AC not blowing cold when idling/not moving

A8man · 05-08-2020, 03:22 AM

I had the same problem and have replaced the compressor, now it's fine.

I also had to replace the small seal of the refrigerant hose.

A321 · 06-12-2020, 02:16 PM

A/C blows COLD air from passenger side vents(2) and HOT air from drivers vents(2).
All four vents have great flow with no obstructions seen.

Any ideas on this/my scenario?

2011 E92 with 45k miles

ngarfield1712 · 06-20-2021, 08:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. Rothstein

Quote:

Originally Posted by patents

The fan seems to work fine, maybe it's just not being controlled properly.

As much as I hate to say it, I think you may have to take it to the dealer for diagnosis. We just don't know enough about how the fan is supposed to work and how the computer controls it. And I haven't come across that information online. The dealer (or someone with the right software) can run a diagnostic routine on the fan, but if the fan passes, then you are still stuck. The dealer has the technical resources to figure it out.

Be prepared for the problem to be something you never would have thought of.

Side story: Back in the day I owned a Saturn and I was talking to a service adviser at the dealer. He told me in the early 90s, when the cars had only been out about 3 years, they had a customer whose car was having auto transmission problems. Shifts were late and very hard. Being out of warranty, he took it to a transmission shop and had it rebuilt. Still didn't fix it, so he took it to the dealer, who quickly diagnosed it as a bad alternator. Turns out that the transmissions for those cars were quite advanced at the time and took a lot of power to drive the shift solenoids. No one would have guessed a bad alternator would have anything to do with transmission behavior.

It turns out that in college a buddy of mine had one of those early 90s Saturn models. One day he told me that his transmission was shifting rough and his ABS light was on. He was a bit worried about what could be wrong, but I told him right away he needed a new alternator. So that weekend we changed it out and all was well.

Hah. Yeah, interesting anomalies like that happen - and I am no stranger to those either.

A while back I had an E46. During a road trip, the transmission warning light suddenly came on, and the tranny went into limp mode - but not the classical limp mode when it's just stuck in third, but it just yanked really hard when changing gears, especially changing them down. Tried to diagnose it with the help of a friend, but couldn't figure it out.

When I got back from the trip, took it to a transmission shop. Turns out it was the air flow sensor that had given in. That was something so idiotic that we hadn't even thought about that. But afterwards I googled around and, indeed, when the air flow sensor on the E46 goes, it's the transmission light that comes on and it's the transmission that starts to act funny.

All right, thank you for all your help, I might, indeed, just take it to the dealer. Unless someone else here has a sudden flash of ideas?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. Rothstein

Quote:

Originally Posted by patents

The fan seems to work fine, maybe it's just not being controlled properly.

As much as I hate to say it, I think you may have to take it to the dealer for diagnosis. We just don't know enough about how the fan is supposed to work and how the computer controls it. And I haven't come across that information online. The dealer (or someone with the right software) can run a diagnostic routine on the fan, but if the fan passes, then you are still stuck. The dealer has the technical resources to figure it out.

Be prepared for the problem to be something you never would have thought of.

Side story: Back in the day I owned a Saturn and I was talking to a service adviser at the dealer. He told me in the early 90s, when the cars had only been out about 3 years, they had a customer whose car was having auto transmission problems. Shifts were late and very hard. Being out of warranty, he took it to a transmission shop and had it rebuilt. Still didn't fix it, so he took it to the dealer, who quickly diagnosed it as a bad alternator. Turns out that the transmissions for those cars were quite advanced at the time and took a lot of power to drive the shift solenoids. No one would have guessed a bad alternator would have anything to do with transmission behavior.

It turns out that in college a buddy of mine had one of those early 90s Saturn models. One day he told me that his transmission was shifting rough and his ABS light was on. He was a bit worried about what could be wrong, but I told him right away he needed a new alternator. So that weekend we changed it out and all was well.

Hah. Yeah, interesting anomalies like that happen - and I am no stranger to those either.

A while back I had an E46. During a road trip, the transmission warning light suddenly came on, and the tranny went into limp mode - but not the classical limp mode when it's just stuck in third, but it just yanked really hard when changing gears, especially changing them down. Tried to diagnose it with the help of a friend, but couldn't figure it out.

When I got back from the trip, took it to a transmission shop. Turns out it was the air flow sensor that had given in. That was something so idiotic that we hadn't even thought about that. But afterwards I googled around and, indeed, when the air flow sensor on the E46 goes, it's the transmission light that comes on and it's the transmission that starts to act funny.

All right, thank you for all your help, I might, indeed, just take it to the dealer. Unless someone else here has a sudden flash of ideas?

Any updates?

masterh · 06-21-2021, 02:46 PM

Are you driving without the cabin filter and the thing underneath it?

Katherchill · 08-09-2021, 06:59 PM

The most common complaint about the air conditioning system in cars is "it doesn't cool well". As a rule, the reason is not enough freon in the system. In spite of the original tightness of all pipes, compressor and other elements of air conditioner, freon with time can escape through gaskets, joints, microcracks, etc. Manufacturers recommend to check the system once in two years, even if it works properly. In addition, the oil, a faithful companion of freon, loses its properties with time and must be changed. That's why I recommend that you contact the experts - airconservicing.org. Good luck to you!

05-08-2020, 03:22 AM	#45
A8man Registered 0 Rep 1 Posts Drives: 2009 318i Join Date: Apr 2020 Location: Cairo iTrader: (0)	I had the same problem and have replaced the compressor, now it's fine. I also had to replace the small seal of the refrigerant hose.
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06-12-2020, 02:16 PM	#46
A321 Private 11 Rep 57 Posts Drives: 2011 E92 Executive Coupe' N51 Join Date: Jun 2020 Location: InBetween iTrader: (0)	A/C blows COLD air from passenger side vents(2) and HOT air from drivers vents(2). All four vents have great flow with no obstructions seen. Any ideas on this/my scenario? 2011 E92 with 45k miles
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06-21-2021, 02:46 PM	#48
masterh Second Lieutenant 54 Rep 291 Posts Drives: bmw 328i Join Date: Oct 2017 Location: Los Angeles CA iTrader: (0)	Are you driving without the cabin filter and the thing underneath it?
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08-09-2021, 06:59 PM	#49
Katherchill Registered 0 Rep 2 Posts Drives: BMW X3 Join Date: May 2021 Location: USA iTrader: (0)	The most common complaint about the air conditioning system in cars is "it doesn't cool well". As a rule, the reason is not enough freon in the system. In spite of the original tightness of all pipes, compressor and other elements of air conditioner, freon with time can escape through gaskets, joints, microcracks, etc. Manufacturers recommend to check the system once in two years, even if it works properly. In addition, the oil, a faithful companion of freon, loses its properties with time and must be changed. That's why I recommend that you contact the experts - airconservicing.org. Good luck to you! Last edited by Katherchill; 08-11-2021 at 06:29 PM..
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