UK-POLOS.NET - THE VW Polo Forum

Right. The car I've got is blessed with a manual A/C. Unfortunately, it's not working as it should- it turns itself on and off at random. And it's making me lose my mind.

I've taken it to two different dealers, spent around 1450€ for assorted parts and labor, and it has had NO effect. None. It still turns itself on and off, whenever it feels like it.

So far, the dryer has been replaced, the pressure sensor twice, it's been drained and filled a number of times, and they have no idea of what to do next!

Is there anyone that has a clue? I'm at the point of *considering to sell*... It's that bad!

The reason it gets to me in this way, is because the A/C system was one of the reasons I bought this specific car, and when it cuts out at 27 degrees in the sun, I get quite annoyed.

Thanks in advance guys...

(it's been at the dealer since Monday last week. I hope to get it back sometime soon.)

it could be the electo mechanical clutch on the compressor or even the compressor its self but if your going to change that id gat a second hand one, get the ststem drained and then fit it and then get a pro to do a refill

I figured it could well be the compressor, but the problem is that when I leave the car at the dealer, they claim it works fine!

They don't test it under real life situations though- they let it idle for ten minutes or so and check once or twice to see if it's cold inside. Problem is; it can take up to twenty minutes for the system to stop, and it may turn itself on again after a few minutes too. That makes it very hard to experience the problem, without spending quite a bit of time in the car, driving.

Here's what happened Sunday last week. It was very hot outside, around 25-28 degrees. I start the car, the A/C works. I drive for around 20 minutes, the system stops. I press the button for the A/C again, and it goes on for around 5 minutes. It shuts down again, after which I try the trick again. It works for around 1 minute, then stops indefinetely. After 40 minutes of sweating, I arrive at my destination. The car sits there for a while, and when I start it to go back, the A/C comes on as if nothing's wrong.

Does that match the symptoms you'd expect with a faulty compressor?



(Thanks for the quick reply btw, remember way back in 2002, I posted a similar question on the 'Tex, I think you replied back then too- can you believe the problem is still there!!)

Mate your lucky to have the temperature 28/29 degrees, wish it was that up here, all we get is rain, rain and more rain...

Harry, I feel your pain. It's been really bad here as well, but it's been good for two weeks now. I'm enjoying it all in two Toyota's I've borrowed in the meantime. Flawless, as expected.

im thinking its the compressor or the clutch on it and ive been nice enough to get a quote
VW: £793+VAT (@17.5%)
VAG parts ££475 +vat (@17.5%)
obviously theres more testing to do so dont order yet

Damn. Thanks for getting the quotes, but *w o w* that's expensive...

They haven't suggested the compressor yet actually. I'll ask tomorrow. Or, more specifically, the compressor's clutch- didn't realize there was one... Duh!

(If it gets to the point of buying a new one, I'll give Martyn a ring!)

well i was chatting with him which is why i got the quote. im thinking that the clutch may be slipping causing the system to stop functioning as it works like a drum brake so if it slips then it will heat the drum portion and then as the system cools then the drum will come ithin reach of the cluch material again but after youve spent all that money id tell the garage that your not putting any more money into it and they will repair it or other wise you will bring legal action. because thats silly money to spend with no effect (for the uk`ers its about £1000) either that or remove it and get an intercooler in there

Mmm... An intercooler. Interesting!

Good explanation on the compresser btw, the slipping clutch sounds pretty feasable to me. I'll hammer some more on them tomorrow. Even though they 'can't find it' they do take me seriously. I guess that's a plus.

It is silly money. But it's no reason to sell the car, if I'm being honest to myself. Especially since I've already spent it!

sounds like a silly question, but have they checked all the wiring and switches? if the cable is bare and shorting on some metal, wouldn't that cause this? or even a bad earth point?

That's actually a very good question.

Apparently, a bit of the wiring did short on the bodywork, probably after some earlier damage to the car. They claim they've sorted all the electronics out now. It required the replacing of a bit of cable and the like.

The weird thing is, when they did that, they pulled of the plug to the pressure sensor (at which point the system should stop) and the A/C system kept working. I drove around with the system on all the time for two weeks, up until the point that they had the time to fix the cables.

After that, it's back to the old problem- on again, off again. This is killing me! I'll beat them some more with electrical questions as well today- thanks for the suggestions guys, I really appreciate it.

Well Alex,

Thats really sh*tty for you!
let we all hope the problem solves its self

SC

Very annoying indeed. I admit it's a bit of luxury problem though- the car still drives fine. No reliability issues there!

Today the dealer replaces the interior temperature sensor, and the exterior sensor as well. They suspect that one of them may be faulty.

The theory is, that if the difference between the interior and exterior temperature gets too high, the system stops. Sounds reasonable, but it's far too erratic now. Hope it helps, but I have my doubts.

(btw: long time no hear SC!)

I know, I know, it's getting old now.

Today I picked up the car, as they claimed it was done. Drove for ten minutes, A/C died on me again. I figured it may be temporary, so I drove the best part of an hour under different circumstances and speeds. No luck.

I took it back *again* and they admitted it wasn't working at all anymore. It now switches on for a few seconds, then switches off again for several minutes. The exchanged sensors had nothing to do with the problem...

And so, it's week three at the dealer's coming Monday. Wonder what they come up with next.

I also found out that the pre-pump pressure is 8 bar, (lots of Psi) when it should be only 2. The friendly Skoda dealer helped us out, he's one of the few that knows about A/C's apparently.

Oh, and one of the Ronals is curbed. Nice.

If they curbed your alloy, I'd be fuming!!!

Get them to replace it!