AC Compressor Cycling

[DSM_23]

I just took my car to the a/c shop to get vacuumed and recharged with R134, everything is fine and the car blows cold air when the compressor is engauged, problem is that the compressor is cycling every 7-10 seconds or so..during that time it gets cold then stops and gets warmer, then repeats... what could be causing this? Everything other than that appears to be working great.

 

[Jeff99GS]

The system is still low on refrigerant. If it ran out ONCE it will run out again cause you have a LEAK somewhere in the AC system. Go to a parts store and get a can of 134a with Ultraviolet dye in it. Then charge the AC system yourself with the self charge hose/gauge.

Next time it leaks out. check the whole car with a black light or the special glasses they sell at autozone. where ever you see the DYE is where the leak is. That part will need replaced. Then you can refill the system again and it will stay filled.

The AC system is sealed...if refrigerant leaks out then you have a LEAK that needs repaired.

Your compressor will keep cycling fast until the refrigerant eventually gets too low and will kick the low level switch in the comp so it will not work at all.

 

[Littlebeeper]

its not as common but a high pressure will also cause it to cycle, specially on the 2G's . only way to know for sure would be if you could hook up some gauges to it.

 

[DSM_23]

hmm well it holds pressure for sure, I just let it cool off after I got back from the shop and restarted it and let it warm up and it ran fine, compressor ran like it should and it was ice cold....the system hasnt been charged in a long time so maybe it took a while to work correctly?

 

[Rob10_99]

It could take 2 minutes or it could take a month for the R134a to vent out of the leak if the ac shop didn't fix it.
What did they tell you? or was it just a "fill"?

 

[DSM_23]

they just said it was a vacuum and recharge job, I know it holds pressure for quite some time, and it was working great earlier, so Im not sure what to think..