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2010 SEL AC woes

7K views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  ckelson 
#1 ·
Hey everyone, newbie here to the forum! I've loved coming here for info and advice on both my current 2010 SEL and the 08 Limited that I had before that.

I need some ideas on what might be causing some AC troubles with my current Taurus. It has worked great up until now. Recently, as it has started getting hotter, (anywhere between 90 and 100 degrees here in dry Utah) the compressor will shut off and I am left with warm air blowing through the vents. In the mornings and at night when it is cooler the AC works just fine, but when it really heats up the compressor won't stay on. I've looked under the hood at the compressor, and it will engage but then will shut off again within 1 or 2 seconds. I haven't had it looked at because I'm trying to save my pennies and the local mechanic wants $50 for the full AC service to even take a look. It's a price I'm willing to pay for AC again, but who knows if he'll fix it, and maybe it's just something simple.

I've wondered if maybe the refrigerant level is too high, and when the temperatures climb so does the psi in the system, causing the compressor to disengage as a safety feature. But I have one of those super crappy low-pressure gauges that you can get at like Wal-Mart, and hooked it up to the low side, and it reads that with an ambient temperature of 94 degrees the psi is 35, which should be fine, right (the gauge could be totally off though)? It probably should even be a little higher than that, but I don't understand why the compressor will stay engaged when the temperature is lower. Anything below 85 degrees and the AC will blow ice cubes. I've heard maybe it could be a problem with either the dryer or the clutch, but I'm not very familiar with AC systems. Any help or ideas would be greatly appreciated!!!
 
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#5 ·
Thanks for the responses guys. No, it does not cool on the highway. In fact, the compressor seems to stay engaged longer if I am at idle for a long time (meaning more than a couple minutes) or in park. I'll see if it stays engaged while idling if I rev the engine and get back to you.

Also, SoNic67, if the temperature is too high on the condenser side, what needs done to fix the problem?
 
#3 ·
Same thing happened on another car the I own. On stop-and-go traffic, at high outdoor temperatures, it would just cut off. After a while it works fine.

I assume is related to insufficient cooling on the condenser side. That will lead to high head pressure and shut-off of the compressor. I didn't have time to check the condenser (clogged, dirty?)...

PS: The condenser is in front of the car radiator. See below:

 
#6 ·
Lot of miles on the car? Check the compressor clutch air gap. If gap is on the loose side the clutch will drop out when it heats up from slipping. Highway speed makes it happen faster. This is all assuming the system has the proper charge in it.
Had this on my old wagon, shimming the clutch got me 2 more yrs. of use from it. I had the night / lower temps = better also.
Clutch may cycle a few times on initial startup at idle until system equalizes .
You really need a good gauge set to at least see the low side when system is running.
 
#7 ·
Figured I'd let people know, I've had nice icy A/C for several months so far this summer. I took it into the local dealership and had them evac and recharge the A/C and it's worked great since! So it definitely was coolant level, even though my own cheap gauges were saying the pressure was fine. Thankfully it wasn't anything more serious! I should have recharged the A/C last summer, I just was so worried it wouldn't work and I'd lose money that I didn't...
 
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