I had my AC replaced about a year ago. It is not working again. Is it possible that I need a freon charge?
Possible. Also possible are blown compressor, and major leak in a hose, evap coil or condensor coil. Best to take it in and have it evaluated.
how long is the lifespan on an air conditioner? I had the entire thing replaced in July 2007 at an Acura dealer…
This is the 2003 Acura, right? I doubt they replaced the ENTIRE system. This is a lot of components and very expensive on a 4 year old car. They probably just fixed what broke, and sent it back out. You’ll need to take it back, or to another shop. If all the gas ran out, there is a good sized leak somewhere that needs to be fixed. If the compressor kicked the bucket, then that will need to be replaced. I don’t mean to sound rude, but, if you don’t know how to check the fuses (see other post), then your not going to be able to fix this problem in your driveway. You need a professional to look at it.
BTW, I had A/C on an '82 Honda Prelude working perfectly for 8 years. My 1990 Toyota P/U’s A/C gave me 13 years of service before I had to take it in for work. My 2000 Ford Explorer is still pumping cold air 8 years later. And my '88 Toyota Supra just gave me issues this past summer with all the original factory components still in place. That one I know needs a new compressor.
The air conditioner isn’t a single part, so one can’t say definitively what the average life span is of all those parts. You need a professional diagnosis. Take the car to an air conditioning technician.
The only time your air conditioner will need a freon charge is if there is a leak. So if that is the case, you will need to get the leak fixed first. Freon isn’t consumed by the air conditioner. Freon is kind of a vehicle for pulling heat out of the air.
Supposedly there’s a kind of refrigerant you can buy (just at WalMart) with a stop-leak ingredient; haven’t tried it yet myself, as I keep meaning to trade out my car for a new Yaris LB… : D But I do find I have to have Freon added every summer…
Did you get a warrenty with the repair? One year is quite short, something is probably leaking. Have the people who fixed it take a look (assuming they’re good).
Car AC systems can, and should, last the life of the car. Many don’t, but as an example I have a 1991 Isuzu pickup truck that I bought used with a working factory AC on it. It still works. On the other hand I had to have the AC on a 5 year old Maxima fixed.
I have found that when a car AC has a problem that some shops can fix them and they stay fixed while other shops seem to fix them so that they break again in a year or so. I don’t think they are doing it on purpose, it’s just that some shops really seem to get it right and others not so much. Once you find a shop that gets it right, stick with them.
Oh no - I know I wont’ be abel to fix it on my own…I am just trying to figure out what might be wrong. I took it in to get looked at today. Acura seems unwilling to pay for another AC. I have the paperwork in front of me that shows that they replaced the entire system for me as it was bad. They guarantee their work for a year. So, they are most likely not going to pay for it. However, I think my transmission may be going bad now, too. I hear funny noises when I am in second and third gear. I just can’t catch a break!
I have never had one die. I have had them still working 15 years after I bought the car. (On that one I did have to replace some tubing that had been worn through because another part of the car rubbed against it and after about 120,000 miles it started to leak. It was a cheap fix.
I suggest you take it to a A/C shop and have them check it out. Don’t chose the dealer unless it is under warranty. Frankly the A/C shops usually do a better job and do it cheaper.
Acura seems unwilling to pay for another AC.
You keep referring to the air conditioner as if it is a single component. It isn’t. It is a system that includes many components. If Acura isn’t willing to give you a whole new air conditioning system for free, I don’t blame them. The problem might be able to be solved with the replacement of a single component, which may or may not be convered by the warranty for your last repair, depending on which components were replaced the last time.
Chances are Acura didn’t replace your whole air conditioning system, so expecting them to do it now under some kind of warranty makes little sense.