macho6868

2008 IS 250
110k miles
I have this interesting/weird A/C Cooling Behavior.

Long Story Short:
Driver side started to cool more than passenger side (both temp settings identical). Took it to my trusty A/C shop to add a little Freon. A/C Cooling extremely BEAUTIFUL. Two days later, upon turning on A/C it would work BEAUTIFULLY, and then stop cooling with a slight stuffy smell. In order for it to cool again, I have to press the A/C button off and then back on again. Interesting this is, that if the blower fan is on high this doesn’t happen and keeps cooling. It happens only from blower settings 1-4 (5-6 is ok). I tested by turning off the A/C button before it misbehaves and I don’t get that stuffy smell, though of course it is not cooling because, I turned it off.


Short Story Long:
Driver side started to cool more than passenger side (both temp settings identical). Searched the forums (this one I landed on –Perfect-). Many of you trusty peers, yes I followed your recommendations to verify if I need a little Freon [before spending $1,300 overhaul to check if a bad servo/relay in the blower assembly]. So, by following this recommendation I was able to get the A/C to cool on both sides BEAUTIFULLY. But like I mentioned above “Two days later, after a few mins, it stops cooling”. And I immediately know when it is going to stop cooling because I smell the musty/stuffy smell before cooling stops.

So I verified the compressor, it is running (compressor engaged) when it stops cooling. I personally did not know that this model year and up, that the A/C compressor doesn’t stop engagement as long as there is Freon (of course) and that A/C button is on. So I visit my trusty A/C technician and he indicated to me that this model year (and up), the A/C compressor never stops spinning, and a valve is what regulates the pressure/cooling, and I said to him “oh so this technology is like mini-split inverter types?” He said “exactly”. So I learned something new, modern cars A/C compressor don’t start/stop “click” “click” and to lower wear and tear and economy. I have not yet taken to my A/C technician for a checkup; I only asked him why the A/C compressor never stops (as a curiosity).

My questions are the following:

1) Did my A/C technician put a Freon type that is not of this technology?
2) Did my A/C technician overcharge with Freon?
3) Is the regulator valve damaged/weak form normal wear/tear debris or will not make enough pressure (closing) due to over charged Freon?
4) Is my A/C blower filter dirty/clogged
5) Is there a bad sensor
6) Could the recent adding of Freon be a culprit of this new behavior?

Sorry for the long story version but it helps you all pinpoint any issues.