jessica19699

Hello I have a A/C issue and was wondering if any one can help me or has dealt with this before, I have a 2004 Honda civic it is reaching 333000 miles so yeah I know the mileage is high but up until now it has been a great car. Anyway when I leave for work in the early dark hours of the morning my A/C will work perfect for my whole trip to work which is an hour and a half one way, when I leave work to go home it will work fine for about 10/15 mins and then start blowing warm air, now after researching some I have noticed that when the temp outside is about 80 degrees or higher the a/c will start to blow the warm air after 10/15 mins if it is in the 70's the A/C will work fine the whole ride home. I have been told there is a thermostat type thing on the compressor and it might be failing and that may be why it works when cooler out and not in higher heat. Has anyone else seen or dealt with issues like this and if so how as it resolved with the high mileage I have on this car I'm trying to figure out if it is worth the time and money to invest to get it fixed by simple means or is it a lot more complex and not worth it ,any help would greatly be appreciated.

mrohitredd

I've had the same issue too...

First thing i would do is to check for leaks & fill freeon.

Excessive or Less freeon will cause these issues too...
For a car with so many miles, it can be anything - leak, free on, (hope not) compressor.

Redneck_cdn

When the A/C system is on, but blowing warm air, are the cooling fans running?
Does the center of the A/C compressor clutch engage/spin?
If you carefully tap the armature (center part of the clutch if it is not turning) will it engage?
Can you carefully detect a strong magnetic field from the clutch when it is supposed to be running?

Could be a weak or worn out clutch on the compressor with that many miles on it. I had a similar issue with the clutch as it would no longer engage once the system was hot. I was able to temporarily fix the problem as the air gap was excessive on the clutch armature buy removing the center nut & armature (outside face of the clutch) thoroughly cleaning the mating surfaces, removed the shim, and checked the air gap with a set of feeler gauges. Spec is .35-.65mm of gap.

http://www.sanden.com/objects/TR%20Service%20Manual.pdf

https://www.civicforums.com/forums/3...mittently.html

I am aware that the clutch is worn out, and will be looking for replacement parts for the long term repair.

The A/C clutch can be accessed by safely lifting and supporting the drivers side of the vehicle, remove the drivers side front tire and lower inner splash guard.

jessica19699

ok guys thanks for the reply..me being female I'm clueless to these kinds of things and certainly couldn't work on them myself lol. I guess I better take it to a mechanic, I will certainly check into what you all said though ,thanks again

ezone

Kinda sounds like a worn compressor clutch that now has excessive gap.

Redneck_cdn

just be prepared for and expensive visit to the shop for a vehicle with that mileage.

How long do you intend to keep the vehicle as it may come down to a $1000 repair to completely restore the system to proper operation. With a proper system diagnosis the shop may prefer to replace the entire A/C compressor vs just the clutch. Looking forward with that mileage a lot of things will start to wear out and it may just be the time to either deal with the warm temps or look for a new ride.

It not about gender, it is the ability to ask a question.

h4ldol

My 2002 Civic coupe started to have very similar A/C problems just a couple weeks ago. It's at 110k miles. Basically, A/C will stop blowing out cold air after it's been on for a while (can be 60 min or 15 min). I took it to my Honda dealer and paid $210 for them to check the system for leaks and whatever else they do, and they said it should be fine. Unfortunately, it's not fine and stops working (that is, the fan stills works and the compressor sounds like it's still on but warm air comes out) after a while again. I'm hoping to keep this car for at least 3 more years or so (I drive 100 miles daily nowadays for my commute so I don't want a new car to put a ton of miles on) before getting a new car.

Any thoughts or suggestions? I live in Seattle so A/C is not critical (I like driving with the windows down when it gets warm, and it rarely gets very hot for extended periods of time) but it would be nice to have working when I want it (especially when in traffic).

alex_nyc

If you do need a Compressor clutch, from my experience, they will always replace the $400 compressor + freon + other parts that go with it. $,$$$.$$

There are videos on youtub on this.

