Hermyherm

My drivers side AC is not working but the passenger side AC is blowing out cold air. Any thoughts?

chiph9

Check the simple/cheap thing first - that your dash vents on that side are set to allow air to flow and are directing it towards you.

Then run the A/C system diagnostics:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/per...eed-codes.html

Chip H.

BradTank

Common issue, the AC system is likely low on refrigerant, mine did something similar where one side starts blowing luke warm while the other blows cold. The rear AC will also not be cold.

I took it to a dealer years ago, told me they think it's a leak in the rear evaporator but weren't sure (couldn't find traces of dye) and that it wasn't cost effective to fix, so I just top it off once every year or two with a can of R-134 and my AC is ice cold. Seems to be a pretty common problem around here.

It didn't make sense to me that low refrigerant would have different cooling for different sides, but I guess it's how the vents are routed. My first guess was a blend door.

kwkshift

Probably low refrigerant. This happened to me last year and thats what the problem was. Well, that and a leaking evaporator.

eleight

my 2010 GX460 does the same thing. Not the freon for sure( it was on a green when I checked). Passenger side is ice cold. And the driver side is blowing air, but not ac cold. It happens when I keep the thermostats on low. On 65 it gets better. After running the car for 15-20 minutes both sides start blowing cold again

dan25man

I am having the same issue as the OP. My passenger vents are warm while the drivers side is cold. The freon level was low. I have dye in it now. So far no leaks presenting themselves yet. I found a thread here about the same issue. I guess the dealer traced it to a bad compressor clutch? Idk. If I refill the system with freon the passenger side is cold again. So I don't think it's the clutch. I think it's just how air is passing over the condenser where the drivers side air get cold and warms up the condenser but then the passenger has no cold left.

I was hoping there would be a leak on the condenser, but so far haven't seen any evidence of leaks there. Hoping it's not the condenser in the dash.

ASE

If one side is cold and the other is warm at the same temperature settings ... then this points to a zone control issue ... meaning not a compressor or freon fill issue.

Johnny Rad

Pray it's not compressor evaporator, which is nestled deep in the dash...

ASE

Sorry ... but the Compressor is in the engine compartment driven by the engine via belt ... the Evaporator is under the dash ...

chiph9

There usually isn't a leak, per-se. It's commonly the system slowly losing refrigerant over 15+ years (which isn't surprising)
Go ahead and add dye when you refill the system, but chances are it won't show up for the UV light.

Chip H.

ASE

This post has gone into the weeds. There is ONE evaporator under the dash that feeds both the driver and passenger side. If the passenger side has adequate cooling as the OP stated ... this indicates that the A/C system is fully charged and functional. This then points to a zone control issue ... and NOT freon fill or otherwise.

chiph9

It's a common sign that the charge is low. I had it myself. Search the forum history.

Chip H.

2wPushkins

I first noticed No AC in my 2006 es330 the first time I put it on this summer. Since we are in the 90s now, it's more of a problem. Can anyone tell me where the port is to put in freon? I've looked around under the hood and googled but can't find info for a 2006. Thanks

matthewlp

How would one go about checking if this is the problem and/or fixing it?

Thank you

chiph9

@2wPushkins - Sorry this is the GX470 forum. No idea on location for an ES.

@matthewlp - Here's how to enter diagnostics and how to step through the options:

https://f01.justanswer.com/dcraig100...dc2a5_eee2.pdf

Chip H.