Larry W Posted August 17, 2011 Posted August 17, 2011 I took my 94 LS into the local Tire Plus store to have the a/c checked. It wasn't cold enough after having a rebuilt compressor, clutch, and new evaporator installed. The work was done about 6 mos ago by a local mechanic and it seemed to be working OK when the temperature was in the 70's. South Florida temp today was 95 degrees with a heat index over 100. The Tire Plus mechanic said I probably had air in the system as he could not find a leak. He pumped down the system and recharged it and said it was OK. I drove off noticing the a/c did feel colder, but no where near my Wife's Avalon. I did notice today that the air was colder at 35-40 mph coming out of the middle vents. I'm assuming the air blowing over the condensing unit at this speed is helping the cooling. Its really at low speeds that it doesn't cool well enough. Could it be low on Freon? I also noticed the right vent (passenger side) is not anywhere as cold as the middle or driver's vents. Also the rear a/c seems to be the same air temp as the right vent. Any suggestions?
steve2006 Posted August 18, 2011 Posted August 18, 2011 If you paid for the recharge and it's not working take it back to the shop, they should know how much refridgerant is needed to fully charge the AC. Did they use a temperature probe in the vents to check the temperature? When you say the system was checked for leaks was the system charged with nitrogen and dye then checked with an ultra violet light? If you look at the sight glass on the left hand side of the radiator you should see the gas flow when the AC is on.
Larry W Posted August 18, 2011 Author Posted August 18, 2011 If you paid for the recharge and it's not working take it back to the shop, they should know how much refridgerant is needed to fully charge the AC. Did they use a temperature probe in the vents to check the temperature? When you say the system was checked for leaks was the system charged with nitrogen and dye then checked with an ultra violet light? If you look at the sight glass on the left hand side of the radiator you should see the gas flow when the AC is on. He checked the air coming out of the vents with an infra red tester. I know a temperature probe is the best device, but I figured if he was off a few degrees and the A/C worked, I would be happy. He noted 40 DEGREES coming out of the center vent. I told him that the same temperature as my new Maytag Refrigerator. No comment. He did say the sight glass was "clear". I did not verify, but I'm going out to the car now to check it again. It was foggy the day before I brought it in. Going back tomorrow to get it fixed or my money refunded.
DEATH Posted August 19, 2011 Posted August 19, 2011 If you paid for the recharge and it's not working take it back to the shop, they should know how much refridgerant is needed to fully charge the AC. Did they use a temperature probe in the vents to check the temperature? When you say the system was checked for leaks was the system charged with nitrogen and dye then checked with an ultra violet light? If you look at the sight glass on the left hand side of the radiator you should see the gas flow when the AC is on. He checked the air coming out of the vents with an infra red tester. I know a temperature probe is the best device, but I figured if he was off a few degrees and the A/C worked, I would be happy. He noted 40 DEGREES coming out of the center vent. I told him that the same temperature as my new Maytag Refrigerator. No comment. He did say the sight glass was "clear". I did not verify, but I'm going out to the car now to check it again. It was foggy the day before I brought it in. Going back tomorrow to get it fixed or my money refunded. A tire store that does a/c repair? Interesting. Who would you call to fix your home air conditioning? Tire store mechanics are hacks! Cold on one side and not on the other is an indicator that your system is low on charge. I do this everyday on Lexus only. There is a hose coming from the a/c compressor to the condenser. Look under the battery where it bolts to another pipe. If you see any oil residue there, the o-ring connecting the two has deteriorated. Very common on this model. There should be a sticker under the hood that tells you exactly how much refrigerant your system requires. If you see bubbles in the sight glass, the system is low. You might get away with topping it off, but if you have a leak, you will be constantly adding to the system(days? weeks? months?) depending on the size of the leak.
Larry W Posted August 24, 2011 Author Posted August 24, 2011 If you paid for the recharge and it's not working take it back to the shop, they should know how much refridgerant is needed to fully charge the AC. Did they use a temperature probe in the vents to check the temperature? When you say the system was checked for leaks was the system charged with nitrogen and dye then checked with an ultra violet light? If you look at the sight glass on the left hand side of the radiator you should see the gas flow when the AC is on. He checked the air coming out of the vents with an infra red tester. I know a temperature probe is the best device, but I figured if he was off a few degrees and the A/C worked, I would be happy. He noted 40 DEGREES coming out of the center vent. I told him that the same temperature as my new Maytag Refrigerator. No comment. He did say the sight glass was "clear". I did not verify, but I'm going out to the car now to check it again. It was foggy the day before I brought it in. Going back tomorrow to get it fixed or my money refunded. A tire store that does a/c repair? Interesting. Who would you call to fix your home air conditioning? Tire store mechanics are hacks! Cold on one side and not on the other is an indicator that your system is low on charge. I do this everyday on Lexus only. There is a hose coming from the a/c compressor to the condenser. Look under the battery where it bolts to another pipe. If you see any oil residue there, the o-ring connecting the two has deteriorated. Very common on this model. There should be a sticker under the hood that tells you exactly how much refrigerant your system requires. If you see bubbles in the sight glass, the system is low. You might get away with topping it off, but if you have a leak, you will be constantly adding to the system(days? weeks? months?) depending on the size of the leak.
Larry W Posted August 24, 2011 Author Posted August 24, 2011 The mechanic checked the system and recommended a pump down and recharge. I was OK with it as he said it could possibly have air in the system. Made sense and I was allowed to stay by the bay the entire time. I did inquire why was the right vent & the rear vents are still was not as cold as the middle vents. When I called JM Lexus the mechanic said that vent was the furthest from the evaporator, but I still feel it should be cold. Our Toyota Avalon has the coldest a/c coming out of every vent front and rear. It does seem that its low on freon as it does get colder at 35-40 mph. Taking it back for another look (leaving wallet at home). Sight glass by the way is not clear. Its foggy. Thanks for your opinion.
kyled Posted August 25, 2011 Posted August 25, 2011 One of the first signs of low freon is cold on one side and hot on the other. Any basic mechanic should know to check that. I'd turn that Lexus sedan around and demand your money back from the tire shop, and head straight to your Lexus dealer.
jaswood Posted August 26, 2011 Posted August 26, 2011 One of the first signs of low freon is cold on one side and hot on the other. Any basic mechanic should know to check that. I'd turn that Lexus sedan around and demand your money back from the tire shop, and head straight to your Lexus dealer. Like the tire shop, it's unlikely that even a Lexus dealer will have an A/C specialist on staff. Find an A/C "only" shop.
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