AC Problems not working?

If the fan is working, problem is most likely a fault with the control panel. I would try that first as they had problems. This guide can help others with the system not working.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/car-air-conditioner-not-working-or-is-weak

Please run down this guide and report back.

Help. My car is overheating and it won't blow any hot air. It hasn't been blowing hot air for quite a while now. So I did a coolant flush and replace thermostat it still doesn't blowing hot air. Recently however it has been overheating. I noticed a hairline crack in the top of the radiator couple weeks ago and it was blowing steam out and overheating. The gage was on red for sbout s half mile as I drove it home. I put some quicksteel on the crack but the car wouldn't start. Two days later it did start though same sympt oil in the coolant and vice versa. I'm pretty sure the coolant is flowing because both radiator hoses are cold to start but the top gets warmer as the engine gets warmer. There are no abnormal leaks of coolant that I have found and no abnormal low levels either. The car is a 1998 Honda Accord.

If you have oil in the coolant and coolant in the oil, then you most likely have a bad head gasket. Check that first.

Sorry but that post it took out some of my question. There is no oil in the coolant and vice versa. Also the night it overheated and I got home there was not much oil left in the tank. Not sure why.

Do you mean there wasn't much COOLANT in the tank? If so, have you checked for leaks? When you replaced the thermostat, did you bleed the system so there are no air blocks?

I change the thermostat the same time I flush the coolant so there was no coolant in the system. Is that what you're talking about

How do you bleed the system? I've never r.eally seen any leaks. Although the day after it overheated I had to add about a quart of coolant to it

Hi,

The problem started a couple of weeks ago. I'd turn on the air conditioner, and it would cool just fine for a while. Then it blow warm (outside warm, I think) air for a while, then it would blow cool for a while. The last couple of days, it has just given up and is blowing warm.

I had a similar event a year or so ago. I think the mechanic said, it's not the AC but a short in something called the PCM or ECU. I took a trip to the junk yard and replaced it.

When I mentioned this to a Honda mechanic recently, he said the PCM is totally separate from the AC, so it doesn't make sense. All I know is that my nearly new car (286,000 miles) is blowing warm air. Any ideas. It is okay to be basic as I am still trying to identify the condenser so that I can see if it is coming on.

If the AC is full refrigerant the temperature blend door actuator sounds like it is going out here is a guide to show you what you are in for when doing the job and a diagrams below to show you the location for your car.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/replace-blend-door-motor

Check out the diagrams (Below). Please let us know what happens.

Cheers

Sometimes when you drain the coolant and refill it, air gets into the system and causes blockages. As a result, it can cause the vehicle to overheat, the heater not to work... Some vehicles have a bleeder right on the thermostat housing to allow air to exit. Others have nothing. In those cases, I always loosen the return line from the heater core to see if any air comes out.

Thanks,

I haven't checked the freon since we started there last year only to find the real problem. However, I suppose one could easily lose thier freon over the course of a year.

Another website suggested that the ACC relay (I guess that's the air conditioner compressor clutch relay) or condenser fan relay could have gone bad. Do you think that could cause my problem?

The relay solution doesn't quite make sense to me since it would seem that an electrical part like that would probably fail all at once.

Ndmand

[quote:034e3ff656="Ndmand"]Air Conditioning problem
1998 Honda Accord 6 cyl Front Wheel Drive Automatic 286000 miles
----------------------------------------------------------------
Hi,

The problem started a couple of weeks ago. I'd turn on the air conditioner, and it would cool just fine for a while. Then it blow warm (outside warm, I think) air for a while, then it would blow cool for a while. The last couple of days, it has just given up and is blowing warm.

I had a similar event a year or so ago. I think the mechanic said, it's not the AC but a short in something called the PCM or ECU. I took a trip to the junk yard and replaced it.

When I mentioned this to a Honda mechani recently, he said the PCM is totally seperate from the AC, so it doesn't make sense. All I know is that my nearly new car (286,000 miles) is blowing warm air. Any ideas. It is okay to be basic as I am still trying to identify the condensor so that I can see if it is coming on.[/quote:034e3ff656]

Hi: I had the same problem. The Honda mechanic fixed my problem by replacing the a/c clutch coil.

