In Phoenix. Want to make my car's AC colder.

[fuzzybabybunny]

I recently signed up for a membership at an auto place called "The Car Shop,"

http://www.thecarshopaz.com/

$60 for a year's membership.

4 free oil changes.
Free alignment check, radiator drain and fill, AC performance test, tire rotation, flat repair, brake adjustment and repair.

My car's got 110K and the Freon's never been changed. Would changing the Freon make a huge difference in how cold the AC is? I get $20 off refrigerant and evacuation with the membership (don't know what the baseline price is). How much would it be usually?

 

[BassBomb]

What car?

Small cars usually have smaller AC units which will not perform nearly as well as ones found in mid and higher sedans

For example my Civic AC can be on full blast for 2 hours and it won't be colder than my I30 on at full for 3 minutes

 

[BUTCH1]

Freon does not get changed like oil or coolant, If you've got a leak they can add some to
bring it up to a full charge. A pump down (evacuation) is only necessary if the system
is opened up to change out a component ( compressor,evaporator, ect.)..

 

[thecritic]

Freon does not get changed. Think of it as sand in a sandbox. If some of it leaks out, then you replace it. Otherwise you leave it alone.

As for making your A/C colder, don't bother with any of those over-the-counter kits. You're better off taking it to a shop (like the one you mentioned) and having them take a look at. Gauges don't always give you an accurate idea of how much freon is in the system, the only sure way to tell is to have it evacuated and recharged with the correct amount. A/C just isn't something that backyard mechanics should handle themselves, it's best left up to a professional who has the knowledge and equipment.

 

[alkemyst]

for colder a/c in any place with 100+ degree temps the best bet is to move. They can tell you if your a/c is cooling properly without adding freon...you shouldn't need to evacuate it...just top it off if low.

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: BassBomb
Small cars usually have smaller AC units which will not perform nearly as well as ones found in mid and higher sedans

That makes no sense really. Many cars of all sizes use the same compressors.

 

[BUTCH1]

Originally posted by: alkemyst

Originally posted by: BassBomb
Small cars usually have smaller AC units which will not perform nearly as well as ones found in mid and higher sedans

That makes no sense really. Many cars of all sizes use the same compressors.

Agreed, my econo-box Escort would freeze you out after 10 min on max cool. Must have used the same compressor from Taurus/Sable. Power hit was really bad though, it was almost like
having another E-brake!!.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

Toyota Echo.

Can I upgrade to a stronger compressor? I'm guessing that a Freon change wouldn't help things at all then, right?

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: fuzzybabybunny
I recently signed up for a membership at an auto place called "The Car Shop,"

http://www.thecarshopaz.com/

$60 for a year's membership.

4 free oil changes.
Free alignment check, radiator drain and fill, AC performance test, tire rotation, flat repair, brake adjustment and repair.

My car's got 110K and the Freon's never been changed. Would changing the Freon make a huge difference in how cold the AC is? I get $20 off refrigerant and evacuation with the membership (don't know what the baseline price is). How much would it be usually?

Freon will never wear out. Unless it has leaked out and it's not cooling at all, you won't gain much from recharging it. In fact, a slightly undercharged system will cool a little better than a fully charged system, it's just harder on the components.

Changing the compressor really won't help, you'd need to change the condenser as well and would have to replace the receiver/drier or the accumulator (depending on your system type) as well. Have the system tested and checked. There may be other issues.

Also, make sure that the condenser is clean. If it's obstructed with road gunk then the system will not cool as well. The condenser is a radiator-like piece that is almost always mounted in front of the radiator.

ZV

 

[LTC8K6]

Those Sub-Zero synthetic AC booster cans claim to provide up to 18% colder air...

If you believe them...

 

[dud]

You have a small car with a teeny-tiny engine and (probably) a very small compressor. You also live in a VERY hot environment. I am not surprised that you are not feeling cool enough while driving your car. I can just imagine how hard your engine is working trying to get you around town ... and still keeping you cool.

Get the freon level checked. If it is low your A/C will not cool efficiently. The new R-134a based auto A/C systems do not cool as efficiently as the pre-1994 R-12 based ones (but they are much cheaper to fix).

 

[LTC8K6]

Are you running the system in Max or Recirc mode? If not, that's your problem.

There's really no reason your AC shouldn't work fine if it's in good shape. Toyota would have done testing in very hot climates.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

What some people have done with good success is to bypass the heater core and then run the A/C with the knob turned full hot.

 

[batmang]

Originally posted by: fuzzybabybunny
Toyota Echo.

Can I upgrade to a stronger compressor? I'm guessing that a Freon change wouldn't help things at all then, right?

Same 1.5L motor that was used in the first gen Scion xB which I used to have. Unfortunately, not really much you can do. The AC never got really cold in my xB and it won't in yours due to the small motor and small AC system.

My SRT-4 however gets really damn cold.

 

[alpineranger]

Japanese cars tend to have weaker AC systems than American cars - at least in my personal experience. Also, I've read a lot of complaints about the weak ac in certain Honda models.

 

[ayabe]

Originally posted by: alpineranger
Japanese cars tend to have weaker AC systems than American cars - at least in my personal experience. Also, I've read a lot of complaints about the weak ac in certain Honda models.

This has been my experience as well.

 

[MiataNC]

First you want to make sure your AC is properly serviced with the correct charge of coolant (R-12 or R-134A)

Then you want to make sure there condenser (sits in front of the radiator) and the space between it and the radiator is completely free of bugs/dirt/leaves. Also make sure the fins are not bent and restricting airflow.

Next make sure the blend doors are working properly, and that when the knob is turned to full cold, no air from the heater side is mixing with the cold air from the evap core. Also run in recirculate mode. Otherwise you will be cooling hot air sucked in from outside instead of repeatedly cooling the air already in the cabin.

Beyond that there is not much else you can do. If the system is not powerful enough to overcome the summer heat in your area, you will have to learn to live with it.

 

[cmf21]

Can the orifice tube be replaced with a colder one? Thought I saw somewhere that you can buy replacement ones that drop the temperture a little more.

 

[boomerang]

There's physics involved here too. You can only drop the temperature x number of degrees below ambient temperature. In this scenario, it would be the temperature of the air flowing through the condenser.