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Thread: Anyone having A/C issues? (not cold, compressor cycling every few seconds)

  1. #61
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    My 17 Mirage is no blowing cold air as of late. I have to open a crack a windows to get the air moving out. Its weird since the lancer will get so cold that I actually have to turn it off My wife's 18 mirage is fine. Could it be the mirages use the new r1234yf refrigerant?


    mitsu's in the family

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  2. #62
    Moderator Eggman's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by remusrm View Post
    My 17 Mirage is no blowing cold air as of late.
    remusrm do you think your A/C system has been damaged from your recent accident? What did your repair mechanic say about it?

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        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 49.6 mpg (US) ... 21.1 km/L ... 4.7 L/100 km ... 59.5 mpg (Imp)


  3. #63
    Senior Member stevedmc's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by adrew View Post
    One thing I have noticed is that the A/C in this car has always seemed to cycle the compressor more frequently than in my other cars. But, now it can be hot in the cabin and we can have the temperature on 61, the vent on recirc and the fan on max and it will still cycle the compressor every few seconds.

    To me this seems like it is low on refrigerant - just curious if others have run into this issue, if it is common, etc. before I take it in.

    What you described is low refrigerant, r134a. You don't have to bring the car into a shop to top it off. You can purchase a can with a built in hose and gauge for $20 to $30 at Walmart or any parts store and do it yourself.


    Quote Originally Posted by Cleartec View Post
    well refrigerant should be expected to be changed at least once every 2 years. This is what I know
    I think you have engine coolant (anti freeze) and AC refrigerant (r134a) mixed up. Engine coolant should be changed every two years to avoid corrosion. Refrigerant should never be changed! The tree huggers claim this stuff is bad for the ozone layer. In a perfect world, AC refrigerant never needs to be touched. I've driven old cars with perfect AC systems, never touched and I've driven cars with AC systems with tiny leaks that need to be topped off once a year or so. The original poster is describing a system with a very tiny leak, that simply needs to be topped off.

    And before people panic saying a leak needs to be repaired, ask yourself this? Do you panic when you have to add air to your tires once in a while? With a very tiny tire leak, you fill the tire up every few months and don't worry about it. If you have to refill the tire every day then yes, you worry about getting the tire replaced.

    But if the poster has a very small leak, it can simply be topped off every once in a while, possibly only yearly.

  4. #64
    Senior Member stevedmc's Avatar
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    I read this thread and some of the comments blow my mind. A dirty fan blower will not cause any problems, other than having a few unnoticeable microbes of dust being blown in your face. It will not cause leaks or cause a compressor to cycle.

    Compressors cycle frequently when a system is low on freon. Cars are designed this way as a safety. There is a low pressure cut off switch that is designed to shut the compressor off when freon pressure drops below a certain value. Pressures in an AC system are constantly changing due to the orifice tube. This is why, even when the system is low on freon, it will still cycle the compressor. Once the system is completely empty however, there isn't anything to build up pressure at the orifice tube and the compressor simply will not engage.

    You might have a loose fitting somewhere if you are having to top it off every few months. It is safe to tighten most fittings, but be very careful tightening the fitting that goes to the evaporator. I've hear of people snapping evaporator fittings on other cars. Use a wrench to hold the evaporator line, and another to turn the fitting connecting to it and you will be fine.

    Oh, and as far as vent temperature goes, its normal to have temps around 60 degrees at idle and 45 ish when you are on the highway. The way the system works is the condenser (attached to radiator) has to have air blowing through it to cool the refrigerant down. The refrigerant is hot when it first reaches the condenser. This is why you have a fan attached to it. The fan does an okay job at cooling the refrigerant while the car is sitting, but no fan is going to do as good of a job at blowing air through the condenser as 55 mph air going down the highway.

    That the end of my rant. Just go buy your self a can of r134a and top it off every few months. You can get a 12 oz can for less than $5 at Walmart and you can buy a really nice hose/gauge for $15.

