My first weekend with my new (to me) 2008XK and the AC didn't seem as cold as I would have expected. Cold enough, just no icy. Granted it was 101 yesterday. Any thoughts?

 

If it is blowing cold then the system is working.... You might just have a low charge in it. Many indy shops can do AC servicing.

BOL
V

 

move to Seattle! or have A/C gas checked...............

Cheers, Adrian

 

Buy a can at Autozone and recharge it yourself for $20. It's very simple and takes all of 10 minutes to do

 

Pick up an a/c thermometer for a few bucks. You should be getting close to 40 degrees out of the vents at the lower settings. Keep it on recirculate.

 

I did that and ended up way overcharging the system. Those gauges don't work worth a ****!

I even bought a set of cheapie manifold gauges and those didn't give proper readings either. Besides, you really need to know how much refrigerant is already in the system so you can fill it to the proper level.

 

Dave,

Almost any shop should be able to recharge the system. Wheelworks, etc. do that for ~$100-120. At least they collect the old R134 from your system before refilling it with new gas. And even though you can just push the valve and release the old gas from the system and "recharge" it yourself, I believe it is not really worth it. First of all, because you want to get the right amount of gas in they system.

P.S. Personally, I'd stay away from "DIY" kits from Autozone/O'reilly

 

Sorry, I forgot to mention that a modicum of mechanical ability is required. The difficulty level of recharging the a/c system is about the same as changing the radio station

 

Why? They work just fine

 

Understand what the gauges mean and go from there.
https://www.google.com/search?q=auto...w=1120&bih=745

 

So here is what I have so far. Drivers side is colder than the passenger side even when the setting for the passenger is 20 degrees cooler. This one is covered by the extended warranty. So off to the dealer we go once the warranty is transferred.

 

Haha! It did take me a while to realize that I was trying to plug the thing into the high pressure side (wouldn't fit). On the 4.2 XKR, you have to remove one of the air intakes (driver's side) to access the low pressure side, which is annoying since you need to run the engine to do the procedure--meaning you have to hook the intake back up after you put the quick connect tap on the valve.

But the biggest problem was the gauges were not reading precisely. I'd plug it in, then it would read something. I'd hit the trigger and release, and then it read something completely different. The same thing happened with the cheapo manifold gauges I bought. Clearly not functioning correctly!

As I said, due to the gauge not working correctly, I added way too much refrigerant (it was probably overfilled by at least 8 ounces) because the gauge still read 20 psi on the low pressure side even after adding practically a whole can. It was obviously incorrect!

If you overfill, there's not much you can do. It's not a nice thing to vent r134a into the atmosphere. If you don't have an evacuation pump, you better just take it to an A/C shop where they can do the proper procedure for just $150 or so.

But maybe I just have bad luck? Or no mechanical ability? Either way I'm not going to try to do my own A/C repairs without buying some good quality equipment. And I wouldn't recommend anyone else do it either. Unless you drive a 1985 Toyota Corolla, assuming it has aircon. Then maybe it's ok.

 

Jeebus...you overfilled it by more than 8oz????? That's quite an accomplishment when you consider that the process of recharging the a/c system with a can is virtually identical to inflating a bicycle tire. It's really not that complicated.

 

Really? Can you squeeze the lines to see how full they are? Overcharging the system is easier to do than you think. If the low pressure gauge is reading 20 psi and it's defective, and you keep filling up the system and it's still reading 20 psi, before you realize it the can is empty and the gauge is reading the same thing. On top of that, the system may not have even been undercharged at all to begin with because the gauge isn't working!

Don't be an ***. I am trying to give useful information to people who will otherwise waste their time following your bad advice.

 

That sounds like it has nothing to do with refrigerant level.

 

Auto AC is not difficult if in the basic form but with the advent years ago of the climate control systems it brought on a new dimension to diagnose problems. I'm not an expert (although I read a book on AC) but where I find most people go wrong is by not using a proper gauge set and reading both the high and low pressure gauges. There is tons of info on the net on how to read and find faults so if you just have a low charge then other then a leak it should be rather simple to fix. If a leak or if the CC processor is a problem then you need a more sophisticated approach to fix the problem. Over charging the system can lead to serious problems and is simple to do if not careful and making sure the conditions you charge it are correct. Most DIY'er use the low pressure charge cans with the gauge on it but you need to make sure you have the engine running at around 1500 rpm and a large fan (I use a box fan) blowing on the rad. and a temp gauge in the air duct. AC on high and go to the charge chart for gauge pressure based on ambient temperature. Read about it and it can be a simple operation.

 

DaveC. What was your outcome?

 

Talked to the dealer and best guess is the blend valve. I have to wait until the CPO warranty is transferred to get the work done. I'll post when I have a definitive answer. As long as the top is down, who cares!

 

My bad advice?

Attach hose - observe pressure - inflate until desired pressure is reached - detach hose. I can see how some might find the complexity of that process overwhelming...

 

What Alan is saying is: "inflate until desired pressure is reached" is all well & good, unless the a/c recharge kit you bought has a crappy pressure gauge that doesn't read right. Never overinflated a tyre because the pump had a bad gauge? Easy to do...