had previous cars...and the biggest killer of a/c was allowing the car to sit for months without turning on the a/c. I bought a car that was sitting for a long time in a lot, and 2 weeks later the evaporator exploded and nearly suffocated me in R-134 smoke while I was driving.

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

So are you saying that in your part of Texas that the temperature will not climb higher than 35 F all day?

Also, just to add and clarify what Asand1 is saying, on your automatic climate control, when you put it in auto or defrost mode, the AC compressor will cycle on and off all the time, whether you have the temp set to 65 or 85. Auto mode and an 85 setting will produce hot, moisture free air.

I always found the name automatic climate control peculiar, because it suggests that the AC compressor will be turned off automatically when not needed, and that's not the case at all. In auto mode the compressor will cycle on and off forever.

A quick and easy way to verify that the compressor is activating is to put your car in park or neutral, then listen to the engine carefully as you push the defrost or auto button on the climate control. You should notice a momentary dip in the car's idle as the AC clutch engages. If you don't something's up.

Of course this all assumes that the ambient temperature is above the minimum needed to activate the compressor.

bewrong

You got it flipped, the temperature doesn't go below 35 F.

DennisMik

iTrader: (2)

I think we all understand and agree that the a/c compressor isn't supposed to run in temps under 35º F. We are just misinterpreting each other's method of saying this.

dpool34

It was 68 degrees (F) outside when I tried to run it. Probably 75 in the car.

97_GXE

Is that to protect the compressor? I've had to turn my compressor/defrost on at temps as low as -10 degrees to keep the windows from fogging up. When temps are freezing and it's snowing outside, I have to engage compressor to keep moisture from forming. That is accomplished by pressing the defrost or defrost/floor button above the lever. The large defrost button is only for the rear window defogger.

DennisMik

iTrader: (2)

The reason there is a temperature sensor to cut off the a/c compressor is to save the compressor. If the compressor ran, the evaporator core in the air duct behind the glove box would freeze up into a block of ice and then the problem would start, where the compressor couldn't pump the refrigerant through the lines and self destruct.

While you press whatever buttons in the controls you want to press, the temperature sensor overrides the control panel. Blowing warm air on the windows even if the a/c compressor isn't running works as long as the warm air isn't saturated with humidity. When it's cold outside, that air will be low humidity when it is warmed up. Just don't have the recirculate button pressed.