I have a 2000 with Dual Zone Climate Control and I think she is dying...

First problem...Drivers Side blows hot air while the pass. side is cooler....I am assuming this a vac. related problem that is not allowing a vent to open...Is this a hard fix? Any "how-to's"?

Second the external temp guage is stuck at 71 degrees...

Any advice?

Thanks!

Adam Boca

 

Believe it or not; you are low on freon. Try that first.
Do a search on this forum; you will see what I mean.

Mike

 

Have you verified that the fans are turning on with the AC?

 

Adam:

The first problem sounds like a stuck driver's side actuator. On the dual zone system there are two doors that are controlled by electronic motors (one for driver side, one for passenger side). This is a common problem and worst case the actuator motor needs to be replaced. What I would first try is to reset the HVAC by pulling the related fuses: IP Fuse block 18 and 27 (HVAC Controls) or disconnect your battery and reattach. Let the system reinitialize - the motors are supposed to move to their open and close limits to calibrate. Some have had success with this - you may need to try a few times. It could also be low on freon.

For the second problem, it's probably your sensor which is located below the passenger headlight on the bottom of the cavity between the frame rail and the radiator intake area. If you disconnect the sensor the system should default to 68F. I just went to Chevy to order a sensor myself since my external temp has started to drift way off the correct temp. The sensor is only $11 and easy to replace, but check the connector condition as well since corrosion can cause incorrect readings.

 

Fix the external sensor first. It is easy and cheap to fix, but more importantly it effects how your a/c works. If your car thinks it is cool outside, it will try to mix more outside air. Since the outside air is more than 71 degrees, you end up with warmer air in your car and the car's computer won't know why.

 

try this, it workrd for me. With the engine running and the ac turned on, bring up the hvac on the dic and see if it is throwing a code. If it is, delete the code. The ac should shut off for a few seconds and then restart itself after recalibrating. Hopefully like mine, you then get cold air from both sides.

 

No codes related to the HVAC....Checked my freon pressure and it was good...

Any other options?

 

First, many thanks for the responses, I really appreciate the help thus far...

I have tried several items and still having issues....

I disconnected the battery overnight....no dice..
I replaced the external air temp sensor...no dice..
I checked my codes and nothing AC related....
I checked my freon level...no dice, but the pressure was WAY high, and said I needed to seek professional help (snide remarks always welcome)...

I also pulled my AC unit just to see if anything was disconnected...I unpluged the connector and reseated it, and no dice...

Any other thoughts before I take it into the shop?

Thanks for the help and advice thus far!

Adam Boca

 

After you reconnected the battery did your EXT Temp stay at 71?

 

yes it did, so I replaced the external temp sensor..

Adam

 

I had a similar problem and this may not apply to yours but ...

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=2138849

 

Repost from your other thread
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Hi, going by the steps you have taken so far I would make an educated guess that your compressor is bad, the reason is that if you checked the refrigerant levels correctly and came up with a way high reading with the compressor running at 1000 or 2000 rpm's, that would lead to the problem of bad valves in the compressor. This assumes that your condenser is clean and not blocked, a blocked condenser would also lead to poor AC performance and high readings. This also assumes that the system has not been way overcharged which would also cause high readings, but the temps would be uniform on all vents.
Post the hi side and low side readings of the refrigerant check and we will know more, include the ambient temp, humidity, and rpm's. It's not impossible that your actuators could be out of calibration or bad, but this would not cause way high ref readings. Air in the system could also cause high readings, but they would jump around a lot.
Good Luck
EDIT after changing the external sensor, the car has to be driven a few miles for it to register a new reading

 

My 2000 had a similar issue earlier this year. First the driver side blew hot while the passenger side blew cold. Turned out to be a bad driver side actuator as indicated by the "out-of-range" codes listed by the DIC. I replaced and all was well until it quit blowing cold altogether. Checked the high and low side pressures and found them to be the same: the low and high sides were reading the same. The compressor wasn't generating suction due to probably a bad valve. I replaced it myself (turned out to be much easier than expected) and now I'm ice cold again. I put together a write-up on the swap...let me know and I'll find the link.

 

Worked like a charm!!!! Thank Youuu! Actuator going bad????

 

just had the same symptoms, replaced drivers actuator, fixed !!!!! see my thread, https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-actuator.html