a/c cooling in hot texas weather
#1
Driver
Thread Starter
a/c cooling in hot texas weather
could anybody tell me if they are experiencing low cooling effect in really hot weather. seems like the condensor is freezing up and the compressor cycles a lot. the dealer says this is normal. got 8k miles on the rx. there is some tsb on it but they told me it does not apply to my vin number.
#2
Out of Warranty
AC Blows, Woes
Welcome to the CL community, rajwany!
If your AC is freezing up in our Texas heat, try running it in "auto" mode with the temperature setpoint not lower than about 68 degrees. Running on "Max Cold" doesn't give the compressor time to cycle and thaw the coil. Also it helps after initial cooling to push the recirculate button to "off" occasionally, allowing warmer outside air to flow over the evaporator coil, melting the ice. On the Gulf Coast, where our humidity is extremely high, you may want to just leave the recirculation on in "auto" mode and let the computer manage the airflow. Bringing in moist outside air to a very cold evaporator could cause it to freeze up too.
I don't know about the performance of the newer refrigerants, but the old F-12 would often freeze over the evaporator coil when the pressure got a little low. Check with your dealer, this is not normal for the RX.
The only AC problems I have experienced, first with my 300 and now with my 330, is a compressor shut-down when splashing through a fairly deep puddle. It is a known phenomenon, and is easily corrected by cycling the "auto" button. The 330 is not nearly as sensitive to this as the 300 was. After several years, I haven't had a good explanation for it, but I'm working on a thesis!
Again, welcome aboard!
If your AC is freezing up in our Texas heat, try running it in "auto" mode with the temperature setpoint not lower than about 68 degrees. Running on "Max Cold" doesn't give the compressor time to cycle and thaw the coil. Also it helps after initial cooling to push the recirculate button to "off" occasionally, allowing warmer outside air to flow over the evaporator coil, melting the ice. On the Gulf Coast, where our humidity is extremely high, you may want to just leave the recirculation on in "auto" mode and let the computer manage the airflow. Bringing in moist outside air to a very cold evaporator could cause it to freeze up too.
I don't know about the performance of the newer refrigerants, but the old F-12 would often freeze over the evaporator coil when the pressure got a little low. Check with your dealer, this is not normal for the RX.
The only AC problems I have experienced, first with my 300 and now with my 330, is a compressor shut-down when splashing through a fairly deep puddle. It is a known phenomenon, and is easily corrected by cycling the "auto" button. The 330 is not nearly as sensitive to this as the 300 was. After several years, I haven't had a good explanation for it, but I'm working on a thesis!
Again, welcome aboard!
#4
Driver School Candidate
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Georgia
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More Info Please
We need more information in order to help you figure this out. The condenser is mounted in front of the radiator. If this is freezing up on a hot day, you have a bigger problem. The compressor cycles on a pressure switch on the evaporator side. If the pressure gets too low, it will cycle the compressor off. I think there is a sight glass connected to the high side coming out of the condenser. You should check that for bubbles. If there are bubbles in the sight glass, it could indicate a lack of refrigerant in the system.
Let us know what the conditions are when you experience this problem. Heavy traffic? AC Settings? etc.
MRB
Let us know what the conditions are when you experience this problem. Heavy traffic? AC Settings? etc.
MRB
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