Automotive Air Conditioning Information Forum

Whining sound: is wife or her mother in the vehicle when this happens????

Could it be a bad serpentine belt? Compressor starting to go bad (bearings, etc)? Maybe the spring tensioner on the serpentine belt?

If my vehicle, I'd pull the serpentine belt and then spin the tensioner pulley by hand, and feel/listen for an issue with that.

And how old id your serpentine ...

zz28zz wrote: Tue Oct 20, 2026 12:36 pm 3. Does the proper charge change when replacing condenser with an aftermarket version with possibly a different volume?

Yes, likely.

Noquacks wrote: Fri Oct 02, 2026 5:10 am Could it be the loose ac belt needing tightening?

That should be easy enough to check.

I might pull the belt, and check any tensioners and AC clutch pulley bearings for drag or noise. And maybe install a brand new belt.

Is it common for 12oz cans to be short on refrigerant? I've never heard of that.

Someone mentioned that a few years ago, think it was on this site. At that time, I had maybe 8 12-oz cans of R134a around and found them all OK.

On the other hand, I also feel that one can only deliver about 11 oz ...

Personally, I have made purchases from ACkits.com.
My 1988 Mazda truck still runs the evaporator I bought about 2000 plus the brand-new compressor and expansion valve from 2014, still R-12.

I believe I've purchased three other compressors for other vehicles through them, and my co-worker bought two ...

57chevyeddie wrote: Wed Sep 16, 2026 7:56 pm The guages read 35-40 low side and 275 high side with ambient temperature around 90 degrees.

Were those pressures measured at about 2000 rpm? Pressures measured at idle speed are not as useful.

Disclaimer: I'm not an AC professional.

If my truck, I'd test the fan clutch first.

Second, when the cooling stops, I'd pull over immediately, leave engine and AC switched on, and visually check if the AC compressor drive plate (the center disc) is engaged, turning at the same speed as the outer ...

1. Assuming that you're not AI or a "bot", I'm surprised that a shop would just replace a compressor shaft seal instead of the entire compressor. Are you in USA?

2. As I stated before, some manufacturers do add UV dye to brand new vehicles. I use a combination of electronic sniffer, UV dye/light ...

I'm thinking that perhaps VW uses plastic caps to prevent damage to the aluminum threads.

No, it's that plastic caps are cheaper.



So if somebody overtightens the cap, the threads on the cap will strip first.

The caps have an internal rubber seal. Only an idiot would crank those super ...