It would be great if all you needed was some freon! You might be able to get a pepboy guy to add freon when you buy the can with a gauge on it. Good Luck!

ezone

Does it blow out warm air, or does the airflow slow down and stop?
You almost have to get them to check it out WHILE it's broken. If it doesn't act up for them, they won't find anything wrong.


You would need to actually look and see if the compressor clutch is engaged and spinning, don't assume. Diagnosis goes an entirely different direction if its actually engaged and blowing warm.
If it blows warm, I'll guess a sticking relay, worn clutch with excessive gap, or a coil issue.. Any of these could be relatively easy to figure out if you can test while it's in "quit mode". A control panel or some other problem takes more work to figure out.




You can always get the clutch, pulley, and coil through any Honda dealer.

Aftermarket does not normally sell these as individual pieces, they will sell a complete reman compressor complete (usually of questionable quality, if not outright crap).

h4ldol

Thanks for the detailed reply! Is there any easy and definitive repair that will most likely (not 100% but pretty reliably) resolve the A/C problem? That is, will changing the compressor probably make it work again since it is replacing several components? Or are those parts you referenced (clutch, coil, pulley, etc.) not part of the compressor itself? I just want to get it fixed definitively so I don't have to keep going in every couple weeks, wasting time and money...

Reverb2005

If you can tell the compressor is spinning then the compressor is probably fine. Usually when compressors go, a bearing gets shredded internally and the compressor seizes, thus it will not spin.

If you see the compressor spinning, just change the clutch.

No one in their right mind will tell you there is, unless they have the ability to see your car while not being there right in front of it. Repairs take either a lot of effort or a lot of money, sometimes both, so either be prepared to dish out one of the two if you want to fix it.

Sure, changing the compressor AND the clutch MAY solve your problem but no one is going to tell you for sure without actually looking at it.

My advise is first change the clutch since it is MUCH easier than doing the compressor too, which involves de-pressurizing the system....

The clutch is about $170 from Majestic and the entire clutch and compressor is about $460.

http://www.hondaautomotiveparts.com/...R+%28SANDEN%29

ezone

An accurate and correct diagnosis would be a good starting point.

Or you could fire the parts cannon.
Handy pic of a parts cannon:


I don't know what's wrong with your AC system. You haven't given enough info to figure out what exactly is wrong with it.
I was just stating those items are available separately from the compressor, if that's all that is needed. (in response to the post by alex_nyc)

Sounds like a shop problem, not an AC problem.
Of course, we aren't psychic. We can't predict the future. Crap happens.

zjeproks

The clutch, pulley and coil can all be replaced with the compressor in the car. Remove power steering pump out of the way. Remove front left tire and splash shield. Unbolt 3 10mm bolts holding the windshield washer fluid tank and tie or bungee cord it out of the way. You now have a clear view of the compressor.


Loosen 3 bolts holding alternator to free up serpentine belt. The 2 bolts underneath the alternator are easily accessible from the underside. You might need a ac clutch tool if you don't have an impact wrench as it will freely spins using a socket wrench. Remove 14mm clutch bolt. Remove/wiggle/slide clutch out of pulley. Remove spacer/washer from spindle. Remove snap ring holding pulley with snap ring pliers. Use 3 jaw 5 ton puller you can borrow from auto parts store.



http://www.autozone.com/loan-a-tools...er/516519_0_0/

Make sure the jaw of the puller only touches the back of the pulley, not the grooves or coil. I used a 25mm socket (it slides perfectly inside the pulley bearing) and placed it in the middle of the compressor shaft. Check out 3:09 of this video: When I did mine, I did not replace the coil since there was no cracks and it tested fine. If you feel the need to replace it, remove the snap ring holding it in place and disconnect wires.

