AC Compressor Black Death (70k miles)

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loueradun

Member
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Has anyone else had any AC Compressor problems yet? The last 3-6 months the AC system on my '13 LX has been a little weak (it never really was that great to begin with). Had a really hot and humid day pushing 100F in Florida, and the Compressor started knocking and the AC was no longer cooling.

When I removed the compressor (had to remove the alternator and shift the radiator forward to pull it out), it was full of black oil with metal fragments.

I replaced the compressor, condenser, accumulator and cabin filter as well as flushing the evaporator the best that I could. Pulled a vacuum for a few hours and refilled with r152a (9.7oz total, the specs call for 15oz of r134a refrigerant, and I believe my math is correct). I have to say that the AC blows colder now than it ever has, but it still sucks compared to other vehicles I've owned. On an overcast 92F day, I was poking around town for 3 hours with some friends and it only achieved about 70F cabin temp in recirculate blowing 50F out of the vents. It was comfortable for me, but the backseat passenger was still hot... after 3 hours.

I also have the darkest legal tint for the front and back windows... Does everyone else's system suck too or is it just mine? Any recommendations to improve the system performance are welcome, 100F humid weather here in the south sucks.
 
I'm guessing you're running it on max ac so it's in recirculate mode? I know the 8th gens had tons of threads regarding the ac not blowing cold enough for a lot of people. Do you know what brand of tint or the type of tint used? I know ceramic tint is supposed to be the best at reflecting heat. "Ceramic window-tinting film cuts from 45% to 50% of the solar heat that enters through the windows in the form of infrared light" . I don't know what color your car is, but I've seen some people wrap the roof of their car with white vinyl to reflect heat.
ruhXTlT.jpg


a few people complaining about their ac here -
http://9thcivic.com/forum/threads/is-your-ac-cold-or-just-cool.4849/
 
Yes, I am running it on Max AC with recirculate. I am actually not sure what type of tinting I had installed (it was back in 2013), but it has been holding up better than any aftermarket tint I've ever had so I don't plan on messing with that right now.

It's a dark blue, the vinyl wrap on the roof would probably help a lot (the roof is usually radiating heat), but idk how that would look on blue.

Thanks for the input.
 
loueradun said:
Yes, I am running it on Max AC with recirculate. I am actually not sure what type of tinting I had installed (it was back in 2013), but it has been holding up better than any aftermarket tint I've ever had so I don't plan on messing with that right now.

It's a dark blue, the vinyl wrap on the roof would probably help a lot (the roof is usually radiating heat), but idk how that would look on blue.

Thanks for the input.
Click to expand...
rough idea in 5 seconds

white.jpg
 
Okay so I did a few more AC upgrades on the civic and seem to of had great success. I cleaned the evaporator core, as well as insulating all the AC lines on the cold side (this includes about 2-3 feet of aluminum lines under the dash and about 6 feet of lines in the engine bay). The car now blows 55 out the vents before I leave my street, and 40 out the vents when driving for more than 3 minutes in 90F humid weather.

My unofficial idle test left the car idling in 92F weather (overcast) for 30 minutes on recirculate. It was blowing 38F out the vents and the ambient went from 112F to 66F . All the windows were covered in condensation and the compressor was cycling which I dont ever recall happening in this car.

So for anyone curious, insulating those lines made a huge difference. I don't really see any issues as long as your expansion valve is working properly so you don't get liquid to the compressor. I'm really surprised these aren't insulated from the factory.

IMG_20190614_154335.jpg IMG_20190612_134812.jpg
 
car A/c's just boggle my mind but from I understand those a/c's are designed to run without insulation. All the research I did seems to gather mixed answers but the insulation could be causing your condensation problem. Most of the discussions I saw ended with wrapping your ac lines as a bad idea and people name calling other people lol. Hopefully another member can chime in here.
 
perhaps some insulation might help, but maybe not. I once replaced a car air condenser with a better one-it did work better. I would suggest 35% window tint must help for sure.:driving:
 
I think he’s just saying he had condensation due to the extreme temp difference from inside to outside since the ac was putting out cold air versus hot humid air outside. Just like a drinking glass with ice will sweat and form condensation on the glass.
 
webby said:
I think he’s just saying he had condensation due to the extreme temp difference from inside to outside since the ac was putting out cold air versus hot humid air outside. Just like a drinking glass with ice will sweat and form condensation on the glass.
Click to expand...

Yes, this is what I was referring to. The car was so cold after 30 minutes I couldn't see into the windows because of the condensation. After a few days I haven't ran into any big issues so I'm going to leave it like this, and update the post here if I have any major issues down the road. Of course I'm also running r152a so any issues down the road could potentially be the fault of that as well.

Pros:
1) AC system cools much better
2) AC compressor is engaged less often (better MPG when used)
3) Less water dripping from engine bay (only drips are from the evaporator drain now)
4) Removed source of condensation dripping on carpet behind the dash (the exposed AC lines are outside of the ductwork and evaporator drain catch so this WILL drip on your carpet if it is humid).

