air conditioning

[EmilysDad]

The a/c on my 'new' 451 Fortwo doesn't work ... the light comes on so guessing the evap temp sensor :-? http://www.evilution.co.uk/index.php...rical&mod=1007 Anyone bought one of them? Just phoned Mercedes and the part he found came up as being £60-odd ...... surely it's not that much. I'll go in to the dealers when I'm next passing to check we're both talking the same part

[10:45PM]

Don't assume anything

Any sensor on any car is rarely cheap , they know something important is usually stuffed without it operating correctly , but a little bit is because they are not cheap to manufacture (lol)

Get your pressure checked first and foremost... a few places will check it for nothing/not a lot.
Even try a mobile guy..

First to go usually is the aircon radiator (AKA the condensor) , corrodes , gets a hole in it and there goes all your gas... no pressure,no pumping

[EmilysDad]

Don't assume anything

Any sensor on any car is rarely cheap , they know something important is usually stuffed without it operating correctly , but a little bit is because they are not cheap to manufacture (lol)

Get your pressure checked first and foremost... a few places will check it for nothing/not a lot.
Even try a mobile guy..

First to go usually is the aircon radiator (AKA the condensor) , corrodes , gets a hole in it and there goes all your gas... no pressure,no pumping

I've lifted the engine cover & had a quick look ..... it's filthy in there! haha. I know you can't assume, it's just that it's an 08 car with 35k on the clock & has lived darn sarf al its life so won't really have seen much in the way of salted roads. I thought that an easy to get at & swap sensor would be the easiest/laziest place start .... especially as a known failure. ;-) Also, if there was no gas hence no pressure, then the A/C 'on' light wouldn't light ...... or it's not on previous cars I've had with fubar'd a/c

[lalli_d1]

Also, if there was no gas hence no pressure, then the A/C 'on' light wouldn't light ...... or it's not on previous cars I've had with fubar'd a/c

depends on what car(s) it was... my mums focus mk1 had a/c and the light would come on even when there was no gas in the system.

[10:45PM]

Hmmmmmm lazy way seems like an easy way to empty your pocket.

You could have a specialist check for gas pressure for the same price or less.

And that sensor could be checked for operation with a multimeter.

I'm still going for gas lost

[EmilysDad]

Hmmmmmm lazy way seems like an easy way to empty your pocket.

You could have a specialist check for gas pressure for the same price or less.

And that sensor could be checked for operation with a multimeter.

I'm still going for gas lost

I'm away for a week from tomorrow so won't get a chance to look. I'll put my meter across the sensor both cold & hot and see what happens.
I'll let you know ;-)

[EmilysDad]

I suppose I could always ask ...... who want to do a swap to check? ;-)

[Thrumbleux]

Don't assume anything

OK, I wont - I'll ask instead....

Get your pressure checked first and foremost... a few places will check it for nothing/not a lot.

Schrader valves checkable with tyre pressure gauge?

[EmilysDad]

OK, I wont - I'll ask instead....




Schrader valves checkable with tyre pressure gauge?

I've only driven it a few miles yet ..... I collected it last Sat and haven't done anythingto yet. I do somewhere have the connector that connects a can of 134a to the system that has a gauge of sorts on it. I will look at it. It'd be nice to sort it, but not the end of the world if I don't ........ I have a Roadster for when the sun is out :-)

[wag]

just had mine serviced 12 plate, asked merc to check the A/C system cos I didn't think it was operating. correct! they said it was the condenser and woud cost about £400 ish. Anyone know how easy it is to change yourself?

[EmilysDad]

just had mine serviced 12 plate, asked merc to check the A/C system cos I didn't think it was operating. correct! they said it was the condenser and woud cost about £400 ish. Anyone know how easy it is to change yourself?

Not done a Smart's but how hard can it be? ;-) This is the first thing I came across.

http://workshop-manuals.com/smart/fortwo/l3-1.0l/heating_and_air_conditioning/condenser_hvac/component_information/description_and_operation/page_2364/

[Paul Caden]

The problem you will have is the refrigerant and oil in the system, if you don't remove the refrigerant correctly it can be dangerous operating pressures of 250psi. Ideally you would pump down the system forcing the refrigerant into the compressor with most of the oil. I would not recommend this at home. There are also hefty fines if caught releasing the refrigerants to the ozon.

You can however buy a kit from Halfords which a gauge on to test the pressure levels.

[bob-in-dav]

You can however buy a kit from Halfords which a gauge on to test the pressure levels.

You can get a free air con check done at Halfords - if there's some pressure in the system they can also do a top up which is cheaper than buying the connector and bottle+the bottle deposit - if the pressure is zero (an obvious leak) then they won't do a top up.

[EmilysDad]

The problem you will have is the refrigerant and oil in the system, if you don't remove the refrigerant correctly it can be dangerous operating pressures of 250psi. Ideally you would pump down the system forcing the refrigerant into the compressor with most of the oil. I would not recommend this at home. There are also hefty fines if caught releasing the refrigerants to the ozon.

You can however buy a kit from Halfords which a gauge on to test the pressure levels.

assuming it is the condenser that's failed, there won't be any refrigerant in the system ..... ideally the a/c system works ;-) The fines are for the professionals that knowingly discharge it to atmosphere :-)

[lalli_d1]

assuming it is the condenser that's failed, there won't be any refrigerant in the system ..... ideally the a/c system works

depends on how big the leak is in the condenser. iv had it where the condenser is leaking but the car still has about 1/2 its charge weight.

go to a place that can check for a/c leaks, no point in guessing what the problem could be...