Poor Air Conditioner Performance

Only Human said:
Maybe, but very very slow if so, but I don't think so. I see that I had described the AC back then as "ice cold" as well, but it is a very relative term. It was colder than it used to be after the recharge, but still not "amazing." And one year after that, the compressor started shutting off if I drove hard for a little bit in very hot weather. Now, the AC is amazing even in 95-100F weather and it never shuts off.
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might be worth checking all lines and connections for wet oily spots. if they put dye in it you can use a black light to find the dye, but chances are it will be hard to see if it was done in 2016.
 
What do you guys use to measure temp at the vent? One of those infrared thermometers? Or just a simple cooking one?
 
Honda-Fan said:
I used an infrared for mine, but I don't see why a cooking one wouldn't work-- it might just take a little longer.
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I'll grab one of those. I thought yesterday mine wasn't blowing cold cold but it was 113°F outside and the interior was 126°F (according to my temp/voltage meter in the power outlet) so that could be it too. Temp eventually came down in the car but I just want to make sure that there's that 40-50 degrees difference between the vent temp and ambient.
 
Only Human said:
I use a meat thermometer with a dial / needle.
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Hey Only Human, my 2015 sedan is doing something similar to yours. Now I noticed twice in a row, so I am concerned. Yesterday I was driving in low humidity, 107°F ambient temp weather, and it was blowing cool air (not ice cold) and I did not have the cooking thermometer with me, but it was comfortable enough, then it started getting warmer, I recycle the AC button, comes back on cooler air. Drive another 15 minutes or so, gets warm again, this time I left the AC button ON, and maybe 5 minutes later, it kicked in and got it cooler again. I tested my 2015 Si Coupe today and when the outside temperature was 106-110° F the vent was 45-48°F driving and 58-60°F idling at the light. That appeared surprisingly good to me in Arizona. Something is amiss so I really hope it is low on freon within spec, (I read in the Chilton DIY, they allow for so many grams/ounces loss per year) and not a huge leak. There are AC Pro spray cans with gauges, but they have additives like leak sealers in there and I do not want to ruin my compressor with that, also they only measure low side, which I am not sure if it would be safe. So, could you tell me, what testing tools did you order and what brand R134a did you get? I will get the same ones and do what you did and see if there is improvement. If not, it must go in for a leak test. Thanks man.
 
Hey Bushmaster78FS,

45-48F while driving and 58-60F when idling in 106-110F sounds pretty good to be honest. I understand that pressures / temperatures should really be read when the car is at 2500 RPM, rather than just idling, so that the compressor is spinning at a good rate. But of course, you are mentioning that the compressor shuts off like I was experiencing, which is no fun.

The gauge kit I had bought back in the day isn't available on Amazon anymore, but there are plenty of options to choose from, I just can't vouch for any particular one. As for the R134a, I just used Walmart's SuperTech brand can of refrigerant, with no additives. I agree about the additives - not necessary.

I would however, highly suggest, if you have a good mechanic you can talk to and ask for your system to be recharged at the upper end amount of the range, I would do that first. Because, once you open that can of worms, it's really hard to put the lid back on :).

Eric the Car Guide has a good general guide on how to use these gauges:
View: https://youtu.be/ey7Vhm9ZI_U
 
Sorry about the delay getting back to you man, especially thanks for the video, it is helpful, and I loved his other videos as well. Last week (on the 30th) I did a test run with my Sedan and this is the temperature I was getting; I took this right after I came to a red light, so it was just before I went up a bit. The outside temperature was 99°F. I'm thinking of leaving it alone for now, and not mess with refrigerant, I mean the car is able to cool down to 45 degrees in hell heat. I have a 2018 manual sport hatch and that car sustains AC temps (40°F) even at a red light. Seems they did a better job on the AC in the 10th gen even though they have class action lawsuits based on 10th gen AC alone. Maybe I lucked out there. I got a suggestion that I should try to clean out the possible dust accumulation in the condenser coils of the Sis, since that could be the reason of air not circulating well when the car comes to a stop and hence the temperature rise. And Arizona you get a lot of fine dust and 7 years' worth of that is in the coils probably. I do not want to remove my bumper however, so I need to find a proper cleaner that I can spray with a straw or something and gently rinse through the grill. I am assuming that will give me some improvement.

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My AC woes finally resolved. Dye test revealed a penny size blot on the condenser. Condenser got replaced. Now it gets to 42°F at the vent even at a light/at idle. Was an expensive fix but eventually it would have caused more issues down the road if just added refrigerant only
 
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