Thanks, I have been thinking of trying replacing the AC clutch relay. How much did that clutch coil cost ya?

I have also noticed that when I cut off the AC, a kind of groaning sound comes from my dash area. Did you experience that too?

Ndmand

I would like to correct what the Honda mechanic about the ECU being separate from the AC. In fact the AC is also linked to the ECU, during full throttle acceleration, the ECU cuts off the AC clutch momentarily to enable full power from the engine and this circuit can also give problems.

1998 honda accord a/c not working i check fuse it is ok. Then i turn the car on and turn a/c on and check the compressor but it was not engage.

Thanks Klow,

So I am not crazy. After I read a bit more, I thought that the Honda mechanic may have been off just a bit.

I have a lot of confidence in the Honda shops, one in particular.

So I did what you suggested and replaced the blend door actuator and it worked! This site is smarter than the Honda mechanics lol

Ndmand

Check if it has the correct amount of freon R134a-low/high pressure okay -check the clutch, AC relay and low pressure cut off switch

Hi Nmand,

Glad you could get it fixed, that kind of problem can be tough. Please use 2CarPros anytime we are here to help

Cheers

HI All,

My 1998 Honda Accord EX has an issue with the air conditioner unit. While the unit blows air, the air doesn't get colder after a 10 minute period of time. While the unit runs, the air conditioner will make a high pitched noise. The noise goes away after you turn off the air conditioner.

This started on 5/9/11.

What process should I take to be able to identify the root cause of the issue?

Thanks in advance for your help.
Brian

you mean it starts cold and gets warm?

Have the compressor checked. Ensure the belt tension is correct.

It starts hot and stays hot. So this wouldn't be a freon issue?

Thanks for both of the replies.

It can be a freon issue but the noisy compressor or related components indicates otherwise.

You could have a slipping belt or failed compressor/clutch.

was it working before? did the noise start after it quit working?

Hello Guys,

I have a 1998 Accord and last year my a/c would work on certain days and on some days it wouldn't. I brought it to a repair shop and they traced the problem to the climate control, which was replaced. Well now here we are again with the same problem occuring again. My a/c hasn't been on in a week and it's hot!!! What could be the problem? Certainly it was not climate control to begin with.

Hi lynota,

If you had replaced with a used unit, it is possible. New units also possible. Honda is not very impressive with this item.

Anyway you need to check for compressor operations and gas level etc.

Mine did the Same on my 1997 Honda Accord. blows hot air. Then a Certified Mechanic from church came over and lifted the passenger side felt panel near gear shift. showed me a "gold bar" switch. He switched it over. Yes!! Cold air. my **** was broken on the dash was all.

Church mechanic solution. Correction. Felt panel on floorboards of the Passenger side near the center of the gearshift thingy. a GOld bar switch that can be switched on instead of the broken one on your dash. Perhaps.

Air Conditioning problem
1998 Honda Accord 6 cyl Two Wheel Drive Automatic 265K miles

Hi ... my a/c "cool" is operating erratic. Often, at engine start and when driving in hot weather with system in "auto", the cold air won't come out and the fan compensates at full fan. Warm, outside temp air, comes out. Then, suddenly, it will come on and stay on, and very cold, like normal. Sometimes the system powers up normally. Also, sometimes when I accellerate really fast, after a few seconds the air will start getting cold, sometimes very slowly and sometimes almost immediately cold. I know the condensor fan works, and I don't hear any belt squeels to indicate a loose belt. My Haynes manual describes how to get diagnostic information out of the display but when I follow the procedure it turns off the system off instead of giving me "88" on the display. Any help here will also be appreciated. Thanks!

Hi efflores,

Thank you for the donation.

I have sent the diagnostic files to you, let me know if it is the same as described in your Haynes manual.

Does it also do this in manual mode? Hondas use an expansion block system instead of a fixed orifice, the expansion blocks work very well, but do tend to stick sometimes which will cause warm air to blow instead of cold.

I'll check to see if in Manual mode it does this, but I'm pretty sure it does.

