Charged A/C,not cooling enough

9 T GSX · May 29, 2011

Well after years of not having A/C in the car I decided its just too damn hot to not have it here in Florida and its not even summer yet "must be getting old" LOL

,I went thru the whole car yesterday and changed every O-ring in the system seeing how some were from 1990. I didn't replace any parts this time around just wanted to see if how the system would work as is,Although I did replace the expansion valve and drier awhile ago so they are the newest parts on the car.Original compressor and condensor.
I vacuumed down the system for about 40 min then waited about 20 min to see if both sides held a vacuum and both were fine needles didn't move. Charged system,
Here's were the problem is.
at idle Low Side is at 30 High Side at 250-275
at 2000 rpm the LS= 20 HS=300 (slowly climbs up)
The car emptied 3 cans of freon. Which seems a little odd
the center vent temp doesn't go below 60 no matter what the fan speed is set at,its cool but definetly not cold enough.
I have read that when the LS is low and the HS is High there's a blockage in the system.Think I'm going to replace the condensor and see if that is the issue as its the original,also on the end there is some blue/green looking stuff on the coil.

What do you all think?

2slow4now · May 29, 2011

If you had anything disconnected (open) while you had no A/C then I would bet the condensor is plugged up with crap. Did the refill cans seem to go in slow?

9 T GSX · May 29, 2011

2slow4now said:
If you had anything disconnected (open) while you had no A/C then I would bet the condensor is plugged up with crap. Did the refill cans seem to go in slow?

When i said no ac,should have said everything was still hooked up and connected just no belt or ac fan. No the cans went in fairly fast especially the first can.

2slow4now · May 29, 2011

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You may have a restriction after the high side. I would start with the first item after the high side because you have good pressure there. Does that help?

9 T GSX · May 29, 2011

So you think i should replace my evaporator or the expansion valve or both? I would think out of the 2 the expansion valve would be the most likely issue.

2slow4now · May 29, 2011

I have to agree with you. Thats what I was thinking.
When I still had A/C the car had been sitting for awhile and a mouse had been in the ductwork chewing up foam and dragging crap in there and had my heater core and evaporator plugged up from the outside. Argh! run the fan and hardly any flow. Does the fan blow hard? You might want to dig in there a little just to make sure its clear in the ductwork too.

9 T GSX · May 29, 2011

Yeah fan blows hard no issue there,when i first turned it on to high i only got half a leaf come shooting out at my right eye LOL

.

2slow4now · May 29, 2011

Good luck with it! Mine threw all kinds of crap out! Foam all over my car here and there for a couple weeks even after I vaccuumed the ducts, blew them with compressed air, and took out the fan and cleaned it.

miliman13 · Jun 7, 2017

HEY!!!!!
is the valve behind the dash next to the evaporator ?
@9 T GSX how did it turn out?

miliman13 · Jun 7, 2017

i'm also curious to know were we can find replacement parts AC parts for these cars.

Im mesuring 64F at the vents. Wonder if my Shitty mishimoto fans are to blame?

97gsxIA · Jun 7, 2017

You guys still have A/c?

miliman13 said:
i'm also curious to know were we can find replacement parts AC parts for these cars.

Im mesuring 64F at the vents. Wonder if my sh**ty mishimoto fans are to blame?

Rockauto has a good list of parts:

A/C Compressor
A/C Compressor & Component Kit
A/C Condenser
A/C Condenser Fan Assembly
A/C Evaporator Core
A/C Expansion Valve
A/C Receiver Drier / Accumulator
A/C Refrigerant Hose
A/C System O-Rings, Seals, & Gasket Kits
A/C System Valve Core and Cap Kit

miliman13 · Jun 7, 2017

97gsxIA said:
You guys still have A/c?

Rockauto has a good list of parts:

A/C Compressor
A/C Compressor & Component Kit
A/C Condenser
A/C Condenser Fan Assembly
A/C Evaporator Core
A/C Expansion Valve
A/C Receiver Drier / Accumulator
A/C Refrigerant Hose
A/C System O-Rings, Seals, & Gasket Kits
A/C System Valve Core and Cap Kit

Not all heros wear capes ^

ceedawg · Jun 7, 2017

miliman13 said:
Not all heros wear capes ^

Yep got my replacement receiver dryer from Rock Auto!

miliman13 · Jun 7, 2017

ceedawg said:
Yep got my replacement receiver dryer from Rock Auto!

How did you know you needed it?
Or was it a preemptive strike?

Currently teaching myself about each components purpose.

1990TSIAWDTALON · Jun 7, 2017

@Dstarperformance01 is an A/C man, maybe he can confirm the operation of each piece. I do my own and my friends but I don't do it for a living like he does.

9 T GSX · Jun 7, 2017

miliman13 said:
HEY!!!!!
is the valve behind the dash next to the evaporator ?
@9 T GSX how did it turn out?

Yes the expansion valve is in the plastic case with the evaporator under the dash.

Tyeler18 · Jun 7, 2017

miliman13 said:
How did you know you needed it?
Or was it a preemptive strike?

Currently teaching myself about each components purpose.

I'm a tech in Arizona, literally did 3 complete AC jobs today alone- couple of questions-

What's ambient temp when you were monitoring 64F out the vents?

Is the compressor kicking on?

What's your high and low side pressures when it's blowing 64?

A/C is a pretty simple system, but you need to know what you're looking for to diagnose it.

miliman13 · Jun 7, 2017

9 T GSX said:
Yes the expansion valve is in the plastic case with the evaporator under the dash.

Well how did it turn out????
Come on , Tampa Bay area is hot ; you know.

miliman13 · Jun 7, 2017

Tyeler18 said:
I'm a tech in Arizona, literally did 3 complete AC jobs today alone- couple of questions-

What's ambient temp when you were monitoring 64F out the vents?

