Diagnostic common car air conditioning problems and find the best solution could be easier with some of the guide here. Readers from Malaysiaminilover share the air conditioning problems they faced as well as solutions here. You can take it as a reference if your car air conditioning has the similar problem. Please note that different cars have different air conditioning system. Therefore do consult a professional mechanic before any work is going on.

Question: My car air conditioning is cold but it is not as cold as when it is new, what should I do?

Answer: This is one of the most common car air conditioning problems. First, you will have to check the car history, how long since the air conditioning was last charged? Generally, it was suppose to charge or service every 1.5 to 3 years. Second thing to check is the air-condition blower. Try is the air come out from the vents is strong enough? If it is weak, try to see if any blocked pullen or dust in the blower vents. A good way to check if the air-condition blower is working properly is turn on the ignition, and turn on air-condition without starting the car engine. You can hear a hard sound if the blower motor is not turning in the good speed. If you are pretty sure the air-condition compressor is running, check if the system needs a recharge. Look for the receiver/dryer. It is often a small metal bottle with small glass eye (sight-glass). Start the car, turn on the car air-condition and observe the sight-glass. If you can see a continuous bubble streams or the sight-glass is blur, the system needs recharging or in some country some people call it “Air-condition gas refilling”, or “Refrigerant top-up”.

Question: My car air conditioning smells bad! It has bad smell out from the vents.

Answer: If the car is fairly new, it is mostly the water condensation cause the smell. The bad smell usually with mildew odor, which indicates that the air conditioning system has a drain pan problem. The easiest way to solve this problem is to send the car to any auto air conditioning shop to get rid of the foul odor. A great tips to always keep the water condensation dry is to switch the air conditioning controls in open circulation mode once awhile during your drive.

Question: How can I know if my car compressor is working in good condition?

Answer: First you will have to start the car engine and turn on the air-conditioning. Open the car hood and look for the air-condition compressor. Air-condition compressor is generally a metal pump with steel hoses going to it and usually it is fitted to the car engine with rubber belt that going through its pulley. The compressor usually looks like the picture show below. Some cars will have a plastic cover or metal cover to protect it from water or dirt. The compressor pulley turns when an electric clutch is engaged. To know whether it is working, turn on the AC. Observe if the center of the AC compressor pulley is turning, if it is not, it is mostly the compressor’s clutch is not engaging. Bad fuse, bad AC switch, pulley failure, wiring problems, or low on refrigerant could be the things that bring the problem. Most of the new car AC systems now has low-pressure safety cutout which will disable the compressor if the refrigerant in the system is not enough.

Question: The AC blower blow air but the air is not cold.

Answer: There are few possibilities if everything is working properly except no cold air. If the car is about 1.5 to 2 year-old, most probably is the system refrigerant is low. Check the refrigerant level. Check also if the drive belt is loose or broken. Slipping compressor clutch could bring the problem of having no cool air in your car. Other than check, check if there is any leaking component in the AC system or any blown fuse. Sometimes it just a fuse that cost less than a dollar gives the problem.

Question: My car air-conditioning is cold during the morning. It is cold when the car runs too. It turns hot and only hot air blow out from the vents during traffic jam or when the car stopped for long. However, the cold air comes back again when the car runs. What could be the problem?

Answer: The car air-conditioning is cold during morning means most part in the system is still working well. Mostly the refrigerant is enough. First thing should check is the AC under the car hood. Most of the new car today is running on electric AC fan, which the fan will automatically turn on when the condenser is hot. It usually fitted at the front of the car under the hood because that is the position to get natural air for the condenser when the car moves. Check if the fan is running when the engine is hot, if it is not, a AC fan replacement is needed.

Email us at malaysiaminilover @ gmail [dot] com if you have any car air conditioning problems, we will have a mechanic to look through your problem and share it out here. The guide may not help you to solve your problem 100% but it will at least give you a clue of what happen to your car air conditioning.