Aircon diagnostic: dealer or specialist

[Knonist]

Hi, just had my Aircon recharged by Kwik fit, initially they said there was no leak in the system and and the system was blowing out hot air for a good 20 mins before blowing out cooler (not cold) air.

I went back to Kwik after an hour of driving around and they immediately said there was a leak in the system but they charge it up anyway, they offered a refund and said I should go somewhere else to fix the system.

Should I go back to the dealer in Cambridge or is there a specialist you guys can recommend in the Cambridge area?

[jasmith44]

Forgive me if i have this wrong but if there is a leak then they should NOT recharge the system and send you on your way.

[Knonist]

Originally Posted by jasmith44

Forgive me if i have this wrong but if there is a leak then they should NOT recharge the system and send you on your way.

I don't think it is not leaking, at least not significantly. The air con system has been "a bit warm" through out the summer but it is still producing coolish air until this morning. If it is actually leaking then the refrigerant tank would be emptied long ago.

I had a feeling that is it either a) they didn't actually re gas the system as the engine was off throughout the who regas; or b) they can't be bother to work out why, so they issued a refund about 5 seconds after I told them it is blowing warm air.

What I don't understand is, it actually got worst immediately after the regas... I actually wondered if they have "emptied" my tank and didn't put anything in.....

[AndyJudge]

Maybe they've introduced the leak or made it worse.
I thought it was against the law to recharge a system with a leak anyway.

[Knonist]

Went to the local dealer today, they decided to regas the system.
The recovered around 500g of gas and 16g of oil. Vac the system with -1bar and held it for 20mins without loosing the vac.
Put back around 830g of gas and 16g of oil with some dye.

£120 later, the Aircon is still blowing out warm air intermittently.
They appeared have donee exactly the same thing as Kwik fit using a regas machine, but charged me twice as much for the pleasure....

If Kwik fit has actually filled up the refrigerant tank, which mean it leaked 320g in 4 days and the dealer can't spot the leak...

Or Kwik fit only half filled the tank....either way, it is still not working properly....what should I do next?

[Tannaton]

Originally Posted by Knonist

Went to the local dealer today, they decided to regas the system.
The recovered around 500g of gas and 16g of oil. Vac the system with -1bar and held it for 20mins without loosing the vac.
Put back around 830g of gas and 16g of oil with some dye.

£120 later, the Aircon is still blowing out warm air intermittently.
They appeared have donee exactly the same thing as Kwik fit using a regas machine, but charged me twice as much for the pleasure....

If Kwik fit has actually filled up the refrigerant tank, which mean it leaked 320g in 4 days and the dealer can't spot the leak...

Or Kwik fit only half filled the tank....either way, it is still not working properly....what should I do next?

Go back to the dealer... if it is leaking then they should be able to find it with a UV light. FYI I think I’m correct in saying that most MY12 onwards Volvo’s get the dye added at the factory.

[AndyJudge]

is this with the aircon on a preset temp in the car or set to cool ?

Thinking if it's not a leak & you've set a temp of say 21c in the car it'll blow cold initially & then if not getting a correct reading from the internal sensor it then thinks the car is below the preset & then blowing warm air ?

Just a thought.

[Knonist]

Originally Posted by AndyJudge

is this with the aircon on a preset temp in the car or set to cool ?

Thinking if it's not a leak & you've set a temp of say 21c in the car it'll blow cold initially & then if not getting a correct reading from the internal sensor it then thinks the car is below the preset & then blowing warm air ?

Just a thought.

Hi, thanks for the reply.
I had the AC turned on, auto off, temp set to Lo, recirculating air, with fan speed either on minimum or maximum. Every now and then there will be a few minutes of warm air coming through...

I tested it on a 50 miles stretch of motorway driving today , it seems to be blowing out cool (not freezing could air). I don't feel cold wearing a T shirt...

[Knonist]

Just to add... They charged for diagnostic but only limited to looking at the dye they injected. They didn't even test that pressure or plug in to the vidda to check the code... The system is down for the day....

[Tannaton]

If it has a leak in the system then over time (maybe a few days) it will deteriorate. You can check it with a thermometer measuring the air at the vents, you should see air coming out around substantially cooler than the outside air.

If you have intermittent hot air then check the clearance on the clutch of the compressor (search the forum & YouTube)