A/C and Airflow Problems in '98 SSEI

[thunderpanda]

My main problem right now is that the AC does not work at all. The pulley on the compressor is spinning fine, but the compressor never clicks on. I don't know a lot of the technical names for everything, but I think the clutch is never engaging, though I am able to manually spin the AC compressor, so it is not stuck. Even when I have the AC set to minimum on a hot day, the compressor never kicks on.

I examined the cord and connection that connects directly to the compressor, it looked fine to me, I didn't see any corrosion or bad wires. How can I troubleshoot this? Is the whole AC unit bad?

Then my other problem is air flow in the car. First problem is that even when my fan is on max, I don't get much of a blast. But here is the situation: For years I had NO air flow. I suspected a cloggage in the intake somewhere. So I took off the cowl to examine it. At some point a family of mice had apparently been living in there, because the whole intake was filled with stuff. It was all kind of matted into one giant ball and I was able to pull it all out. I don't SEE anything else in there. That restored some of the air flow, and if need be, I can live with that much though obviously more would be much better.

The other symptom though is that only hot air comes out. Even with it at the minimum temperature, or even if I just have it set to circulate air, the air coming out of all the vents is hot when the engine is hot.

I've heard a theory that one of the things that is supposed to move to allow heat in the air is stuck, from more mouse blockage or maybe other reasons. Is that possible? How would I find out?

One last thing to consider too is that for years, the fan or blower or whatever it's called (the thing that produces air flow) was often working hard against a huge blockage, so it was spinning without any air moving, which could have damaged it. It DOES run pretty loud at it's highest setting, I don't know if that means anything.

Sorry for all the info, but I wanted to be thorough. Any thoughts on how I should troubleshoot this? I read numerous other forum posts but didn't find anything that helped me too much. Thanks in advance!

[95se]

try getting a low side a/c hose with a quage and see how much freon you have in the system?

[david]

if you dont have any freon in your system the compressor will not turn on. The fan is loud when its on high ,but your loud and my loud could differ. You should feel the differents in air flow when your changing the settings on the fan speed, if not then I believe you have blockage.

[Archon]

I agree that a low charge of refrigerant is the most likely cause for the compressor not working. If it is low, you could charge it and see if it holds. If it leaks down again, you'll have to find where it is leaking and fix it.

For the airflow problem, try this procedure from Techinfo.
http://www.pontiacbonnevilleclub.com/fo ... c2432.html

Your last problem could be a defective air mix actuator. Also from Techinfo.
http://www.pontiacbonnevilleclub.com/fo ... c3537.html

[thunderpanda]

I agree that a low charge of refrigerant is the most likely cause for the compressor not working. If it is low, you could charge it and see if it holds. If it leaks down again, you'll have to find where it is leaking and fix it.

For the airflow problem, try this procedure from Techinfo.
http://www.pontiacbonnevilleclub.com/fo ... c2432.html

Your last problem could be a defective air mix actuator. Also from Techinfo.
http://www.pontiacbonnevilleclub.com/fo ... c3537.html

Thanks everyone! I'm looking into everything. I'll definitely be doing the procedure to clear the airflow and get rid of any blockages, I'll let you know how that goes.

And I think you might be right about the air mix actuator. I took out the glove compartment and looked through that hole and didn't see anything moving as I changed temperature. Plus the climate control display has the temperature blinking every time I start the car, which I've heard usually indicates a problem with the air mix actuator.

My only problem is actually getting to the actuator... I've searched this forum and many others looking for clear instructions applying to the bonneville, but couldn't find any. There is lots of discussion of having to be on your back on the passenger floor, but nobody actually says what to do from there. Some of the instructions say to take off the whole dashboard, but I would really rather avoid that if there is another solutions available.

Does anyone know of a good thread where it is discussed? Pictures would be ideal. Otherwise I'll just start taking stuff out under the glove compartment and hoping for the best.

Oh and I'll do that freon check as well, hopefully I'll get to that soon.

[thunderpanda]

Update:

My air mix actuator was definitely bad, I replaced it and the air mix works great now. I also replaced the blower motor, which was pretty bad. Mice had gotten in, chewed it up, and nested in there. Additionally, the vents near the motor were all plugged up with mouse nests, I cleaned that all out.

Now the air blows great, mixes properly, and comes out where it's supposed to. I haven't worked on the AC system yet, that's next on my list.

[98SSE]

I had to replace my air mix on mine when I got it @143k and also my compressor never kicked on. Once I added some freon it kicked on but was short lived as it leaked out within 2 days. The compressor is showing metal flakes and makes a funky noise so I'm just going to replace it and go from there. I also had to replace my vacuum hoses inside the car, they had collapsed and wouldn't allow for proper engagement between defrost/floor/vent. Good luck!