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A C pressure switch ?

OLDCROW53

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My AC problem may be the AC pressure switch. Watched a lot of You Tube videos yesterday I hope so Lot cheaper to fix than the compressor
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RSH

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Are you guessing ?
There must be a competent independent mechanic shop or even an automotive AC only repair shop in your area or within a reasonable distance that can diagnose what the issue is with your Sports AC.
It shouldn't cost an arm and a leg.

I know how disconcerting it is when you have a farly new vehicle or anything for that matter and it is not functioning as it should.
 

Ernest T

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Do you have a multimeter, thermometer and set of gauges to do some diagnostics? If not, I recommend you take it to a competent independent mechanic to diagnose your problem.
 

incavulator

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I assume the symptom is the A/C is not blowing cold air? Do you know if the compressor is coming on? That should be the first check. If it is coming on, it's not likely a pressure switch problem.

If the compressor never comes on, the next step would be to confirm the system is not low on refrigerant. This is best done with a set of gauges. If it's low on refrigerant, it has a leak that should be found and fixed. If it's a small leak, you can ask them to charge it back up without fixing the leak, but it will eventually leak down and stop working again. You will just be "renting" refrigerant.

If you confirm it is not low on refrigerant , and if our beloved BS is truly using a pressure switch and not a pressure sensor (two wires, not more - I'm not sure, I haven't had a need to look yet), AND you have confirmed it's not low on refrigerant, you can unplug the pressure switch and jump across the two pressure switch wires on the harness side. If your compressor comes on, there's a good chance the pressure switch is bad. NOTE: Do NOT run the system very long like this. This is just a diagnostic step to see if the switch is bad.

I've seen switches fail several times, and some auto parts stores will let you return the switch if it doesn't solve the problem. Depending on your finances and how far you are from a reputable repair shop, it MIGHT be worth a try. Diagnosing properly is always best. However, it can often cost more than educated guesses on low cost, low risk, easy to change parts. I think dealership hourly rates are something like $185/hour. A pressure switch probably costs around $40, and if you are somewhat handy and they let you return it if it doesn't work, it might be a less expensive option to attempt to fix or rule it out as a possible cause.

Good luck.

PS Looking online for A/C parts for the BS, it looks like it's using a pressure sensor, not a switch. If that's accurate, jumping the two pins in the connector as mentioned above will not work (there will be more than two pins).
 


BBBronk

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This has been helpful to me. My daughter has an issue with her honda Cr-v AC and this leads me to believe it is the pressure switch. It will stop blowing cold intermittently. When she stops,(shut off) and drives it again, it is working again. The AC guy says the refrigerant is 100% and he can’t find a leak. (He added die the first time and we returned when the symptoms returned) If it stops blowing cold again, I will listen to see if the compressor is clicking or not. He let it run for hours to see if it would repeat what is happening. What cheese me is, as an AC mechanic, shouldn’t he be able to test the pressure switch or other items without the symptoms occurring? Such as with a voltage meter or a diagnostic machine. Maybe I need to take it to another AC place.
 
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incavulator

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I wouldn't be too hard on him. In order to test the pressure switch, he would have to know at what pressure the switch is designed to open. I'm not sure if this is published or not, and if so, if he has access to it. Then, he would need to have a set of gauges on the car. If the pressure is above the specified switch opening pressure and he reads across the pressure switch with an ohm meter and it shows open, that would be confirmation that the switch is bad.

I always say diagnosing a problem is sometimes as much figuring out what ISN'T causing the problem as what IS causing the problem. Often, there is a long list of possible causes. Some are very easy to check for. Others not so much. Sometimes, you diagnose by process of elimination. You eliminate those you can test until you finally come down to the one or two that are difficult to test. You try not to guess, but sometimes, there is SOME educated guessing involved. The goal is to minimize that.

To make matters worse, it sounds like the problem you describe is intermittent. Those are the absolute WORST problems to root cause. If the car/component/system is not exhibiting the problem when the technician attempts to diagnose it, there is little hope in finding it and any repair is often just an educated guess and an attempt to rule out one (or more) possible causes.

Good luck! Keep us posted on what you find. The feedback is always a good learning experience.
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