air con not working after re gas ????? stumped

[niks_terrano]

hi guys,

i have a 2000 terrano 2 facelift model and withthe hot weather this weekend i thought id get the aircon sorted as it hasnt work since i bought it.

whipped the truck down too kwik fit an hour later i have aircon yippee !!!!:thumb2:thumb2

went home very happy until i came out after a few hours later and no aircon back to warmish air coming out of the heater with the aircon on full blast.

i cant see any obvious pipes that ar split or that leak ???

the guy at kwik fit did say that the pollen filter needs replacing ?
but how would he know this ? ?


any help would be great guys

paul

 

[lee 4x4]

Cant help with the A/C but i would imagine the blower would lose power if the pollen filter is dirty,my blower seems weak even on full so will be checking the filter this week.

 

[lacroupade]

It commonly gets missed with non-dealer servicing but is easy enough to do.

If your gas is escaping there should usually be a coloured tell-tale I think...Daved is pretty good on this one when he pops along.... :thumb2

 

[solarman216]

Kwick fit Ho Ho Ho bunch of nuts, they charged your system with expensive gas and two hours later it has all leaked out, finding the leak is not the easiest of things to do, if it leaks in that short a time then it is a big leak so you have it charged up with a special dye and it will show where the leak is, but most likely in a place that will be very expensive to fix, Rick

 

[Timbo_1975]

Kwik-fit are not renown to be experts with a/c, infact I wouldnt use the two words in one sentance!!

Anyhow, your leak is going to be in one of two places.

1) the alloy pipe that sits in the top of the condensor and runs across the top of it to the drier- corroded under the rubber protection.

2) the pipe that is clipped just by the NS headlight - corroded under the clip.

Alas both are £50 each from Ford (cheaper than nissan!) and both can be a sod to remove without stripping threads on their mating pipes.

Find a local a/c specialist guy who knows what he is doing would be my suggestion, and go back to Kwik-fit for a refund.

As the system has been discharged for a time, replace the drier also.

 

[clivvy]

interesting to read, my Mazda needs doing, and hasnt been used for years (the air-con that is), but i was told that if the system is discharged, the componants are turned off, is this the same in the Terrano? Also, will Kwik Fit refund, you think? I'd expect them to refuse due to the leak.....

 

[lacroupade]

interesting to read, my Mazda needs doing, and hasnt been used for years (the air-con that is), but i was told that if the system is discharged, the componants are turned off, is this the same in the Terrano? Also, will Kwik Fit refund, you think? I'd expect them to refuse due to the leak.....

but at the very least a lot of the seals are likely to have dried up and not be working properly, which is why you should use it all-year round really, whether heaters on or off.....

 

[Timbo_1975]

The a/c regs state that you must not release gas to the atmosphere purposefully, which means on an un-known system you must leak detect with nitrogen before attempting to charge it.

So Kwik-fit have broken the law there for starters.

 

[Deleted account DD]

The a/c regs state that you must not release gas to the atmosphere purposefully, which means on an un-known system you must leak detect with nitrogen before attempting to charge it.

So Kwik-fit have broken the law there for starters.

Interesting point but virtually impossible to enforce.

kwik fit aren't all bad on the air con side of things. Bit like many fast fit anything isnt it, you're unlikely to get an engineering graduate with a first in fault finding techniques charging your air con.

What they do do in mine and others opinions and experience is a charge up of a discharged system very well. If the temp afterwards isnt x number of degrees below the start temp you get a refund as Clivvy says. Your starting price need not be the advertised price either. If you catch their customer services in a decent mood they will tell you that ALL kwik fit prices are negotiable and discountable at the managers discretion.

If you believe there is a leak (and most are visible these days in any case) it is your responsibility to deal with that and then you'll end up going to the air con specialist.

As far as the pipes on the terrano and mav go they are ridiculously difficult to remove with out damage. Partly due tot he material theyre made of, partly due to the corrosion and partly (Ive been told) due to the stress and load theyve been under whilst installed.

A cheaper, easier and much more cost effective solution is to go to your local hydraulic type place and get a hose or pipe made up. They can do that easily either cheapest option to experiment as I did or proper spec hose which pirtek for example carry.

All you need to do is work out the length required, cut out the knackered bit on the old pipe. Get some olives and compression fittings to match the ends they've swaged onto you new hose, fit then charge :nenau

I had great problems last year when my corroded pipes decide to "go" so Ive been there and fixed it :thumb2


Clivvy...........I agree with Paul the chances are if your Mazda had been discharged for years , your seals wont be sealing any more!!!!!

I'll try and find the old threads :thumb2

 

[Deleted account DD]

The links to some of the stuff are here:

http://www.nissan4x4ownersclub.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4834

http://www.nissan4x4ownersclub.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5024

http://www.nissan4x4ownersclub.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4865

http://www.nissan4x4ownersclub.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4227


The 4 above arent all the discussions that went on but I guess theyre buried away in other threads.

I took down the photos when the Terrrano went soI'll see if I can find them and repost, bear with me.

 

[Deleted account DD]

here we go, loads of piccs here:

http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/daveditch/OldTerranoPics#

but relevant, the green shows the leak (or one of them )

 

[Deleted account DD]

and this is the repair, held out and worked as long as I had the car :thumb2 though I was tempted to replace it with a metal pipe if I'd kept it. You can clearly see the unions I fitted, was dead easy to do and loads cheaper than manf parts without the potential of knacking more bits.

Hope that helps some at least :thumb2



ps these photos are after its had some heavy use and you will note the lack of tell tale dye suggesting it aint working , but as I said and I cant stress this enough although the burst pressure on this hose matched the working pressure of the system it wasn't the correct spec BUT the engineering principal and good value remains the same. The olives and compression fittings even into these soft pipes can take loads well in excess of anything the air con can throw at it. I cant remember the exact price but our local hydraulic place was happy to make up a suitable hose or pipe and I seem to remember it was under £25 for either.

 

[Timbo_1975]

You'll only see green / yellow if the system has dye in it.

If it is a biggish leak, or on the HP side, then you will often see oil / dirt marks.

 

[Deleted account DD]

You'll only see green / yellow if the system has dye in it.

I'm sure theres loads about without it but over the past couple of years Ive never seen one charged up without :thumb2 I guess its safe to presume its the first thing to check if your sytem goes down after a regas and you dont even need a uv light anymore.

Just thinking about it the Kwik Fit is a no brainer really. They use dye and will refund if the recharge isnt effective so all youve go to look for is the dye pissing out when theyve tried to sort it if you'd taken it to them, unaware of said leak of course, if it doesnt leak. Bingo

 

[BongoBerry]

nah - probably find like mine it has no AC

 

[Deleted account DD]

nah - probably find like mine it has no AC

:lol:lol:lol:lol

leak and mess sorted :thumb2

 

[solarman216]

The a/c regs state that you must not release gas to the atmosphere purposefully, which means on an un-known system you must leak detect with nitrogen before attempting to charge it.

So Kwik-fit have broken the law there for starters.

Very funny laws we have in this country, I as a plumber, or anyone else for that matter, can go into a plumbers merchants and purchase a can of pipe freezer, and in the process discharge it direct to atmophere, what is this wonderful gas, the exact same gas that is put in your car aircon, 134a, Rick

 

[Deleted account DD]

lmao I didnt know it was the same stuff :lol:lol

 

[pianoman]

Air Con problems

A work colleague had an identical problem with his MGZT. After a re-gas, it worked for one day, and then packed up (after a leaking pipe was also replaced) at a cost of £300. Now appears to need a new condensor unit? Could this be the same on your system???