Frick...my car was stolen about a year ago, and ever since, having the A/C on and driving at the same time is getting intolerable! Whenever I turn my ac on, it drains so much power that whenever I push the accelerator it feels as if I'm towing another car! A real sluggish feel to it. What also sucks a lot is when I come to a stop on inclines, both small and steep, I have to turn my a/c off just so that I don't have to over-rev my engine to continue up the hill(usually I need to rev over 3k or my engine will knock from lack of horsepower) and sound like a dumbass that's just learning how to use the clutch w/ an accelerator=(! Does anyone know why the AC is sucking so much power?
Damn Thieves! My poor car
Thanks





Modified by CristalCleanCivic 97 EX at 9:26 AM 2/20/2004

 

Oh yeah..I have a 1997 Civic EX, everything stock under the hood but an AEM CAIntake.
Thanks again...

 

Dude I would have that looked at you may have a unit that is over pressured , or has a compressor that is failing.

 

Right on , I appreciate any comments .

 

one possibility could be that the compressor pulley is tightened up too much, dont know if that is it but who knows

 

That's making alittle more sense to me.
When the compressor pully is too tight will that cause increased vibration overall?

 

yeah i suppose it could, instead of it turning freely it would be having to force the pulley to turn, of course im not sure if this is the reason, but you could check into it

 

Right on

 

how many miles on car...cat is clogged

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by BluLude &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">how many miles on car...cat is clogged
</TD></TR></TABLE>
I have less than 60k on my car....Could you elaborate a little?

 

cat is clogged so exhaust gases dont flow out fast enough robbing your power

 

if it was a clogged cat, it would have a loss of power with or without A/C turned on. If it only happens with A/C turned on and compressor running, sounds like it may be overcharged. Have you had a/c system diagnosed yet? could also be compressor that is on verge of locking up. I would want to check refrigerant pressures to see what's going on with system.

Just my 2 cents though...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by hondatim &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">if it was a clogged cat, it would have a loss of power with or without A/C turned on. If it only happens with A/C turned on and compressor running, sounds like it may be overcharged. Have you had a/c system diagnosed yet? could also be compressor that is on verge of locking up. I would want to check refrigerant pressures to see what's going on with system.

Just my 2 cents though...

</TD></TR></TABLE>

The last time I had my AC checked was A YEAR and 3 months ago. Since then, the problem has gotten worse little by little. Nothing drastic, though. Little by little over the year & 3mo. I also had custom 2&1/4 inch exhaust piping done from the cat back with an Apexi N1 turbo muffler..and am using the silencer. All more than a year ago.
Thanks for all the interesting comments.

 

Well, you do know that when your A/C is on it is adding on more rotational mass to your crank, as well as your alternator. The crank now would have ot be turning the Power steering/Alternator/and the A/C all at the same time, so it's putting more "weight" on your crank.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by hondatim &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">if it was a clogged cat, it would have a loss of power with or without A/C turned on. If it only happens with A/C turned on and compressor running, sounds like it may be overcharged. Have you had a/c system diagnosed yet? could also be compressor that is on verge of locking up. I would want to check refrigerant pressures to see what's going on with system. </TD></TR></TABLE>

If refrigerant pressure is too high or too low the clutch won't lock up so the A/C compressor won't work

 

Well, I think I'm going to take my car to the A/C shop tomorrow w/out an apptointment. From experience, do you all know some checks the A/C techs wouldn't mind doing?
Would they beable to check my compressor and the tightness of the compressor belt or will that take too much labor/time?
What would not be a hassle for them to check?

 

If the pressure in the condenser is too high, wouldn't the relief valve kick in?

 

relief valve? The tightness of the belt wouldn't matter...try this u are gonna prolly need a friend...have him put his hand close where the exhaust comes out...rev the motor and he can feel if there is enough exhaust gas that comes out... If not much comes out change cat

 

Alright, I remember the other day, and with my silencer on(reducing the end of my exhaust to the factory spec diameter), my muffler was spitting out a good amount of fumes as I walked passed it about a foot,maybe less, away. So, I'm pretty sure I can rule that out..Thanks!

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by BluLude &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">relief valve?
</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yeah, I'm looking at an outline of my A/C system and it says there is a relief valve on the compressor itself? It says it "relieves pressure at the compressor when the pressure is too high".
What do u think?
Thanks, man.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by BluLude &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">how many miles on car...cat is clogged
</TD></TR></TABLE>

How can a CAT be "clogged?" It's not like it's a filter. I think it'll just stop working, not robbing you of that much horsepower.

 

i think your compressor is bad and the a/c clutch on the pulley isnt working correctly

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Ovaltine &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

How can a CAT be "clogged?" It's not like it's a filter. I think it'll just stop working, not robbing you of that much horsepower. </TD></TR></TABLE>

umm yeah hes right, a cat CAN be clogged....and umm, its sorta like a filter too, it reburns and traps exhaust particles so they dont enter the atmosphere...and if thats clogged your exhaust will be having to force its way through and your car will seem like its bogging down

 

BTW I appreciate all your comments on such a boring subject.

Soo, I did go to the A/C shop, today, and he said he would test my whole system for free since my whole family has been going there for the past few years!

But, before that he looked at my compressor from the top w/ my A/C running and pushed on the compressor belt to supposedly check the tightness, and he said they looked fine. Most importantly I kept emphasizing the Q.".what would happen if the compressor was damaged"... and he said something like.." no matter what, the AC system should not suck that much power from the car's engine"
He could not answer the Q.."Why, then, does the problem(stated before) happen only when I turn my A/C on????"

 

not sure if its the ac compressor ur call think twice about a clogged cat. when a cat is clogged it stutters up hills and when its under load like ac. dont overlook blulude's idea so quickly.


Modified by zad5 at 10:32 PM 2/21/2004

 

Sure thing... That should be an easy check for an exhaust systems shop, I'll swing by my shop first ..thanks, man