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Air conditioning warm and cold
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LJOrange
Novice
Jul 19, 2007, 11:28 AM
Post #1 of 10
(2292 views)
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Air conditioning warm and cold
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I have a 2004 VW passat. On Monday, I took my car to the dealer because it seemed like it had a coolant leak. They checked and said it was just low so they filled it up and also replaced the Serpentine Belt, which needed replacing. Both yesterday and today, on my way to work, the air conditioning was going between blowing cold and warm air and I couldn't get it comfortable unless i put it much lower than normal. However, on my way home yesterday, and when I went to lunch both yesterday and today, it acted perfectly normal. Is there any reason it would have problems only after sitting overnight? Thanks.
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Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Jul 19, 2007, 5:41 PM
Post #2 of 10
(2287 views)
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Re: Air conditioning warm and cold
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What was it doing that made you think it had a refrigerant leak?
What do you mean "put in much lower than normal?" Do you mean fan speed or move the temp selecter and that works?
A difference with the overnite is the whole car is cool and during the day engine heat and if parked in the sun makes a difference and the system pressures will be higher and it might need that to stay on.
There are several things that can make it erratic and we'll need to know more,
T
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LJOrange
Novice
Jul 19, 2007, 6:28 PM
Post #3 of 10
(2283 views)
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Re: Air conditioning warm and cold
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The coolant light on the dash when on which is what made me think there was a problem. When I say "much lower than normal" I mean that I usually set my car to about 68-70 degrees. In order to get it comfortable when i've had issues the past couple of days, I had to set it closer to 64. On my way home today, it was fine to start, and then about 1/2 hour in started to be erratic again. Once I turned it off and then on about 1/2 hour later it was fine again.
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Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Jul 19, 2007, 7:16 PM
Post #4 of 10
(2282 views)
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Re: Air conditioning warm and cold
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Coolant = engine coolant. Refrigerant is for A/C. Which one do you mean? This A/C may have been screwed up by improper procedures that are very harmful to the system. It isn't that easy to just fill up a system properly. The stuff sold everywhere is knicknamed "Death Kits" and even techs will use them and they can be used wisely but you need to know much more about this than just "filler up" please!
Check out the procedures to do it right.............
HTTP://www.autoclimas.com/Refrigerant%20charge.php It will blow your mind as to what you should do to do it right. That has links to an A/C site that I'm at or WWW.autoACsystems.com that works in cooperation with this site and I'm there too.
Check it out and hit back here,
T
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LJOrange
Novice
Jul 19, 2007, 7:38 PM
Post #5 of 10
(2278 views)
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Re: Air conditioning warm and cold
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It was coolant that they added. I just wanted to mention the other things the car has been through this week. Could they have messed up the A/C when putting coolant in or did you just mention that if they were adding Refrigerant?
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Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Jul 19, 2007, 8:08 PM
Post #6 of 10
(2277 views)
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Re: Air conditioning warm and cold
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If they didn't touch the A/C that may be fine. They added coolant which is ok but a car shouldn't consume coolant so that may be causing problems. Make sure it's full at both radiator and at the reservoir. Is engine temp staying stable when warmed up? It shouldn't change much once at operating temp and if it does that has to be checked out. Start by just checking for yourself that the cooling system is full,
T
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LJOrange
Novice
Jul 19, 2007, 8:23 PM
Post #7 of 10
(2275 views)
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Re: Air conditioning warm and cold
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It doesn't seem to stay stable once the car is warmed up. Do you mean that I should check the refrigerant at the radiator and reservoir or the coolant? How do I do that? Also, when the VW dealer had it the other day, they said that the coolant wasn't leaking and just suggested that I get the coolant flushed, which I have not done yet because they added coolant and the car seemed fine. Thanks so much for all of your help.
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Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Jul 20, 2007, 4:50 AM
Post #8 of 10
(2273 views)
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Re: Air conditioning warm and cold
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We need to understand the terminology. Forget about A/C right now or whether it cools or not.
Coolant = Engine coolant, usually a mix of ethylene glycol commonly known as Prestone (a brand name) and is sold either concentrated or "ready to use" which is a 50/50 mix with water. It cools the engine and does not freeze when mixed in the right percentage. It also prevents corrosion of cooling system parts.
Radiator = Is the device that the engine runs the heated coolant thru to cool the engine. There is a fan(s) for this and they need to be in working order. Cooling systems (engine) use pressure caps at the radiator or just at the recovery tank. If no cap on the radiator itself you add at the recovery tank aka reservoir which will have marks for "Full Hot" and "Full Cold" or similar verbage. Icons are used in almost all cars to cross language barriers so for engine temps or things about coolant an icon of a thermometer would be used.
You probably can only add or see the coolant level at that recovery tank. You mentioned it needed some and was filled but no leaks were found. A cooling system flush was suggested which is a good idea.
The cooling system does not consume coolant. If it needed to be filled there is a reason and unless it had been serviced and drained for any reason it should remain in the normal level ranges. It can leak and be unseen. This is a warning to find out why it needed more coolant. Just filling it up is not the answer nor is just flushing it. Not paying attention to this could destroy the engine and with no engine you won't have to worry about whether the A/C is proper.
Let's get the engine itself cooling properly first because without that the A/C is usless. If that has problems it's a separate issue and we can address that when the engine can maintain proper operating temperature,
T
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LJOrange
Novice
Jul 20, 2007, 5:49 AM
Post #9 of 10
(2271 views)
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Re: Air conditioning warm and cold
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I agree, but if the VW dealer is telling me it's fine, I'm not quite sure who to take it to. I do plan to get the coolant flushed very soon, but I agree that it should've never leaked in the first place.
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Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Jul 20, 2007, 7:24 AM
Post #10 of 10
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Re: Air conditioning warm and cold
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At this point I am not blaming your dealer or you. They found coolant low and filled it which is fine. Now YOU need to communicate with the tech(s) and get to know your tech by name and request that person. They can then get to know you and your car and everybody wins.
It's up to you to report your observations and up to YOU to check things yourself or have them checked. Once a cooling system is known to be full it should stay there. If it doesn't there is a problem and you need to let them know that. If you just go somewhere with low coolant they don't know why unless a leak is staring them in the face and if they notice that they should tell you about it and ask you if you would like to repair it or whatever.
A leak that doesn't leave traces or drips under the car is frequently a head gasket problem but don't get too excited right now -- I'm trying to get you to a point where you could know that, that is or isn't the likely problem. Best not to tell a tech what the problem is but what you know about it and the history of it and let them decide the best approach.
A good repore with a tech or shop is a great thing. Techs here are sharp, computers are great but we are not there looking at the problems. For all I know there's a plastic bag from the road that got caught up under your hood which I would notice right away if I was there.
Keep at it. We are here to help as we can,
T
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