Install new coil and the snap ring to secure it in place. Lightly grease pulley bearing sleeve and clean compressor mount before sliding in pulley. You might need to lightly tap the pulley with a piece of wood for it to fully seat. Install snap ring. Install spacer washer and install clutch and lastly 14mm nut. Measure the gap between clutch and compressor and it should be 0.5-0.15mm If not, add/remove spacers until the gap is good.

alex_nyc

at 333000 miles..... i dont know if youve had any service on the AC in the past.
you really do need someone to find the exact problem before putting money in it. with that many miles, if it needed a clutch I would change the compressor as it comes with the clutch.

find out what they actualy did and list it here.

Im sure even you can change the relay. you can buy a new one or swap it out with a different relay as a test. maybe pepboys can change it for free when you buy a relay from them.

civicmom

Thank you for the input. I will have to check it. I will have to look up to see where the all the stuff is located. I don't know much about cars but if there is a video then I can do it!

alex_nyc

CIVICMOM your post was moved here: https://www.civicforums.com/forums/3...-problewm.html

ezone

Damn, I fat fingered the title when I moved the post. Corrected now.

h4ldol

Thanks for the input. How/where can you see the compressor?




Thanks. I'll probably take it back to the shop and hope they give me a discount since they didn't properly fix/identify the issue the first time.




I'm so tempted to give it a try with your instructions and pics, but that's probably a bad idea. Thanks for posting it though. I'm sure it'll help someone with A/C issues.

Reverb2005

The compressor is located on the driver's side, near the front bumper, close to the ground, right underneath the alternator and power steering pump.

It is buried pretty deep in there, but if you know what you are looking for, a flashlight should suffice.

Alternatively, zjeproks picture below shows a pretty good view of the compressor and clutch. You have to remove the driver's side wheel, remove a shroud in the left, upper side of the wheel well and remove the windshield washer bottle. That will give you a very clear look at the clutch, right from the front.

mrohitredd

I did the below...

1. Removed Wheel & Splash Guard to access the clutch.

2. REMOVE Clutch Plate >>> Got a universal AC clutch tool - which was useless to me, as it only wasted time in trying to hold the clutch plate. At last, i used an impact driver & the nut came off very easily - Try the same & save yourself a lot of time.

3. Cleaned thoroughly inside & out (be careful with the tiny washers inside the clutch plate).

4. Put everything back. Been driving it for 2 days now. AC doesn't stop as it used to before. Will check for few more days & let you all know if it dies again (i will change the clutch, if so).

No harm in trying this... Its free of cost rather spending $400-$600 to replace the clutch. Could be temporary too, but worth the savings !

Thanks.

h4ldol

Thanks for the info, although I ended up taking it back to the dealer on Friday and they said the relay was malfunctioning and the compressor was "out of spec" and recommended replacing with a remanufactured compressor and so I ended up getting that done (and clutch replacement I think) to the tune of almost $1100. On top of the A/C "recharge" (leak test, Freon added, etc.) two weeks ago for $200, it brought the total cost to about $1300. Quite pricey, but I'm fine with it as long as it continues to work.

alex_nyc

OUCH!!

i hope they changed the Receiver Drier can too. at that price you should have gotten a new compressor!!

h4ldol

Lol, yeah it's sad how easy it is to get reeled in by the service department. I agreed mostly because they could get the work done by the next day (part came to Seattle from Portland), and they said that compressors are all remanufactured nowadays and can't get them new anyway. I wondered if that was true, but if it keeps working for another 100k miles I'll be more than happy. It's been working the past two days now so fingers crossed (hehe).

ezone

The price difference between reman compressor complete and new compressor+clutch set+coil through Honda is almost double.

Chrissy702

Seriously Your clueless because you choose to be it has nothing to do with being as Female. So don't use that as an excuse. I'm a woman and I know my car inside and out. Not trying to make waves but as a woman I'm saying educate yourself don't let the stereotype keep living. Prove them wrong time and time again.