[Indiggosky]

I have a 1999 Taurus, 24v sweet ride.

A couple months ago my AC and radio stopped working. The heater and blower and all that works, just the AC and radio simply stopped one day.

We checked the fuses - all ok. Took it to mechanic, he said systems are fine but there is a "component" that operates the AC and the radio on the back of the dash panel that has gone bad.

The way he described it, the radio is fully functional as is the ac up to the point they access this component - so we need the new component.

Problem is, what is this component called? He "ordered" one three weeks ago, dangit, 4 weeks ago... He said it is $80 for the part and $40 to install.... cool, I am down with that.

The other problem is he is SLACKING on getting the part and I really need this fixed. I called him last Monday (third time) and he said he "thought" he ordered it and would check and call me back - not happening.

Does anyone know what this part is called? I think I can just buy one and hand it to him and then tap my foot until he gets the picture.

Thanks for the help =D

 

[bull geek]

What the HECK is he talking about? huh.

OK so to confirm...first of all do you have electronic climate control (push button) or 3 knob HVAC controls?

Second...are you saying none of the screens currently display anything, but you can control the functions still, just don't have any output on the screen?

 

[Indiggosky]

The car has the electronic Climate Control, that seems to work fine. The digitals appear when turned on, it reads temp, etc. Just the AC does not come on when turned on.

Fan works, pumps out heat really nicely, just no cold air....

 

[T_swensen]

Mine had a similar problem. The low-pressure switch needed adjusting, so my buddy who owns an ac repair shop adjusted it and topped off the AC charge for like $50. I'm not familiar with what would make the radio stop working in that weird ovoid that the Gen3's have, but it may be unrelated.

Get yourself some DIN tools and yank it so that you can check all of the connections and see if any wires have shorted. On older cars, harnesses can rub and get shorts that cause all sorts of funny problems. Good luck!

 

[bull geek]

Oooo OK. Time to run the EATC diagnostics then...http://www.taurusclub.com/forum/82-...-all-time-99-taurus-auto-climate-control.html

Hopefully it isn't a blend door issue...but report back with the codes.

Since you said all the screens are working for both the radio and the eatc, that is a good start.

 

[Indiggosky]

Ok, cool. Thanks for the input =)

I need to clarify that the radio does not come on at all - nothing, nada, nilch. No radio, stereo, cd or anything - not even the clock is working now. It DID work until about the time the AC stopped working - loved that CD changer setup.

But the controls for the AC part of the ovoid work, just no cold air. I don't drive the Taurus, so I had to wait for it to come home to check exactly what is not working.

I ran it for like 5 minutes on AC and AC MAX, nuttin but hot air coming out of it.

My mech checked the fuses, maybe I need to check them too. It almost seems like he really just doesn't want to work on the car....

What I am confused about is the idea the mech tried to pass off that the radio/clock and AC are somehow "attached" in this issue. As it turns out, my Gf that drives the car never used the AC until that one day she turned it on and it simply didn't blow out cold air - so maybe it is a charge issue.

But the radio had worked for about 5 months (just bought this car in Oct '09) until it just stopped - so they are not actually not working together, just not working at the same time.

 

[bull geek]

Ooooo this makes things more interesting. Your car would be running on high defrost all the time if there was an issue with a connection at the radio control unit in the trunk, at least it would if you disconnected the wiring back there. None the less, I would go back in the trunk, remove the floor liner, remove the scuff plate (some push pins), and pull back the trunk sidewall carpet on driver's side. Verify the radio control unit connects are firmly seated, examine any visible wire, and make sure the grounding point looks good.

Next, I would get some DIN removal tools (walmart sells them for like $5), they are U Shapped metal tools. Insert them into the slots and pop that radio/eatc football out. Check and reseat the connections on the back of it. Look at the wiring connecting to it.

 

[T_swensen]

You should turn the heater/AC/Max AC on and listen to the engine with the hood open to hear if the AC Compressor Clutch is engaging. If it is not, it might be the low-pressure switch.