If you ever needed the aircon to work properley, today is the day.

Turned mine on and I could hear the gas. Looks like its working properly but Not Cold !!!

Any ideas chaps

Cheers

Jonny 4.4 V8 Vogue Adriatic - Cream leather

Generally if you can hear a hissing noise there isn't enough gas in the system for it to work properly (although there may be enough not to have triggered the low pressure switch)

Get off to KwikFit where they do a 10% cooler or your money back deal, obviously if it just needs a top up then great, if it's something else then you won't have to pay. They should be able to detect any leaks in the system.

Don't waste time with the kits from Halfords, but you could pop it down there to check and see what the level is....

Dan 

dan_uk_1984 wrote:

Don't waste time with the kits from Halfords, but you could pop it down there to check and see what the level is...
Dan

The cans in Halfords will not evacuate the system first though so you will just be pumping more stuff in, rather than sucking it all out and then refilling with the correct amount. If you have a leak this will not be detected, the professional machines create a strong vacuum and then measure any drop in vacuum signifying a leak before filling.

If you don't get the ones with the gauge on, you run the risk of over filling, then the system will over pressurize and blow the condenser or evaporator seams. You could also overfill with oil, which will just destroy the compressor.

The cans that have the appropriate quantity in Halfords are £39.99, where as it's £60 at kwikfit for the complete proper service where they will also inject leak dye, the correct amount of oil, and the correct amount of refrigerant.


If a job's worth doing it's worth doing right. 

The AC cans with the gauge which Halfords sell for £40 can be had from eBay for about £23.

Dan, while I agree that you have a point about doing the job correctly, my air con man reckons (rightly or wrongly) that you can't over presurise the system with the aerosol cans as they don't operate at high enough pressures and that the system will fill up and then no more will go in beyond the operating pressure of the can. It was only recommended as a quick fix to get it working again, rather than to ensure you had the A/C operating at peak performance, but I can confirm that it works well enough - I did have doubts until then - and had no detrimental effect to the system (well, not in 5 years anyway!). Just an aside, I'm sure there will be an over pressure relief valve to prevent blowing up the system.

And, yes, if you have a leak, the aerosol can will at best give you a few days/weeks operating and you'll be back to square one. My point is that air con systems naturally all leak off over a period of a few years (between 4- 6 dependent on the system before you notice a problem) and will require more gas at some point. If you haven't used the system over say the winter, the seals harden and you will notice very poor performance when you use it the first time in summer. There may be some gas in the system, but not enough to have the desired cooling effect. Therefore a top up is all that is needed (and tops up the lube also to slow reoccurance).

In my mind it's cheap but effective quick fix that gets the aircon working in the time it takes to get to halfords and back (plus 5 minutes) versus more expensive, proper fix that may last longer, may provide better results or diagnose major faults.

Just remember about Kwik Fix - 10% better than crap all a/c, is still usually not much cop.

In terms of quantity, I had a small can that I used on three separate cars to top up, each time the performance went from poor to good, and there is still gas left in the can!

Its def' true that if you don't use the aircon you lose it. My wife's 330D stopped cooling after a year from new cos she never used it. I tried telling her its not just for cooling but also for drying the air in winter, say when you get in and out in damp or wet clothes etc.

She's paying for it now though!

In comparison, the RR was ice cold when we were on holiday on the continent, even when it was 36 degrees outside, I had it set at 20 degrees both sides, air con on, and fan at level 1 only. Chilled! But you see, I use mine all the time. Discovery 4 HSE
1998 110 TUM HS FFR Hard Top XD WOLF
1982 Series 3 Hard Top

*Gone:L462 D5 HSE LUX, L663 Defender 110 HSE, Discovery 3 HSE, 2014MY Range Rover Sport 5.0 Supercharged AB Dynamic; L405 Exec Vogue SE 4.4, 5.0 Supercharged Autobiography, Defender TDCi XS CSW, Defender TD5 HT, Vogue SE TDV8, Vogue TD6, RRSport SC 4.2V8, Classic 3.9 Vogue Auto, Land Rover Series 3 SWB

Well, thanks for the advice chaps.

I dropped it at the local garage this morning, and they re gassed the system and tested etc. Works a treat now. Just in time for the bad weather !!!!

Jonny 4.4 V8 Vogue Adriatic - Cream leather