I'd guess this is the forum to ask anything about hondas(by the way hello to all, I'm a new guy here). My 94 Ex has no AC right now, I would not worry about it but now that my daughter is 16 and will soon be driving I need to get it fixed. an acquitance of mine has same car(year and make)stated he had same problem and said Honda shop repaired it. It was told to him it ws his main control switch on the compressor and the repair cost over $800. So my question is this are there any checks I can do on my own(fuses,switches,etc.)to determine if this is needed?

 

Realistically, the 11-year old compressor is probably shot having been used much of the time in the humid carolina's. Your best bet time/$-wise is to find a used compressor from a used car (lower mile wrecked 97) and buy a new dryer and R&R the entire system with new refrigerant.

Used compressor : $50
new dryer: $40
R-134 refrigerant : $80
Labor : $150 (should include a leak-test w/ this)

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RotaryBzzzz &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Realistically, the 11-year old compressor is probably shot having been used much of the time in the humid carolina's. Your best bet time/$-wise is to find a used compressor from a used car (lower mile wrecked 97) and buy a new dryer and R&R the entire system with new refrigerant.

Used compressor : $50
new dryer: $40
R-134 refrigerant : $80
Labor : $150 (should include a leak-test w/ this)</TD></TR></TABLE>

Jesus...... no offense Rotary but that's got to be 1 of the most off the wall advices i have ever heard anyone give........

first off, make sure yiou got freon in the system if no freon or very low compressor will not come on,,,,,,,if no freon evac + recharge system ,,,,,,,,,,,assuming u got freon,
chk fuses underhood fuse box # 34 ,. 15 amp fuse condensor fan ,, underdash fuse # 8 ,,,7.5 amps,,,,,,,,,if both fuses are ok ..chk power and ground at compressor relay , located rt side of radiator upper right......put key on, you should have power at white and black/yellow wires,,,,,,,if u do . start car, a/c on, you should have power at red wire.....if you have power at red and compressor does not come on,, u got bad wiring from relay to compressor. bad compressor coil, /////////if no power at red wire, chk red/blue wire you should have ground ,, if you have ground, jump the white wire and the red wires together , if compressor kicks on you got a bad relay...........
If you got no ground at red/blue, the relay won't energize thus will not close and allow power to get to red wire,,,,,,,that is a whole lot more troubleshooting , try these tests first and post results ...gee i hope it is not too confusing .......

And 1 more thing do not replace any parts until you properly diagnose the problem ,some people find it easy to advice to keep on replacing parts when it is not their money that they are spending

 

Well... I've been down the Accord A/C road. Maybe I can help?

First, I'd toss the previous advice out the window. I bet you already have. Before you go and spend a few hundred bones on a compressor, I'd do some troubleshooting. I rebuilt a crashed 94 Accord and dealt with the AC probs with it. Here's how'd I'd proceede:

First, the compressor is a pretty robust piece of equipment. While yes, they dogo bad, there are a lot of other things that can go wrong with the system.

Using the accord manual and following the flow chart, check for the obvious:

Fuse, ground, connection on the clutch engagement circuit (wire close to, and leading to the compressor).

Freon in the system. Look in the sight glass. What do you see? Clear or frothy? If you disconnect and jump the connection at the pressure switch, it'll run if the system is low - If it runs when jumped, the system is low.

The circuit that controls the compressor has a few switches in series, so you have a few things that can go wrong in different places on the same circuit.

The thermostat and pressure switch are on the same circuit, and that circuit runs right below the battery. If you jump the connection right before the A/C thermostat behind the glove box and the A/C runs, then theres a prob in the circuit.

The two times mine quit, it was because of low freon, and then because of battery acid rotted the wire in the circuit directly below the battery.

Bottom line is the system is purely mechanical .. and basic troubleshooting should allow you to find the prob. Let me know if you need the manual with the troubleshooting flow chart.

Sean
Ramstein Air Base, Germany

1994 Accord LX
1995 Accord LX
2002 Harley Sportster
2003 BMW 525i

 

this will also help me. good stuff. bookmarked.

 

Thanks for the replies to these topic. I now have some time off from my job to try to check things but it's been raining here and I have no shop so I'll hope to get to it soon.