Cons:
1) AC compressor cycles more often (possible premature failure of clutch?)
2) possible condensation under the insulation leading to rusting/leaking lines (mitigated by properly installing insulation of the proper size with no airspace for condensation to occur)
3) failure of expansion valve could potentially lead to flooded compressor (or at least have a higher risk as the return lines are closer to liquid temperatures)
 
webby said:
I'm guessing you're running it on max ac so it's in recirculate mode? I know the 8th gens had tons of threads regarding the ac not blowing cold enough for a lot of people. Do you know what brand of tint or the type of tint used? I know ceramic tint is supposed to be the best at reflecting heat. "Ceramic window-tinting film cuts from 45% to 50% of the solar heat that enters through the windows in the form of infrared light" .
Click to expand...

I just found my old service documents... Good news is it does have SunTek Carbon Series film installed, bad news is it is not the legal limit as I had requested when it was installed (maybe it was the lowest visible % the installer had above legal values) . It has 35% on the front sides, and 18% on the rears, whereas the legal limit is 28% on the front sides and 15% on the rears... Guess it's close enough.
 
35% is legal in ME and that's what I have. As noted by inspector, just barely passed.:bananawhipdance: I will have to check what type of tint but it is excellent.
 
I def need to tint my windows before summer hits full effect here. Next car mod for sure.
 
Try replacing the blower motor. Purchased a cheap one on Amazon and it did not blow hard. Spent the money at AutoZone and made a huge difference.

Any time you are reading high/low sides, rpm should be at 1500 and not idle
when at "idle" rev the rpm to 1500, a/c does not perform good at idle. Also you need airflow through the condenser, even going 15mph is enough airflow to feel a difference.

Wifey's car is cold when driving and i have to turn down the blower speed, stopped at idle its not as cold.

200,000 miles on car with original a/c compressor and condenser.

pulled vacuum at 100,000 miles, refilled with a/c pro ultra synthetic, replaced bad blower motor, and now it blows ice cold while driving
 
freggie said:
Try replacing the blower motor. Purchased a cheap one on Amazon and it did not blow hard. Spent the money at AutoZone and made a huge difference.

Any time you are reading high/low sides, rpm should be at 1500 and not idle
when at "idle" rev the rpm to 1500, a/c does not perform good at idle. Also you need airflow through the condenser, even going 15mph is enough airflow to feel a difference.

Wifey's car is cold when driving and i have to turn down the blower speed, stopped at idle its not as cold.

200,000 miles on car with original a/c compressor and condenser.

pulled vacuum at 100,000 miles, refilled with a/c pro ultra synthetic, replaced bad blower motor, and now it blows ice cold while driving
Click to expand...

You are 100% correct. The AC system doesn't really work well at idle at all, it needs to be closer to 1500 rpms to even show expected pressures as you mentioned.

This is used as the "Pokemoning" car, so better AC at idle is exactly what I was going for.

It's funny you should mention the blower motor, as I actually had it fail on me as well. I purchased one from Rock Auto and they ended up sending me an Accord model which fit with a little effort (and blows a bit stronger too).

I am curious about the additives used in the A/C Pro ultra synthetic. If it works really well, they are probably using something like butane or propane to improve the efficiency but I can't seem to find any info. I had been tempted doing a straight propane system but the idea seemed to scare the wife. At least r152a has been approved for auto use.
 
MSDS
from what they say, without looking at the msds, there seems to be a moisture absorber and something to prevent acid. The moisture absorber is the main reason I went with it, I know the car has a receiver/dryer but you know just something else (maybe a marketing gimmick...)

Do you have the caps on the service ports? sometimes the schrader valve leaks, I have experienced it and its a slow leak but the caps actually help stop the leak

consider tho its okay at idle, how much better than what you have, i dont know

msds:
Methylene chloride
Polyalkylene glycol monobutyl ether
Additive Package
Oil Additive
 
freggie said:
MSDS
from what they say, without looking at the msds, there seems to be a moisture absorber and something to prevent acid. The moisture absorber is the main reason I went with it, I know the car has a receiver/dryer but you know just something else (maybe a marketing gimmick...)

Do you have the caps on the service ports? sometimes the schrader valve leaks, I have experienced it and its a slow leak but the caps actually help stop the leak

msds:
Methylene chloride
Polyalkylene glycol monobutyl ether
Additive Package
Oil Additive
Click to expand...

Yeah I think the PGME may be the special ingredient that makes it work a little better but I'm not a chemical engineer so hard telling.

I do have the caps on the Schrader valves. I did notice the pin on the low side seems to be at a bit of an angle... I don't know if I bent it when using my manifold gauges or it was like that already. Hopefully they don't leak in the future, I couldn't imagine the cap really helping stop a leak at 90+ psi (low side would be that high when the system isn't running).
 
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