symptoms:
-upon turning on my heat while engine in running the rpms drop dramatically and will stall the car unless i'm giving it some gas. this happens when turned on to 65-85 degrees, hot or cold doesnt matter.
-there is a sharp high pitched squeak coming from engine when heat is turned on that accompanys the engine bog and drop in rpms
-when engine is off but car is in on position i can turn the heat or ac and and the fans blow fine.

also i dont know if this is related, but it takes forever for my car's temp to warm up. on a recent two hour trip the car would slowly warm but then drop back down to on the C and never once settled into the normal position midways between the H and C


i talked to my local mechanic and he said that it was most likely the compressor and that that would run me about a grand to fix. so i am making sure that this is indeed the problem before i drop 1,000 dollars of maintenence money into my car.

Maxine the money pit- tranny and clutch a few months back, window regulator, coils... the list never stops

 

A Grand!!! Not likely if u do it yourself.. I paid 250 bucks for mine and installed it myself ( just 2 bolts holding it on) plus 2 a/c lines. You will have to take it somewhere to have the system flushed of air and charged. probaly around 75-100 bucks... Whole thing under $400 definetly

Sounds like u need a thermostat too... Have u pulled any codes up?? is your cel on?

 

My AC dosnt work either. I went to the garage and pumped some gas into my AC system, to find there was a leak in a hose. checked out the stealer ship, to find out the hose... a simple hose, its 180 bucks..... I live in Canada, id say 2 windows down going 60km is AC enough for me
lol

 

I paid 99.99 for one from ebay, 20 bucks to deppressurize sysytem and will replace it tommoroow. 1000.00 is way too much. go to another private mechanic. Asked Midas for the heck of it and they would even do it for less than that, 750.00

 

Your thermostat is stuck open, common problem in 4th Gen Maximas. Shouldn't cost over $100 to replace. Try that first, I don't why heat has anything to do with ac compressor. AC gives you cooler air while the heat from the engine coolant gives you heat. You probably have some other problems, but fixing the thermostat will fix most of your problems.

 

Is this an Auto or Manual A/C system? If it is the Auto type, what happens if you put it in Econ mode? Does the car run better?

If the car runs better in Econ mode, check the Ambient Sensor and the In-vehicle Sensor.

The In-vehicle sensor stucked on in my car and the compressor was on all the time, eventually broke it.

 

i would like to do it myself and with the help of mechanically knowledgable friends, i just took it to the mechanic to get his opinion on the problem. its auto climate control so ill check out the econ mode tomorrow. i havent pulled the codes recently because i've grown accustom to having my cel on due to the evap canister code, but i'll check for more soon.

 

Before you bolt on the new A/C compressor, make sure it is filled with refrigeration oil. After you button everything up, then take it to a shop to have it evacuated and charged with freon. R134a should be pretty cheap.

 

Just remove it, its the cheapest solution, and besides the weather there cant be that hot. my .02

 

I was gonna do that to mine but there is no way to run your belt without it..

 

get a smaller belt.

 

Don't remove the old compressor if you will not replace it. To prevent moisture getting in the system, leave the old compressor on the car but disconnect the clutch. The large silver color cylinder contains dessicant and will continue to absorb water once the system is opened.

 

tested it out today using the econ mode instead of auto or manual and the car performed normal while using econ. so what does this mean?

 

The compressor is shot. If you set a high temperature and the compressor still kicks in, one of the temperature sensors should be replaced also.

If you do plan to replace the compressor yourself, don't open the system until you have the new one ready to go. Keep everything absolutely clean.

 

Sure you can run a smaller belt, i have been using a gates 33 1/4 belt for about 3 months now with no problem. i had to take the idler pulley off, put the belt on, put the idler pulley back together over the belt and then tighten it. works like a charm