The problem seems to be fairly predictable. The A/C will not cool unless the car is initially driven for about 3 - 5 minutes, then it comes on strong. Almost sounds like a relay or some sensor acting erratic. Yesterday I checked the freon pressure and it was at the low end, 25, during idle, and when the clutch engaged it would go up past 30. So I added some freon. What I'm not sure of is if the clutch is engaging when the car is first driven.

It should be around 30+ psi when idling hot and the clutch engaged.Try holding therpms up around 3k to see if thecomp stays engaged, this will at least tell if it is working at higher rpms like when driving it.What you describe could be a low charge or the expansion block

It makes no difference if I take the system out of auto mode and into semi-auto. What I did notice today is the clutch is not engaging at cold start, even when the radiator fan is engaged (when A/C on). I actually took a flash light and observed the clutch under the hood. But after a short drive, the system starts working. I checked under the hood and noticed the clutch engaging and disengaging along with the radiator fan after that short drive.
Now, however, after recharging the system, I have a new problem! After the system warms up, it cycles on only momentarily, then off as if it were in some sort of self protection mode. The cooling is degraded, as you might expect. This just happened last night after I finished recharging the system. I left the car sit for about an hour, then I put the pressure gauge on it and while the compressor was engaged continuously (before it went into the cycling mode) it measured 32 PSI. But when I took a static pressure reading after engine shutdown it built up from 50 PSI all the way up to 80 psi. I'm not sure what the static pressure should be, but perhaps I've overcharged causing this new system power on/off cycling problem? When it cylces on/off you can hear sort of a metallic "pop".

Thats bad, there is too much in the system and it is shutting down due to excessive high side pressure.When the engine is hot and idling it should be around 30-35 psi with the comp engaged.DO NOT run it anymore with out having some of the 134a evacuated or it could damage the comp

Thanks. For the original problem, do you still think the expansion valve might be the problem after describing my original symptoms? Or could it be the air conditioning pressure switch located on top of the receiver-drier?

Any easy way to let some pressure out of the low pressure end other than taking it in for servicing? I just so happen to have one of those r-134 bottle screw on trigger valves that I can no longer screw on to another bottle because it would not spin off the old r134 can. But the trigger valve still works fine, and the hose attaches to the low end of the a/c system just fine as well. I know if I attach it and press the valve it would release pressure, I just don't know if that is considered ok to do. Or, if the a/c low pressure attachment point is like a schraeder valve, can one just push it to release pressure (again, low end side)?

I cant condone releasing refrigerant into the air.It is supposed to be reclaimed by a recovery machine.What you do that I dont know about might just work though. It may be the cycling switch, but the pressures need to be correct first.Then hold higher rpms to see if clutch stays engaged.To really see what is going on, it may be necessary to have a full gauge set (high and low sides) on the system to see what is happening.This will also show if the expansion block is indeed sticking or not responding correctly

Thanks. I very much appreciate the advice. I know the compressor is working at high rpm AFTER the initial 3 to 5 minutes of driving because once the a/c engages at that point, it works like normal for hours. And even if I turn off the car for 15 mins, it will start up with the a/c working. But the longer I let the car sit (more than 30 mins), the more probable I will not have a/c when I initially drive the car, but until 3 to 5 mins later (and in my neighborhood in the summer, you can boil in that time!).
Perhaps another clue is, when the a/c decides to turn on, it doesn't always turn on "full cold"; it often gradually builds up to full cold over the course of 2 mins or so. So, we have two symptoms: 1) no compressor engagement first 3 - 5 mins of driving; 2) when a/c finally starts working, it often gradually builds up to full cold.

I have a 98 honda accord ex 4 cyl and the a.c doesn't work(needs new air compreser still not fixed yet) I was driving and all of a sudden it was lots of smoke coming from my front driver tire. My car was not running hot and the smell was strong. It kind of smelled like a burning clutch(my car is auto) remember this smell from a pervious car I had. Brake pads are medium. Can you tell me what that might be?

Since it does this in both modes,Im still thinking something mechanical like the expansion block, but until the pressures are checked on both sides in all conditions it is hard to say.