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Old 06-13-2005, 11:21 AM   #1
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Default Plenty of cold, but EXTREMELY low A/C airflow?

Just this morning, my car developed EXTREMELY low air flow from the dashboard vents. I had the A/C on, and noticed ALOT of condensation for this weather (80 degrees, moderate humidity), something I usually only see when the humidity is in the 90-95% range, and then only intermittently. It was like a fog machine. That got my attention, then I noticed how little air was really coming out of the vents. I could barely feel it with the system set on recirculate, which usually sets what's left of my hair to blowing. I did think I smelled something electrical/burning for a short time earlier in my commute, though with the way people around here maintain their cars, it coulda been any one of the s-boxes that was driving nearby.

I don't think it's the actual fan, because I pulled the glovebox out, and it's blowing just fine, all fan speeds seem to be normal it's just that the air is getting blocked before it comes out. I checked the vent selector cable, and the arm is moving into the correct positions, and I can hear the flapper inside moving as the air sound changes slightly, but still no more volume of air. It blows out of the appropriate vents, but very, very weak.

I do hear a...not quite a whistle...sort of a restricted blowing air, slightly whistly sound when the selector is set on recirculate to blow out of the front vents only.

If I switch the cold/hot selector from cold to hot, I THINK there may be more airflow, but I'm not sure. At that point I was pretty sweaty and pissed off, hanging halfway out of my car in my company's parking lot with the dashboard half apart, so it coulda been my imagination.

Any ideas? Please help before the really hot weather hits, it's gonna be 90 today and 92 tomorrow...
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Old 06-13-2005, 12:30 PM   #2
Got Groceries?
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2003 WRX Wagon
Black

Default EXTREMELY low A/C airflow - vent problems?

Just this morning, my car developed EXTREMELY low air flow from the dashboard vents. I had the A/C on, and noticed ALOT of condensation for this weather (80 degrees, moderate humidity), something I usually only see when the humidity is in the 90-95% range, and then only intermittently. It was like a fog machine. That got my attention, then I noticed how little air was really coming out of the vents. I could barely feel it with the system set on recirculate, which usually sets what's left of my hair to blowing. I did think I smelled something electrical/burning for a short time earlier in my commute, though with the way people around here maintain their cars, it coulda been any one of the s-boxes that was driving nearby.

I don't think it's the actual fan, because I pulled the glovebox out, and it's blowing just fine, all fan speeds seem to be normal it's just that the air is getting blocked before it comes out. I checked the vent selector cable, and the arm is moving into the correct positions, and I can hear the flapper inside moving as the air sound changes slightly, but still no more volume of air. It blows out of the appropriate vents, but very, very weak.

I do hear a...not quite a whistle...sort of a restricted blowing air, slightly whistly sound when the selector is set on recirculate to blow out of the front vents only.

If I switch the cold/hot selector from cold to hot, I THINK there may be more airflow, but I'm not sure. At that point I was pretty sweaty and pissed off, hanging halfway out of my car in my company's parking lot with the dashboard half apart, so it coulda been my imagination.

Any ideas? Please help before the really hot weather hits, it's gonna be 90 today and 92 tomorrow...

(sorry for the cross-post, mods...this was languishing over in maintenance...)
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Old 06-13-2005, 12:38 PM   #3
REX8
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Same thing happened to me the past two weekends...strong good a/c and then after being on for maybe 45 minutes, the fan goes weak, regardless of the setting, and a small bit of water drips on my feet (drivers side under the dash). If I turn off the a/c and fan for awhile, and turn it back on, it runs fine for another 45 minutes or so...then the fan stops again...Any thoughts?
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Old 06-13-2005, 12:53 PM   #4
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Did you check the filter?
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Old 06-13-2005, 01:03 PM   #5
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I don't have a filter, homemade or OEM. I did open the snap-in door to make sure the fan was responding to the switch, however.
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Old 06-13-2005, 02:05 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by REX8
Same thing happened to me the past two weekends...strong good a/c and then after being on for maybe 45 minutes, the fan goes weak, regardless of the setting, and a small bit of water drips on my feet (drivers side under the dash). If I turn off the a/c and fan for awhile, and turn it back on, it runs fine for another 45 minutes or so...then the fan stops again...Any thoughts?
Ok, I wasn't sure so I went out to the parking lot to check, and that's exactly what it's doing, though I think my timeframe may be closer to 15 or 20 minutes. Put the key in, started the car, cranked the A/C on with the fan on "4" and I was blown away (pun intended) by the amount of airflow.

