Air conditioning / help
 

My AC is not really blowing cold air. All works (fan, etc, etc), but the air is not really cold. Could this be lack of freon? (not sure if this cars still have this). A local gas station wanted to charge me $200 to check and charge freon on the system. I said no, of course.

If it is something else (not sure what else could it be), would this be covered by the CPO?

Thanks.

you might want to check this thread: http://www.xoutpost.com/x5-e53-forum/...r+conditioning

i had the same problem, replaced the faulty auxilliary fan (infront of radiator).

How do you check if it is a faulty fan inside the radiator, or the final stage resistor or if it is simply freon?

My '02 is at the dealer for the same problem. It is the second time. The first time it was blamed on a leaky valve and low R134 refrigerant. (Instead of freon.) I have also had the final stage resistor changed. This time, it is believed to be a bad compressor. I should find out more tomorrow when I get my X5 back.

Out of curiosity, do you notice that the passenger side blows noticeably warmer than the driver even though both sides are set to the same temp?

It seems every vent blows at the same temp. (even the rear ones), the compressor seems to kick in too. Based on my limited experience, with cars I had in the past lack of freon (or the new gas they use), was common, especially after periods of not using the AC. In this kind of car, I am not sure. In any case $ 200 seems too much, but maybe I am wrong. And I try to avoid to stealer as much as I can unless I am sure it will be covered by the CPO.

Shop around in your area at some reputable indepedent mechanics. I would personally stay away from a local gas station.

You are right UCrew. Will check with my mechanic. I just had curiosity of how much this could cost, or though it would be a very simple thing like connecting a hose, pumping in some freon and voila, but time to check with my guy.

On the other hand according to this forum's document on CPO, ac and heating are covered. Anyone can confirm this?

I believe it should be covered under CPO.

Yes, time to call my stealer, though when it comes to CPO it seems there is a grey area which they try to go by and avoid any warranty repairs.

Sometimes I rather pay a couple of bucks rather than deal with them. We shall see. I keep all posted in case someone has the same experience. And if someone had the same experience (CPO AC ) please let us know.

If you find that the cooling fluid (freon) has gone, it must be leaking problem. It could cost you lots of money to replace parts and labor cost is pretty high. I had the same problem before, and it costed me about $1,800 to repair it including parts and labor. BMW center told me that it was a part located behind the LCD display leaking cooling fluid, the leaking part must be replaced.

Roger,

Not sure if you are in the US, but in your case (if it applies), was your car under CPO warranty by any chance?

According to my dealer, CPO should cover the AC. I am taking my car on the 13th, I will keep all posted.

i paid my mobile mechanic thru craigslist $50 to diagnose, did a pressure test to make sure there was no leak, freon was still good since bypassing the relay from the bad auxilliary fan, compressor worked just fine.

If you believe your compressor turns on, you might want to just go to the dealer and have them take a look.

cost for freon recharge from the mobile mechanic was $99.. just for comparison.

Good info Lumpia...

My stealer said the CPO will cover as long as there is a component that it is under malfunction. Meaning if they have to replace something. If it is just the a freon charge it will be about $200 by the time it is done.

Maybe I should have someone check, but then at the end of the day I may end up spending the same money. The thing with the stealer is not having them blaming the problem on something that has to be replaced for "wear and tear" that is not covered under CPO. They get you this way many times.

What to do..what to do...