Air Conditioning Works but Only Sometimes...Help!

[gorilla1969]

I was wondering if anyone had experiences this problem and had a fix.

I have a 2000 SSEi with an A/C issue where the air works - but only sometimes. Let me give some details.

Probably about 8 months ago is when the problem first surfaced. I was out of town and I started the car after shopping in a store and pressed the 'Auto' button on the dual climate control console. It started normally and ran for about 5 minutes. I then noticed the car started getting warmer, looked that the display and it changed from showing 'A/C' to 'A/C OFF' and was blowing warm. After turning the unit on and off and pressing assorted button, nothing appeared to help. Finally, I shut the ignition off and restarted the car and the problem resolved itself. It operated normally for about a couple minutes and then the problem repeated the problem all over again. Toggling the ignition would always get the air to restart, however.

After that day, the problem vanished...until this week. The A/C now repeats the problem everyday.

Any suggestions?

Thanks all.

[ptrfair]

WHen it works normal...it pumps out cold air? THat would rule out a leak. Wonder if your thermostat's starting to go.

[Archon]

Just to be sure, start with the simplest thing and have the refrigerant level checked. If that is ok, the next step would be to have the system scanned to see if there are any body code stored. It's possible that one of the pressure switches are intermittent.

[gorilla1969]

I purchased a can of refrigerant from the local auto part store which had a built in pressure gauge. After connecting the can to the A/C port under the hood, the gauge measured 25 psi which, as I understand it, is the low end range for a filled system. I another post I read that a guy who refilled his system didn't see any cool air until he filled it to 33 psi. Taking this under consideration, unloaded the entire first can and the gauge moved very little - probably about 3 psi according to the gauge. The system blew cold for about a day and then it repeated the shutting of the A/C off again on the electronic display. I ran down to the store again and emptied another bottle into the system. This time the pressure appeared to bump just over 30 psi. The system has now run for about 2 days and I haven't seen the problem re-occur. Keep your fingers crossed.

Thanks again for all the advice everyone. Hopefully, this will keep the system going for a while - if not, I'll let you know.

[00Beast]

It could be that the refridgerant pressure sensor sensed low pressure, so it shut the system off to prevent damage.

[gorilla1969]

Right on guys!
After all is said and done, it was a malfunctioning pressure switch. The system works great now.