Hi everyone. Had my 2012 King Ranch in for it's regular service. After an early heat wave I complained of the AC not putting out cold air anymore they diagnosed a faulty condenser. Great, I picked one up from my favorite supplier and they installed for me. 'Seemed' to work okay after install. It was certainly not warm out then so I can't say I noticed big change. I should have temp tested it. Now that it's warm out again I'm realizing it seems to produce cooler air at times but definitely not cold enough when I have it on max. I use to brag on how cold my AC would get and quickly! If there's an issue, could it produce colder air at different times? I'll admit I'm not 100% sure how newer AC units work. My thoughts were, either it works or it doesn't. Is there a temperature guide I can go buy to test? I have a temp analyzer that I'm going to try. Anyone know of any temp guidelines to go by? Thanks for any suggestions.

 

Really...no one? What am I missing lol.

 

Put gauges on it and check the state of charge. Example

 

Here is your dilemma; You are asking a question that for an answer requires diagnostics using specific tools and skills. Sure, you could put the gauges on it but would you know what you're looking at? If you're here asking the question, no, you probably wouldn't be able to interpret the gauges. A/C systems have not changed other than dropping R12 so whatever is going on would be going on back in 1960.

Anyone attempting to tell you what's wrong with your system over the distance of the Internet is just shooting in the dark, and that's never helpful.

The best and most helpful answer would be to take it to a professional at a shop specializing in auto A/C, an independent mechanic, or the dealer.

 

Well, I guess it would be better just to take it back to my dealer to throw a test on it and see what's going on. Thanks for the suggestions fellas!

 

My A/C is cold as hell, here is a pic for reference. I don't remember the humidity level but I had 43 register temp at 95 ambient at idle.



Edit: relative humidity was 35%

 

That's amazing dirthawg! I tested mine the other day. It was 64 out and I could only get between 60 and 64 degrees. It's been pretty cool here for the last few days. Waiting for some heat to see how it reacts.

 

I had mine purged/recharged last year after it was blowing ambient. It has felt warmer again this week (it was parked for 23 days) so I thought I must have a larger issue but I tested the temp today and it is decent. Mine used to freeze me out of the cab though but it hasn't been that cool in about two years.

 

So an update. It started warming up here and my A/C was not putting out any cold air!...and we had a week camping trip up in the interior to go too, so I booked an appointment with my Ford Tech the next day back after holidays. When I returned they tested the system and discovered the charge was only at .15lbs. They couldn't detect where the leak was so they recharged to 1 lb, installed a dye and basically told me to come back when I felt it wasn't working again. Sound about right to you guys?

 

So last and final update! The AC system wasn't putting out so I had the dye test analyzed and surely with my luck the evaporator has given out. This is a disgusting repair in my opinion! It's like popping a heater core out from under your dash back in the olden days, not anymore! I had to have the complete dash removed including console, steering wheel etc. to access the evaporator inside the HVAC System. When I looked at my truck in the shop it looked like an accident scene! I didn't recognize anything lol. The Ford evaporator is overpriced, but considered the better unit. I could have picked up an after market one but was told it would be an offshore brand. So since it came with warranty I wasn't going to complain. The biggest investment was the re and re of the dash. I wasn't willing to take that chance and do this repair again. It's ridiculous Ford can't come up with a better design to access thru the glove compartment for example or at least removing a portion at the passenger seat area. Good luck to anyone who needs this repair!

 

Im guessing its a costly repair? How much to R&R the dash?

 

Oh yah...forgot about the minor details lol. $2100 Canadian, so add on another 30%. I wish it wasn't my daily driver. I might have considered doing it myself. Has anyone out there done this repair?

 

Oh I forgot. They diagnosed it as a faulty condenser a few months ago. Got me for $1100 Can. that time, I think they seen me coming lol. This is brutal. It's funny and it's not. When does this stuff end? What's next? It's lucky I can afford it now but?... I have my '79 sitting in my shop that's taking me forever to restore because I feel too cheap to spend a $1000 or $2000 on body work. Priorities....

 

I feel for you, the dealer called and said the evaporator is junk and is going to cost 1800.00, trying to see if ford regional will come and help. its a 2015 F250 with 23000