Automotive Air Conditioning Information Forum (Archives)

T.S. on Sat July 11, 2015 11:50 PM

Year: 2005
Make: Ford
Model: Fresstyle SEL
Engine Size: 3.0 L
Refrigerant Type: 134a
Ambient Temp: 100

I am looking for advice on an issue that was seen here before. Here is the link to that thread. The problems are similar so I need to decide whether the compressor bad or the fans are weak. Or, maybe there is a leak?

I bought the car with about 60K and it now has 192K. This is the first problem I have had with the ac. The ac has been blowing warm during idle for two years, but this summer it has been blowing hot during idle. I took it to a local shop for an evacuation, installed a new control valve, and had the shop recharge the system. Many people who have replaced the control valve have noticed scoring on the brass valve or in the bore. I noticed that on my old one also. The PAG oil looked clean, bright green, like green antifreeze. There was one sliver of shiny metal on the small cylindrical screen that goes in next to the control valve. There was also a big surprise in there. A previous owner had placed a 1/2 inch nut between the valve and the cover plate. It was intact and covered in PAG oil. Also, the filter was black on the inside of the screen. I have not detected any evidence of leaking from the plate that covers the control valve.

It blew cold at idle all the way home (four stoplights) and in my driveway for 20 minutes. I checked the vent temp and it was 60 deg. Over the next 6 days, it blew increasingly warm. It now blows 90 on the drivers side and 100 on the passenger with ambient 100 deg. at idle. There is also an intermittent clicking sound behind the passenger dash that happens when the passenger adjusts the temperature using the dual zone control, but usually, it only clicks in the winter. I found the following in the evening after moving the car into the shade for a couple of hours.

................................... Low.........High......Driver Temp
Pre Ignition (a/c on)----- 120+.....~130
Idle----------------------- 85...........175...........91
Idle 10 mins-------------- 82...........160...........90
1500---------------------- 67...........245...........80
2000---------------------- 62...........275...........78

Poured water over the condenser (tap water was about 85 deg. because of the Phoenix heat)

.................................Low...........High.......Driver Temp
1500-------------------- 65...........175...........80
2000-------------------- 50...........205...........75

It seems like the compressor is actually doing pretty well because it can get up to 275. The low side seems high, but I'm not sure if that is the compressor, the fans, or the control valve

I am a special education teacher, so I have a couple of weeks to work on this before school starts, but I only have enough cash to cover the parts. I have worked on a lot of different cars, Volvo, Pontiac Montana, Cherokee, Geo Tracker, S-10 Blazer, but this is my first try with a/c and I recognize that this is a complex system. Just gotta do the best I can with the resources that I have. Any advice will be greatly appreciated.