I recently picked up a 98 targa. It's my first time owning american and I must say, I'm loving the sound of the v8

After taking it home, I turned on the A/C while the car was parked and the engine immediately died. Looked under the hood and noticed the bad compressor. No biggie. Ordered a new one and installed it using the awesome DIY articles on here. At the same time, I shipped off my digital climate control to get the back lights fixed. At this point, I've changed out the compressor, accumulator, top line, and orifice tube. I then vacuumed the system and was pleased to see no leaks. Finally got the climate control back last night and plugged it up. Fired up the car and started filling the low side with freon. It didn't take but half of one can to get full and also my blower isnt blowing. Anyone have any idea of what's going on?

Side note: I also changed the oil using OEM filter and Mobil 1. Changed spark plugs and the smog pump due to a CEL. And lastly, of course the water pump gaskets and coolant.

 

Pressure switch? Did you get all the electrical stuff plugged back in correctly?

 

That's the plug on one of the AC lines closer toward the passenger headlight?

I'm currently at work but I believe I have all lines hooked back up.

 

if it's auto air, what does the outside temp read ? if there is not enough pressure the pressure switch might not be letting in enough Freon? Is the compressor running?

 

Just some NOTES of interest:

1- If you are filling the LOW (SUCTION) side, you must have the can UP-RIGHT for gas. When filling sit the R-134 Can in a small pail of HOT water. It will cause the liquid R134 inside the can to boil and help fill the system faster.

Once you get the system up to pressure the Pressure switch will allow the clutch on the compressor to engage.

 

Yes, digital/auto control. 73 degrees. I can hear it click on when I turn on the AC button.

Yes, I'm filling the low side with the can pointed up. The system's PSI has reached the adequate PSI with just half a can. I can't recall the exact number I filled it to last night. I'm afraid to fill it anymore. So you're saying I should continue?

I'm going to pull fuses tonight to see why the blower isn't blowing.

 

DID you back fill the VACUUM with the R-134 charge??

When you add pressure to the system, (without the engine running), it SHOULD equalize between the HIGH and LOW pressure sides (system off). Usually see around 60-100 PSI, When the system is running the suction side will pump down and the high side pressure will increase.

What pressure s are you seeing and it running or not?

Bill

 

What do you mean by back fill?

I'll check when I get home how much the low side is and the high side is currently around 50. This is running.

 

When you vacuum the system, The total system is drawn down to a as close to 30" as possible. When you were done with the vacuum and the leak test,, HOW did you remove the vacuum from the system??

Normally you back fill the vacuum with R-134. If you just break the vacuum, the system sucks in AIR and MOISTURE> That's BAD.

 

I made that mistake the first time. So I vacuumed again for an hour and then proceeded to add the 134a freon.

 

And you still are having issues getting in more than ONE CAN????

How much oil did you add to the system?? You did add oil correct???

 

I only tried once last night. How much PSI should I be seeing on the LOW side?

New compressor was pre-oiled. I added 2oz to the accumulator (new).

Do you think my condensor is filled with junk?

 

When ever you have compressor failure and especially if it was a catastrophic failure you should have used a Proper FLUSH and cleaned out the entire system.

That being said, its a possibility. If the pressure isn't equalizing when the system is OFF, the orifice tube could be clogged.

Bill

 

Last year I had a leak at, surprise surprise the compressor seals. I changed my AC components as well, but I drove it to a shop to have the system checked and properly charged. I didn't have the gauges and didn't feel like purchasing any when my base hobby shop AC charges for $40. My high side and low side were within their specs and my AC has blown cold ever since. Like Bill said, are you sure it was vacuumed ALL THE WAY?

 

You were right. I went ahead and continued filling her up with more freon and the clutch engaged. After filling it up with the 3 bottles I had on hand, my low side read 27psi and the high side reads 127psi.

I took my blower motor out and wired it directly to the battery and it works fine. Reinstalled it and without turning the motor on, but instead turning the key to the "ON" position, I can hear the blower running but barely if any air coming out of my vents. Two things to note here, I had my climate control until shipped off to get the lights repaired and secondly, I can hear some weird buzzing noise under the hood, by the firewall on the drivers side.

Thanks so much for your continued help Bill!

Yes, it was at a solid -30 before I started filling freon in.

 

The quanty of R-134 that you currently have in the system may work now but it may not be the optimum charge. GM Service manual has an ENTIRE CHAPTER on AC/HVAC Repair. There are charts that provide you pressure data for various conditions. They are dependent on HUMIDITY, & TEMPERATURE.

You just cant add some till it works and call it a day. That head pressure was pretty low but like I stated, I dont know what the outside conditions were when you tested it.


As for the FAN,, The head really doesn't control the speed. There is a FAN SPEED CONTROLLER between the head and the motor that actually regulates the speed.

There are two different controllers. One for Dual Zone system and one for the Manual system.

This is the MANUAL Controller. Its a bank of resistors and the module is mounted on the bottom of the air box near the fan motor:




This is the DUAL ZONE Controller. Its a PROCESSOR MODUAL (read $$$$$$) and the module is mounted on the bottom of the air box near the fan motor:






This is the MANUAL Controller. Its a bank of resistors and the module is mounted on the bottom of the air box near the fan motor It regulates voltage to the fan motor electronically:


Both controllers live in the same place:








Check the fuses in the circuit and then see if the Manual Controller resistors are all in tact and not like this:





Here is one fate of the Dual Zone controller. It usually fries the circuit traces on the bottom of the power side of the circuit::

 

Thanks Bill!

I actually have the AUTO version. It's actually cheaper now. I purchased one through Amazon Prime for $20. I'm hoping it solves the issue. We'll find out in 2 days.

 

Sounds like you're having very similar issues to what I had. I was just as confused myself.

Look over my thread if you'd like, there's plenty of good pointers in it. I got my A/C up and running blowing cold..............for about 2 months. Now I've got to figure out what leaked.

Good luck!

 

Take a look at this post. It has a chart that might be helpful to you.

As mentioned above, pressures vary with temperature and humidity. To use this chart, blower has to be on high (if your blower is not working right you have to fix it first), set temperature at lowest setting, and air on recirculate. Engine steady at 2K rpm.

 

Thanks guys! I finally got COLD AC! Replaced the resistor box and revved it up to 2k and it worked flawlessly.

Now onto the P0410 code and Traction issue.