Reader Question

Hello Austin..you have helped me in the past with an automotive problem..hope you can help again. Here is all the info I know it’s hard w/o looking at car, but please respond..thanks:

Air Conditioning problem
1998 Kia Sportage 4 cyl Two Wheel Drive Automatic

lOW SIDE =40 PSI
HIGH SIDE=240 PSI
outside temp (FLORIDA)=92 degrees (F)
topped freon off since it was not blowing cold at all; pressures read as above with blower on HIGH.

THE low side ac pipe coming out of engine firewall(evaporator) is warm, other high side pie (ac line ) is HOT to touch. What could be wrong..BOTH fans come on (ac condenser and radiator fan..car NOt overheating)..
problem seems intermittent. Sometimes car will blow cold air (only when pipe coming out of evaporator(low side is cool to touch and sweating; otherwise, pipe gets hot again and will not cool car.

Both fans(AC CONDENSER and radiator fan turn on). Car not overheating..PLEASE advise,
Thanks
Gail

Hey there Gail

Your numbers are not that far off. First I would hook up your gauges again and rev the engine RPM to 1500, and see if those numbers change. I would expect them to be about 20-30 low side and 250 – 280 or so on high side during the heat of the day on high blower at fast idle. I am thinking you just need to add a little more Freon to the system at fast idle. Sometime you have to use a stick on the accelerator cable under the hood as you add more Freon.

I have also seen similar numbers and complaint when there is a contaminate in the system, like AIR from a recent part replacement or too much compressor oil that was added to the system. if adding more Freon does not help the problem I would suck out the system and evacuate for about an hour then refill the system.

Blessings
Austin Davis

Hi Austin

Thanks for your help…we did put freon in at 1500 rpm..the low side ac pipe coming out of the firewall(evaporator) gets warm to touch intermittently..when it does, no cold air blows..but when it sweats and is cold to touch, it blows cold a/c. The other ac pipe is hot to touch coming out of evaporator.

Someone else told me the pressure numbers were correct but that the BLAND might be stuck near heater core??..it seems to run cold for awhile, then all of a sudden won’t blow cold anymore.

I will have someone evacuate and recharge.
I did not add any sealer or oil..just freon..about a half a can and then we stopped because the HIGH side pressure kept creeping upwards. Low side seemed fine at 40psi
what is a bland door?
thanks

GH

Hello again

They are referring to the BLEND door inside the heater/evaporator case which moves when you select HOT or COLD air, it diverts air from the hot heater core or the cold evaporator core.

You can bypass the blend door as a culprit by crimping off both heater hoses going to and away from the heater core so NO hot coolant gets inside the evaporator case. This will NOT cause the car to overheat etc etc it will just not allow hot coolant inside the dash of the vehicle.

Blessings,
Austin Davis

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Filed under: A/C and Heating

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