I recently had the A/C on my 99 Jeep repaired. The mechanics took 4 tries until they finally found the problem: the evaporator core. After all of these costly repairs, the air seems to be working very well. However, it seems that when I use the air it dries out my eyes and throat and seems to have a unusual smell. I travel for work often, and have used numerous other cars for extended periods and have not had this problem. Since the A/C system has several new components I think that may be responsible for the smell, but I am not sure about the other side effects. Is this something that should concern me? Is there any risk?
One last thought, the air vents sometime have a black sponge that gets trapped on the vents. What component has this part, and why is it falling apart?
Thanks in advance.
I can answer part two of your post. Since the evaporator core is buried inside the dashboard and they had to tear it open to do the work, this “black sponge” stuff is probably foam stripping used to keep the air ducts separate, and to seal off any joints. When they opened it up to access the evaporator, it’s a good bet some of this stuff ripped apart, and pieces got loose in the ducting.
The A/C will dry out the air. That is why the Evap coils need a drain line. The cooler air cannot retain the moisture, and it will ‘drop out’ of the air on the coils.
I have the same problem with the A/C in my car. I can’t run the vent directly blowing on my face without my eyes drying out.
The A/C dries the air well and fast, especially inside the confines of a car. Try the defrost setting which will push the air out of the defrost vents. The smell would prob. be from the new parts and should go away soon. If not, something isn’t right.
The strange part is that this was not the case when the air worked before. Is it possible they added too much refrigerant? Is there anything else that could cause this to work too well?