Curiouser, and curiouser. Some kind of relay or solenoid? the whistling sound is gone too, so there must be some sort of ventus interruptus happening once the system has been on for a while. I'll have to see how tonight's commute goes...
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Old 06-13-2005, 02:59 PM   #7
REX8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Got Groceries?
Ok, I wasn't sure so I went out to the parking lot to check, and that's exactly what it's doing, though I think my timeframe may be closer to 15 or 20 minutes. Put the key in, started the car, cranked the A/C on with the fan on "4" and I was blown away (pun intended) by the amount of airflow.

Curiouser, and curiouser. Some kind of relay or solenoid? the whistling sound is gone too, so there must be some sort of ventus interruptus happening once the system has been on for a while. I'll have to see how tonight's commute goes...
Ventus interruptus...sounds bad!!! Maybe we could get somekind of topical cream for something like that?

Its not like a belt starts slipping, you'd hear that...I'm not sure what it is. Hopefully, someone will help us out tonight...15-20 minutes sounds right...I was with the girlfriend, and we know how slow time goes then...Does the A/C come out foggy/white from the vents too? And I guess you haven't experienced the drip on the leg yet? Consider yourself lucky...
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Old 06-13-2005, 03:14 PM   #8
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Isn't there some sort of a service bulletin about the core freezing up? That sure would kill the airflow.
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Old 06-13-2005, 04:07 PM   #9
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Ventus Interruptus-"That's ok, it happens to every car once or twice."

REX8 - A/C does indeed come out foggy, it's like being at an Iron Maiden concert (without the drunks and permanent hearing loss). No drippy on the leg, I'm guessing that would be from an extremely cold core and low airflow causing condensation on the outside of the vents in the dash. Prolly not good for all the electrical stuff up under there methinks...

OneOBS - I'll have to check on a service bulletin...thanks for the heads-up.
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Old 06-13-2005, 09:38 PM   #10
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You have the well-documented icing problem that is common on the 02s and some 03s. Read here-
http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/show...postid=4179167
The fix is to install the updated thermosensor and module as per the TSB. Unfortunately if you are past the 3/36 warranty period this is NOT a covered repair and you will have to pay for it.
Also this isn't a DIY job as the AC system must be evacuated to access and remove the evaporator, and then recharged afterward. You could have a shop empty the system for you, do the rest of the job yourself, and then have the shop recharge it.
I just recently did this update on my car and the results are excellent, the AC works better than it ever has even in the current Northeast heat wave with 90 degree + temps. Cost of the part is about $60, add labor (at least a couple of hours) plus the cost of the recharge.
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Old 06-13-2005, 10:08 PM   #11
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How could warranty run out on something like this if its a problem with all the cars? Design errors should be covered for life. Oh well, I guess if I run the A/C a little warmer, it may not freeze up...

John
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Old 06-13-2005, 11:05 PM   #12
Mulder
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The AC will freeze regardless of where you have the temp control. All that does is blend in some warmer air through the heater core, which is downstream of the evaporator.
Manufacturers often discover problems with certain production items and issue TSBs so the dealers can fix/update the vehicles affected, but unless an official recall is issued (which only happens for safety-related items) the repairs will usually not be covered beyond the standard warranty period. In some cases there may be exceptions or "secret warranties", but this isn't one of them. Of course you're welcome to try your luck with a dealer and see if you can get them to fix it free, it could happen but don't count on it.
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Old 06-14-2005, 10:09 AM   #13
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Great. Of course this little problem waits until AFTER the warranty runs out. Why should I expect any different.

After searching around yesterday, I did find this TSB, and after reading it I realized I couldn't (and wouldn't even attempt to) fix this myself. <bites bullet>

Well, thanks for the informative answer Mulder. This must be an intermittent problem, since the A/C worked fine all the way home last night and all the way into work this morning. What are the chances that the compressor was damaged from the core freezing up? I'm not noticing anything odd, just curious.
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Old 06-14-2005, 01:32 PM   #14
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Sweet, looks like I'll be going without it this summer. I'll just have to keep freezing/unfreezing it.
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