A/C didn't work today.(90 degrees here today!) Worked a couple of month's ago. When I press the A/C button the button light comes on, but I don't hear or feel the compressor engage. Is there a fuse or relay I can check before I take it to the A/C shop?

 

Check to see if that connector to the top of the compressor clutch is fully plugged in....Also as odd as it may seem..once or twice as I remember on mine..I had to hand spin the clutch (Engine off of course) and that seemed to make it work.

 

I took a quick look in a dimly lit area and didn't see the compressor. Where is it? Is it low under the engine?

 

Refer to JTIS for component location.

It is just below the Bank2 cylinder head on the AJ-V6.

If the refrigerant level is low, the compressor will not engage. It may prove less time-consuming and costly to take the vehicle to an air conditioning or Jaguar specialist.

Since the refrigerant must be brought to a certain weight, it is not possible for someone without the correct equipment to add the correct amount. Guesswork is not good in this instance.

 

If lean down in front of the RF tire, look up at the bottom of the engine, you should see the compressor. If you can't hear or see the clutch engage, there could be several issues. The relay for the clutch could be faulty. The compressors on the X-Type are notorious for leaking, you'll see the green oil around the compressor. Also what I've noticed, is there is a bolt on the splash panel that rubs a hole through one of the ac hoses, you can take down the right side of the splash panel and you'll see what I'm talking about, just bend the hose up enough to move away from the bolt or leave the bolt out. I have also seen where the clutch has completely come off. The condensers have also been prone to leak. Need to figure out if the compressor is coming on first. The other thing, is that the radiator cooling fans control the head pressure, so if your cooling fans aren't working properly, and haven't been updated, that can also cause the ac not to work.

 

Had it repaired. The notorious leaking compressor!

 

Hello fellas, I had a new compressor put in last summer, and after not using the AC for the winter, went to turn it on and no dice. Compressor won't engage bc there was no refrigerant in the system, it leaked out over the months. The mechanic shop quoted $800 to install a new hose assembly that goes to the compressor, he said that was the source of the leak. I opted to hold off on getting the work done and brought the car home.

So, I got it home and jacked up the car and I could hear a hissing sound coming from the compressor (car is off). After some inspection I found the source of the hissing, I put my finger over it and it stopped. I tried to tighten it with a socket but it is already tight, wouldn't budge. Please see the picture below. What is this valve thing?



Under car looking upwards at AC compressor.

 

I believe that is the high pressure pop-off safety valve..it vents off refrigerant when the system is at a very high pressure...Yours apparently failed and bled off all your charge...Remove it and replace as that is the source of your leak...Them evacuate the system and recharge.

 

Ha ha, DPK I bet you're right. Going to Autozone after work! I'll report back after I evac and recharge.

 

I suggest checking if there is still pressure in the system before you remove the pressure relief just in case.

 

Thanks Paul, today the AC wouldn't engage, but yesterday when I got it back from the shop it worked on the way home and again later last night. I figure all the refrigerant leaked out by now but I'll go slow on removing that valve.

 

First be sure you have no pressure in the system! Often high pressure is created by a blockage in the system. What did the shop find? Was the high pressure fluctuating?

 

Thanks for chiming in Gus. As I read the invoice, the shop put dye in the system and filled with proper amount of refrigerant. They list in the invoice that they found a leak at the manifold hose assy. and the high pressure relief valve. They charged $140 for this, and quoted $800 to replace the hose assy. The funny thing is, they didn't tell me about the high pressure valve when I talked to them, but, that is what I found to be leaking when I got home a jacked the car up.

This shop charges top dollar and they make sure to get that money. The only reason I took the Jag back to them is bc they did the original AC compressor last year. I was hoping the problem I have now would be an easy fix considering I paid $1,100 for the new compressor last year. I don't know much about automotive AC. But, he charged me $470 for the compressor alone, which I contested at first, but then looked up the model and it was not a cheap Chinese unit, it was a Norway company that makes AC compressors and their website touted quality and precision mfg. So, I went with the high price compressor.

So last year I paid
$190 labor to R&R compressor
$180 for complete recharge of system
$30 for refrigerant
$150 to repair the wire harness bc they found a short
$480 for Norwegian AC compressor

I saw the work they did on the harness and they put in heavier gauge wires than OE, which was a good thing. This shop charges $150/hr to do anything.

Here's what I'm thinking. They mentioned the high pressure relief valve in the invoice from yesterday, but they harped on the manifold hose assy. needing to be replaced and made no mention of the valve when I was asking questions. There is some black grease around the connections on the hose assy. but that is not where I heard the hissing. The hissing leak was from the valve in the picture above.

So my conclusion is that the warranty on the compressor is 12 months. The pop off safety valve on the compressor is leaking, so they should replace the valve and recharge and see if that leaks.

I've actually come to hate this shop, and, I hate all shops. There are no real mechanics left, only part installers. The techs at a shop don't know how to trouble shoot, and they don't even try. That's why I do my own work, but like I said, I don't know automotive AC systems.

 

It sounds like a blockage in the system. If you could be present when the system is being recharged you need to look at the high pressure side and see if the needle is jumping and high pressuer. This is a post I did on a Honda CRV and it might help better to better understand what is going on.

"Well I found the problem it was a clogged condenser it was restricting the flow and so the high pressure was excessive. I found it by taking a temperature in all 4 corners of the condenser as the a/c system was on. The top left was 142 top right 76 bottom left 79 and bottom right 84 after the exchange it was in the 80 all the way around. Why did I replace the expansion valve that is where I thought the stoppage was and is often where it is. As for the compressor replacement I was told it was diagnosed to be bad! I will never do that again I will diagnose it myself the next time.

If the a/c is going off and on put a set of gauges on it and if the high side is bouncing and going well above 250/300 look for a blockage.

I hope this helps others. A note to others Do not use stop leak in the a/c system just fix the leak!"

Not saying this is your problem but it is worth looking at. In my opinion this problem was caused by the use of a combination sealer/dye introduced to the A/C system.

Hope you find and post the problem.

 

Don't use stop leak in the Jag's system at all! The tubes in the condenser are as small as the ink tube in an ink pen, and stop leak can clog them even without a leak! It doesn't take much miscellaneous flotsam and jetsam in the system to clog them up in the first place.

 

Yeah, wouldn't want a heavy metal band floating around in the system...

 

The brutal Phoenix summer is coming, it's 102 degrees today. Fitting that a thrash metal band would hide in your AC system where it's cool. Well, not mine!

 

Many jurisdictions have regulations making the intentional discharge of refrigerant into the atmosphere an offence. If you plan on replacing the hose assembly yourself, it may be best to have an air conditioning specialist, with the correct equipment, discharge the system for you.

The air conditioning system must also be charged correctly, which is not possible without he necessary equipment to add refrigerant by weight.

 

Is there a site glass in the AC system?

 

There is no sight glass on the drier, nor anywhere in the system. Refrigerant must be added by weight using the correct equipment to avoid overcharging or undercharging the system.