Jimi Hondrix

1998 Civic EX stock coupe . A/T, 149K


A/C is not leaking freon and has no known issues. It get gets cold during nights, early mornings and rainy day but, struggles to get cold during Florida summer days. During days hours the A/C gets cool but not cold now matter how long of drive time. Sides and back windows are tinted as dark as legally possible.. strip across front windshield.
I had a similar issue a year ago with my Mazda 3 and after a hi/lo switch replacement and evacuation & recharge the air is colder than when we first purchased it. The mechanic who did the a/c repair was very meticulous and said that (in his opinion) it's good to fully evacuate and replace freon every 7 or 8 years. He also mentioned hitting the freon amount and PAG oil numbers for that car spot on.

I am wondering if a full evacuation and recharge would help the Civic's a/c to cool better/faster during sunny days. I would ask the mechanic to get the numbers as close as possible to this chart: Honda Refrigerant and oil capacity charts || TechChoice Parts if I decide to have it done (waiting for feedback here).

eghatch9295

iTrader: (1)

im not sure a full evac is necessary. we've got a 30 year old garage fridge, never touched the coolant. have you checked the pressure hi and low? if it checks out and everything else is in working order, id point my finger at the dryer or expansion valve.

Jimi Hondrix

I haven't had it checked out yet. The guy who did my Mazda no longer works at the same place.. I can try and track him down possibly. A/C is probably the section of auto mechanics I know least about. I would like to learn more about it though..at minimum learn how to perform and read pressure gauges. I am leary about shops that offer free a/c checks.. if i am not looking they might release some freon and tell me it's low. Thanks for the info.. I'd least I can read up on it and query the mechanic about those two components.

Looks like others are (not) feeling it too: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q...ivic+ac+colder
Here's a good read about the importance of correct freon amount: http://www.certifiedmastertech.com/w...g-cold-enough/

chrisfc3s

only way to tell if its low is put a set of gauges on the car, high side should be roughly 200 and low 35 to40 if its working properly.

tony_2018

Put a thermostat in the vents and tell me whats the temp when driving around. Full blast.