This 2002 Vette has a bit of history. I took it off a family members hands, and ended up rebuilding the whole thing. Half due to lose nut behind the wheel, and the other half from terrible mechanics and auto body repair.

Anyway the Vettes been sitting for years and I got the body together and it started up with no problems. Well except the AC not blowing cold at all. Replaced low side valve then vacuum the system for nearly 1 hour, and recharged it with two 12oz cans of 134a, and a little PAG 100 oil added in, barely an oz worth. AC is cold on passenger side, but hot on drivers side. This issue is old from what I've been told.

The driver control seems to work both sides, while the passenger seems to work nothing. If I turn the passenger control to hot or cold, nothing changes anywhere. The drivers side seems to change both sides, but has a greater effect on the passenger side.

I threw another 6 oz of freon as people have said adding freon can sometimes fix the problem. I have no codes or check engine lights for anything. I'm thinking the hvac controls are bad, but a lot of forum posts seem to point to broken gear teeth or cracked gear.

What do other people think? Can HVAC controls go bad? I did have to replace a good amount of the interior as well, cause the previous owner loved coffee everywhere. Oh and cigarette burns.

 

It makes sense that the driver side would control the passenger side. The driver side sets the base for both sides, and the passenger control is just +/- the driver setting, so the passenger side air blend actuator could have failed. (not uncommon)
Being warmer on the driver side is a symptom of still not having enough freon. Fully charged should be around 24 to 26 oz. There should be a label on the wheel well under the hood with the capacity.

Once you get close to the right charge, the system is sensitive to the amount of freon. Mine had quit cooling, and I added just 2 oz. of freon and it started cooling again.You may have actually overcharged it a little, which can make the system less efficient.

 

I first put 24oz of freon, but when I read on the forums the cause could be a lack of freon, I added another 6 oz. I changed the inner fenders and the new ones don't have any labels, besides my name and they were ordered from Gmpartshouse. The passenger side does blow very cold though.

I turned the key but not running the engine on, and listened to the actuators to hear them working. I can clearly hear the one on the drivers side, but not the passenger. Could the passenger side actuator effect the drivers side? Maybe it's just my ears playing with me.

The dealer that serviced this many years ago actually forgot to hook up the heads up projector that you see on the windshield. They also wanted to charge over $1k to fix it. Who knows, maybe they forgot to hook up one of the actuators, but wouldn't that give out a code of some sort?

I know the next step is to take apart the dash, but I hate doing that so much. So much needs to be removed. Also, I notice the drivers side blows less then the passenger. No idea if that's normal or not.

 

Not sure you can tell which doors are working just by listening because there are other doors, like the outside air/recirculate door, that also cycle when you turn on the key.
You may have to actually observe the actuator to know for sure whether it is working or not..
I have read that some people have been able to change the passenger side actuator without removing the dash, but most say they go ahead and remove it so they can see everything.

It may be hard to judge if there is actually more air coming out the passenger vent since it is smaller, which tends to increase the velocity for the same air flow...
Also, make sure you have the temperature turned down to the lowest setting or the air door may not be fully opening. My observation has been that there needs to be about a 20 degree difference in the setting and outside temperature for the control to think it needs to go to full cold.

When you look at the low pressure inlet to the accumulator next to the firewall, is it sweating? If it is condensing water, then you are very close on freon level..


Yes, I would think that if the actuator was disconnected, you would see an error that it is out of range, or something. Have you tried removing the #27 fuse in the footwell with the ignition off, waiting 60 seconds, then replacing fuse? That should make the actuators cycle and recalibrate the next time you turn on the ignition... Wait until the recalibration is done before you adjust any of the controls.

 

The low pressure line where I fill the freon is certainly covered is water and cold to the touch. I did find something that might be just what I was looking for. I found these instructions in how to find codes. I thought my OBD2 tool could pull any codes, but I guess I was wrong.

There's a code B 0441 H C. I cleared to the code holding the reset button, and I can hear the actuators relearning how to position. I can hear gear grinding with my ear on the dash. The code B0441HC does come back up.

I found something! What does the H C mean at the end?

 

H for history, and C for current. Sounds like you have a bad drivers side actuator, probably a broken gear which is not uncommon, especially if you can hear the motor running and nothing changing. Also, use the DIC to diagnose issues.

 

Tomorrow I will removing the drivers side actuator to do the 5min epoxy repair. Would rather replace the gear all together, but I don't think anyone sells just the gear. Hopefully I can get the actuator out without taking apart the dash, but I maybe avoiding the inevitable.

Also, what's DIC?

 

Digital Information Center. It is what you mentioned above to find codes, a great tool on the C5! You can get to the drivers side one, but not easily. If you are, take out the seat first so you can lay back.

 

You can definitely replace the driver side actuator without removing the dash. I just did it on mine. It is the passenger side that is hard to get to.
You will have to remove the panel above the pedals, the Bose box, and the air duct for the inside air temp. sensor. You can also observe if it is fully opening before you remove it.

 

Didn't take as long as I thought it would. Problem is I don't see a crack.




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Sorry for the big images, don't know how to resize them. Good news, when I hooked it back up the AC works on boths sides. Controls work the doors perfectly now. Why did it start working now? Who knows. Gonna put some dielectric grease in the connector and calling it a day.

 

That could really "uck it up.

 

Gotta love cell phone cameras. Takes a highly detailed looking dirty mess in one photo, but blurs the next photo.

I think the connector wasn't pushed in all the way. Didn't remember having a hard time removing it the first time, but was much harder the second. Then again it could just be my imagination. I just know that putting together the dash and the the AC goes back to working wrong. For now I'm just waiting for some blue 12v LEDS for the dash. These things go out and I'll end up ripping apart the dash to replace them. Also, blue LEDS make the Vette go faster.

 

Let me get you a post here in a few minutes. It's more likely a vaccum tube that got ate by the battery or actuator issue and thats why you are having these issues. It's a how to also..stand by

 

here you go..

try the fuse pull..post 8
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c5-t...nger-side.html

or
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c5-g...1a147a9f73d5e8

 

Thanks Chicago but I've tried the fuse trick a few times to no avail. I had the fenders removed on both sides, but didn't see any vacuum leaks of any sort.

 

Did you blow compressed air into the lines? You may not be able to see it but maybe you will be able to hear it Just a thought..

 

updates?