Is the compressor kicking on?

What's your high and low side pressures when it's blowing 64?

A/C is a pretty simple system, but you need to know what you're looking for to diagnose it.

Today it was 59f out the vents ambient 85f. And super humid lots of rain.
I don't know pressure yet, need attachments for my manifold ( rated for home not cars ; no 134 ring on it).
No issues with compressor , no excess heat from it or condensor.

Even though i run warm with AC on.

I'm mostly curious if some fault and my lack of 40+/-f temp is somehow contributing to my raised temps with ac on.....

Also I'm looking for a oem fan, i think that may really help lower all the temps.

ceedawg · Jun 8, 2017

miliman13 said:
How did you know you needed it?
Or was it a preemptive strike?

Currently teaching myself about each components purpose.

One of the lines that connected to the dryer had a crack and was leaking when we tried to pressure test the system. When I tried to unscrew the 20 year old line from the dryer the head of the bolt broke leaving the rest of the screw in the dryer. Had to replace the line and the dryer.

1990TSIAWDTALON · Jun 8, 2017

Is your FMIC just blocking too much air, maybe the condenser isn't able to do it's job effectively.
@Tyeler18, could that be some of his problem?

Tyeler18 · Jun 8, 2017

miliman13 said:
Today it was 59f out the vents ambient 85f. And super humid lots of rain.
I don't know pressure yet, need attachments for my manifold ( rated for home not cars ; no 134 ring on it).
No issues with compressor , no excess heat from it or condensor.

Even though i run warm with AC on.

I'm mostly curious if some fault and my lack of 40+/-f temp is somehow contributing to my raised temps with ac on.....

Also I'm looking for a oem fan, i think that may really help lower all the temps.

The rise in engine temp is probably contributing the the lack of cooling. You can expect to see a 30-40psi increase in high side pressure, from just a 5-10* increase in cooling temps. The fact that you're running hotter with the A/C on means you have a restriction to airflow, be that a lack of adequate fans, plugged fins in the intercooler, condenser or radiator, or just an inadequate cooling system for the size of intercooler. This is where high and low side pressures would come in handy, you could determine the cause a lot quicker.

How do the fins of the intercooler/radiator/condenser look? I always pull the fans and use a blow gun to blow all the dirt, rocks, and bugs out of them. It's surprising how clear they can look, and how plugged up they actually are.

1990TSIAWDTALON said:
Is your FMIC just blocking too much air, maybe the condenser isn't able to do it's job effectively.
@Tyeler18, could that be some of his problem?

This could very well be the problem. Condenser efficiency is killed without supporting airflow.

My 91 galant runs an ETS street core, full bumper, Mishimotor X-line radiator with both factory fans and will literally run on the 180F thermostat with the A/C full blast blowing low 40s in 115F heat. My 2g with VRSF, full front bumper, and the same mishi X-line with factory fans does the same with the A/C full blast. Fans are huge when it comes to keeping it cool, a proper radiator makes a big difference as well. If you run warm down the road, but not at idle you need to look into plugged fins or inefficient radiator, if it's only at idle and not down the road you need to look into better fans.

miliman13 · Jun 8, 2017

Tyeler18 said:
The rise in engine temp is probably contributing the the lack of cooling. You can expect to see a 30-40psi increase in high side pressure, from just a 5-10* increase in cooling temps. The fact that you're running hotter with the A/C on means you have a restriction to airflow, be that a lack of adequate fans, plugged fins in the intercooler, condenser or radiator, or just an inadequate cooling system for the size of intercooler. This is where high and low side pressures would come in handy, you could determine the cause a lot quicker.

How do the fins of the intercooler/radiator/condenser look? I always pull the fans and use a blow gun to blow all the dirt, rocks, and bugs out of them. It's surprising how clear they can look, and how plugged up they actually are.

This could very well be the problem. Condenser efficiency is killed without supporting airflow.

My 91 galant runs an ETS street core, full bumper, Mishimotor X-line radiator with both factory fans and will literally run on the 180F thermostat with the A/C full blast blowing low 40s in 115F heat. My 2g with VRSF, full front bumper, and the same mishi X-line with factory fans does the same with the A/C full blast. Fans are huge when it comes to keeping it cool, a proper radiator makes a big difference as well. If you run warm down the road, but not at idle you need to look into plugged fins or inefficient radiator, if it's only at idle and not down the road you need to look into better fans.

I could tell you everything is clean, washed, fins straighten out on all 3...
But heres a pic.....

I've gone OCD on this thing.

I really believe it's my misicaca fans.
Currently using a half rad, since the fans do worse with a full thick aluminum rad .
+ duct work.

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Thus why I'm looking for a OEM rad .
So i can fit a slim fan in front of exhaust manifold and OEM fan on the other side.

Tyeler18 · Jun 8, 2017

The half radiator definitely isn't helping your case, but part of the issue I see is your ducting, you have the intercooler well ducted into the condenser but the problem is you're basically cutting off the entire top half of the condenser from airflow. I'd recommend shifting your ducting at an angle to the top of the condenser, like the factory does to direct flow up top too.

miliman13 · Jun 25, 2017

By creating a hybrid fan a oem blade and shroud with a mishimoto motor
( insane pulling power)

A oem rad and angeling the ducting to have a ramp.
I've gotten to 52°F at Idle.

However at crussing speeds it will climb to 60°F.

For comparison my daily is 50 idle / 42 cruising.

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