AC Drains Battery And Makes Car Sluggish

[awd95dsm]

When I first got the car years ago turning on the ac would cause the cars rpms to drop and the car would constantly stall out while driving? After replacing the isc with a good one the car will now idle back up to almost normal when the ac is turned on. However it still feels like it's idling rough and about to die. When driving with the ac on the car feels extremely sluggish and doesn't want to go anywhere. I know the ac causes cars to lose some power but iv never been in a car where it robs that much power from it. Also if I run the ac for a short trip it kills the battery and needs a jump before it will fire back up. Could there be something wrong with the ac condenser or the wiring? The car runs perfectly fine and alternator charges normal only problem is with ac on.

 

[crusada]

I wondering if turning the ac on puts enough tension on the belt which would make it slip and keep it from charging right on short trips. I dunno if that would explain why you lose that much power though.

 

[awd95dsm]

Belt felt good but I was wondering if overightening could have done it also? To much pressure making it hard to spin and draining engine power and slowing down alternator? I have to replace timing belt soon so I'll be re tensioning it and try again to see what happens

 

[brian102]

Arent the ac compressor and the alt two seperate belts on these?

 

[B00st3d_Eg0]

yes they are seperate belts since the car has ac it will have 3 belts. As for the battery dying, check the alternator. When you run the ac it takes alot of power to run the blower motor and to engage the compressor clutch but it shouldn't have anything to do with the alternator having more load on it. On the sluggish issue, what was the part you replaced? I know on my car the ecu was reflashed at the dealer when the ac wasn't working and then when i got it working the car would barely run with the ac on.

 

[awd95dsm]

I'll have to check the alternator but it runs fine and charges fine without it on. And I just put in a new ecu if that's what your talking about. I'll have to see if that changes anything

 

[HULK]

You should tak it to Autozone so that they can tell you if the alternator is charging the battery. Maybe its on its last leg, and isn't able to charge the car with the ac on.

 

[400hp93talon]

I would say swapping the alternator would fix the issue most likely.

 

[awd95dsm]

I'll get the alternator tested to see how it's doing. Been through about 5 alternators with it already and this is the only one that's lasted more then a year. Could that cause the car to also be so sluggish and have no power with ac on?

 

[knochgoon24]

When you turn the A/C on, it turns both radiator fans on and the blower motor on. This puts extra electrical load on the system, which in turn loads the alternator more. So you lose some power there. Plus you lose power to the A/C compressor (quite a bit actually).

If your alternator is on it's way out, it won't provide enough charge to keep up with all the other electrical load, and it will kill your battery. Do this a few times to the battery, and it will kill the battery for good.

You probably need to replace your battery and your alternator soon.

 

[awd95dsm]

I have slimline fans installed that say they draw less current but I'm Definately starting to lean towards alternator. Once I check it out I'll post how it is. Thanks

 

[4g63Tpower]

If your car is burning up alternators once per year then there is something else wrong besides your A/C, when did you last replace or test your battery?

 

[awd95dsm]

Battery I've had since about 07 and I went through about 3 alternators in 3 months but since then I've had the same one for awhile now. Figured they couldn't deal with all the heat. And I replaced battery back when the first alternator went. Maybe battery is about done and can't hold a charge and alternator is only thing keeping the car running and maybe also causing the power loss while driving with ac on?

 

[EclipsedFLA]

I know Im bringing back an old thread but I am having the same issues, brand spankin new ALT, battery new since 10/11 when AC is on my check engine light (complete other issue, no EGR) dims like crazy and my blinkers barley want to work, just replaced ac compressor, and did timing, also a water pump and all new belts and I cant figure this out, I had it on on the high way and the alternator went dead, maybe i need to replace the battery? but something tells me this wont 100% cure the problem with the draning?