Hello Formum Members,

I have a 2005, x-type v6 3.0l, standard sedan. I noticed a slight burning smell while driving about 20mph on the freeway, thought it was another car. I stopped at a store and when I started the car, a lot of white smoke escaped from under the hood, the noise was like loud hissing, from pressure. Fortunately a mechanic and his wife was in the parking lot and he said it smelled like freon for sure. I turned the AC off and drove about 3 miles to my home. The gentleman did say I could drive the car, but the AC will not work. Question to the folks here: can I drive the car with out the AC until I can get to my mechanic in a few days?

Thanks Much

 

I would have to be there physically to really help. If you do NOT have coolant loss and the AC refrigerant was the only thing to escape, you might get away with a few days driving with the AC off. The issue I see is WHY it would escape? Either it was a general leak or a coincidence but usually the fans being inoperable for a period of time would allow the radiator and condenser to heat each other up and sooner or later one will blow, usually the condenser first because of the high to low pressure differences. This is a shot in the dark, but I experienced this not too long ago on my wife's SUV. Refrigerant loss and the high pressure valve on AC compressor let it out into the atmosphere. Turns out the fan was the issue. Hopefully you get ideas out of this. I can't guarantee solutions.

 

Thanks @Gophat for the quick reply. Yes, hard to say what the cause is. I was able to drive it those 3 miles and the temp gauge did not move, so that was good. Im thinking I will play it safe and wait until after the holiday for my mechanic to return. Thanks!

 

That happened to my wife’s Saab. It was a small hole in the AC evaporator. White cool mist hissing out the the vents, then no AC.
Take it to an AC specialist, they’ll be able to trace what blew. Check your AC hoses/lines coming from compressor, condenser for wet oil. That might be the location of the leak too

 

HI @Gophat and @RBaczek ,

My mechanic found a leak in the hose and an O ring missing. They replace the hose, O Ring and had to do an AC evac and recharge. All in all, quick fix and she is running cool as the other side of the pillow!

Thanks for the support!
JagDee

 

NICE! Glad to hear the good news!