Yes i know its cold outside, but today it has been the first nice day in the northeast in about a month. I had the windows up and was driving, I figured id turn the A/C on. Nothing, the compressor did not turn on, The A/C light was on in auto and the fan blew harder but I didn't hear the compressor turn on. Somebody told me that the compressor wont turn on until its warm. But i don’t buy that theory fully. What do you guys think it is. Is there a reset or a fuse I can check? IF there is an existing post for this, please foward me the link.


Regards,
Michael

 

it should operate off of a relay. the contacts must have corroded over the winter or something to that effect.

 

I have been told, or have read here, that the a/c compressors on these cars are "variable displacement" and they aren't either on or off like so many cars. In other words, you won't get that "clunk" when the compressor starts, but rather it engages more slowly, in stages, to make it less noticeable.

Also, if you have the climate control in "auto" and the temp set at a moderate level, the climate control ecu may not turn the a/c on even though the light is on. Or did you have it set on "max cold?"

And also, it is true that the climate control senses the outside temperature, and it may not turn on the a/c if it's not warm enough outside. On my '93, that sensor is mounted in the right side of one of the openings in the nose.

 

I tried putting it all the way to cool and still nothing, researching the posts, I have come to some possible conclusions.

A. Freon is out, thus compressor is not starting

B. Some sort of expansion valve is bad; don't know if that applies to the SC, but it had some problems in the ES.

C. The compressor is shot, and I will have to let $1000 fall out the hole in my jeans.

D. I don't have a clue and I should just wait until it gets warmer to worry about it.

 

Same thing happened to me last summer. I would turn on the AC and the fan would blow like it usually would in "auto" mode but it wouldblow vent air not the AC. Look at the light under the ac button, mine would start blinking when the compressor didnt activate. Turned out the compressor was shot and mere $1200 fixed that little problem Dealer wanted close to 2k

 

You have a leak. There is a pressure switch which disables the compressor when the system is low on freon. Look for clear oil left on the compressor or the lines coming from the compressor to locate the leak. Obviously the freon gas is invisible, but the oil which lubricates the compressor is not.

 

Fire

Would that oil be leaking on the pass side front underneath the alternator power steering pump and belts? I have a puddle down there on the engine cover, ive allways thought it was PS fluid, but PS fluid never needs refilling but the leak allways gets bigger. you think that is my leak?

 

akmpres, regarding your earlier post, I would opt for "D."

Can you reach down to the fluid you are seeing on the engine shield? It's probably not refrigerant oil - there isn't a lot of it in the a/c circuit, it will usually show up as dark dirty spots at joints or connections in the a/c piping. If you can get your finger in it, and it doesn't feel oily like the atf the power steering system uses, it may be condensation, which is a very good thing, that would mean your a/c is indeed working! Like ChrisSC300 said, if you have a fault in the system the indicator light under the A/C button will blink, and you can retrieve a fault code that will lead you to the problem.

 

Run the A/C diagnostics, (instructions available on my site), these are very comprehensive and will assist in determining what the fault is. If the green lamp is flashing on the A/C "ON" button it is a fault indication.

If you find error conditions on several items it will be because there is no gas in the system, probably due to a leak, you might have it re-gassed first and checked for leaks before continuing with diags, quite often re-gassing will resolve a "dead" A/C system.

 

Hmmmm my air isnt blowing cold either but it went out the other day the same time as the defrost.... makes me think relay? what do u guys think?

 

Probably a bad ac compressor and dryer, unfortunately if you go through the dealer cost about $1700 installed. I had the same problem, lucky for me it was covered under my extended warranty. Word to the wise if you buy a used car get a good extended warranty, it pays in the long run. My mother suggested it to me, you know what they say mother is always right.

 

No more R12 in the system, that explains the Compressor not turning on. Looks like i have a leak, who knows how big, my mechanic wants me to upgrade to i think R234 or 134 or something, he said its cheaper that way. Anybody do this upgrade, ive searched posts and read that many people were going to do this, but i was not able to get a price on it. Or should i go with the R12, the lex takes 2.5lbs of the stuff.
R12 is around $50 a pound i hear and the other stuff is around $8. If the cost of the upgrade is cheaper than 2.5 pounds of the stuff and the cost of repairing the leak I am in biz, but i dont want to have the stuff leak out every other week and spend all this money on recharge. Thoughts?

 

i can get R12 for about 15 bux a can...

Then again it IS Hialeah....

 

here is george again with his SC400, 09/1992, 90000 miles from southwest germany - stuttgart. i bought this car in very bad condition and did replace steering pump and alternator and had a big service including spark plugs lately at my lexus dealer. car runs supersmooth, not as good as my LS430 of course but 100% more fun! i havent been using the LS430 for 2 months!!!!

yesterday we had the first sunny day and the A/C was supposed to come on. pressed AUTO - nothing happened. i usually should hear a small click or a small struggling of the engine when something goes on - nothing. Error 23 is shown while diagnostics. I think the A/C worked in winter and defogged nicely, but now - no cool air at all. nothing, zero, nada, nichts. the A/C light is constantly on - as it should.

Gazi said to press a small plastic cap, i dont even know where its located, to check if there is freon. problem is i need R12 i guess and you cant find it here in europe anymore. lexus dealer talked about an expensive conversion kit...

next to the drivers shock is a black plastic clip, the mechanics broke them while changing the plugs, two metal lines are loose now banging around - could they have made a mistake and damaged the A/C?

does anyone know what could be wrong? i have an appointment at my lexus dealer next wednesday - i hope i can confront him with facts until then!

best regards and thanks 1000 times,

george / stuttgart

 

i found the compressor, it is loose and turning freely.

i took a closer look at the front of the compressor. i saw a big stamp on the turning part with the Denso sticker and logo and it says "99". could it be that its the 2nd compressor in this car and even better - could it be its already switched to R134a? they said you can recognize old/new A/C in a splitsecond by the adaptors/valves where you press in the freon.

i called 4 shops - each gave a different solution. they said something of the drier or accumulator that needs to be changed when you change the freon - any idea where these parts are located and how they look like and how they can be recognized as R134 parts?

thanks again if you can help!