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  6. #65
    Senior Member stevedmc's Avatar
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    And another note, don't buy those refill cans that have oil in them! You AC system isn't leaking oil. You already have the correct amount of oil in the compressor. If you keep topping it off with those cans, you will eventually have a system with too much oil and not enough refrigerant.

    These systems only take 10 oz of refrigerant. The idea is to have as high a percentage of refrigerant in the system as possible. If you weaken the percentage of refrigerant in your system, you weaken your cooling capacity.

    Oil doesn't leak from compressors, but refrigerant does. Don't believe the snake oil claims on refill products. Just buy pure 134a. You probably only need to add two or three ounces of the stuff.

    My advice would be to watch the gauge on the can as you top it off and to put a thermometer in your center AC vent. Top it off while the car is running. The compressor will eventually stay engaged longer as you top it off, and the vent temp should drop to somewhere around 60 degrees. I usually stop topping a car off once it reaches 60 degrees. Then I go for a drive. If my vent temps are in the 40's then I'm happy and I don't add anymore.

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  8. #66
    Before attempting a bandaid fix I'd try to figure out what the problem is first. Is the compressor cycling? If it cycles fast or not at all your refrigerant may be low or a handfull of other problems(bad clutch,compressor,pressure switch,fuse....). Typically it has a leak since it's a sealed system.... Check out the condenser really closely, see if any of the tubes(between the fins) are damaged. I recently had a car come in where the system was empty. I pulled the condenser and pressured it up with air then sprayed it with soapy water to find a pinhole. I've used the fill it yourself kits before. I eventually got tired of refilling the system every summer and broke down, spend and hour finding the leak then never touched it again.

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        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage SE wussie cvt edition. 1.2 automatic: 37.7 mpg (US) ... 16.0 km/L ... 6.2 L/100 km ... 45.3 mpg (Imp)


  9. #67
    Senior Member Top_Fuel's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fummins View Post
    ...Check out the condenser really closely, see if any of the tubes(between the fins) are damaged.
    +1

    The lower portion of the condenser is wide open to taking shots from rocks and road debris because there's nothing to shield it. Here's a photo of my car with the front bumper cover off...

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    75% of the condenser surface looks perfect. The bottom 25% (in the red box) has a significant number of marks from rocks, etc.


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        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 52.2 mpg (US) ... 22.2 km/L ... 4.5 L/100 km ... 62.6 mpg (Imp)


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    Eggman (06-18-2018)

  11. #68
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    Hey Top_Fuel was it hard to take that bumper off? How long did it take you and how did you do it?

    Maybe this should be in it's own thread...

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        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 49.6 mpg (US) ... 21.1 km/L ... 4.7 L/100 km ... 59.5 mpg (Imp)


  12. #69
    Not hard to do, hardest part is getting to a few of the clips. can be done without removing the wheels, might be a pain to crawl under the car if it's on the ground though.

    Undo the bolts along the top edge hood(10mm head), 2 bolts(12mm head) on bottom corners of rad support, 2 10mm bolts in the black grille area, remove the clips holding bumper cover to lower valance and inner fender, don't forget the ones that go straight up on the rear upper corner of bumper at the fender. Grab bumper cover at top rear corner at fender and pull straight away from side of car do same for other side. Lift top edge along rad support up and pull forward.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage SE wussie cvt edition. 1.2 automatic: 37.7 mpg (US) ... 16.0 km/L ... 6.2 L/100 km ... 45.3 mpg (Imp)


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    Eggman (06-19-2018)

  14. #70
    Senior Member Top_Fuel's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Eggman View Post
    Hey Top_Fuel was it hard to take that bumper off?
    Well...I didn't do it so I can't tell you.

    These pictures were taken at a body shop around the corner. They were repairing a hole in my front bumper cover (someone backed into my car and their trailer hitch punched a hole in my front bumper cover)

    I think the shop only charged me an hour of labor to remove and re-install it.


        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 52.2 mpg (US) ... 22.2 km/L ... 4.5 L/100 km ... 62.6 mpg (Imp)


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    Eggman (06-19-2018)

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