Air Conditioning problem
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Senior User
Joined: Sep 2001
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Air Conditioning problem
Repost from the Excursion forum:
We are having an air conditioning issue with our '03 6.0 Diesel Excursion so...I thought I would post and see if anyone else is or has had the same problem.
Since about 60,000 miles our air conditioner will Intermittently shut off (meaning the actual head or face unit in the dash is or does not have any power to it). Yes...I have checked fuses, and the possibility of any disconnected wiring and have found no issues. It will eventually just start working again without fail. (Note: Of course this only happens when we are in extreme weather conditions = River/Desert 110+)
Recently it stopped working - after an air conditioning service (recharge) so I took it back to the dealer in Arizona that performed the service. The advisor told me (without checking with a tech) that it was most likely a "head unit" that was out and it would cost about 1000.00 to replace. He also stated that he "sees this alot" and that they have replaced many.
Has anyone (with a Super Duty or Excursion) had this same issue and or had the quote "head unit" replaced?
Any help or information will be appreciated!
We are having an air conditioning issue with our '03 6.0 Diesel Excursion so...I thought I would post and see if anyone else is or has had the same problem.
Since about 60,000 miles our air conditioner will Intermittently shut off (meaning the actual head or face unit in the dash is or does not have any power to it). Yes...I have checked fuses, and the possibility of any disconnected wiring and have found no issues. It will eventually just start working again without fail. (Note: Of course this only happens when we are in extreme weather conditions = River/Desert 110+)
Recently it stopped working - after an air conditioning service (recharge) so I took it back to the dealer in Arizona that performed the service. The advisor told me (without checking with a tech) that it was most likely a "head unit" that was out and it would cost about 1000.00 to replace. He also stated that he "sees this alot" and that they have replaced many.
Has anyone (with a Super Duty or Excursion) had this same issue and or had the quote "head unit" replaced?
Any help or information will be appreciated!
Last edited by Debby; Jul 21, 2007 at 09:47 PM.
Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 1,776
Likes: 5
From: Lorain County, Ohio
I don't have experience with this particular problem in an Excursion, but if all of the connections are ok and there is power to the unit, there's nothing else left. The failure at high temps indicates a poor solder joint in the control head. I'm assuming you have EATC (Electronic Climate Control)
They are pricy, but you could likely find a used unit locally much cheaper than $1000. There are a couple on Ebay for $50 and $125 respectively right now. Do a search for Excursion Control. Most are the manual type, but there a couple electronic units.
Replacement is just a matter of a few screws and some trim.
They are pricy, but you could likely find a used unit locally much cheaper than $1000. There are a couple on Ebay for $50 and $125 respectively right now. Do a search for Excursion Control. Most are the manual type, but there a couple electronic units.
Replacement is just a matter of a few screws and some trim.
Last edited by lsrx101; Jul 21, 2007 at 10:47 PM.
Senior User
Joined: Jul 2005
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No xpert here, but you might want to check the A/C Clutch cycling switch. It (at least on my '89 F150) screws into an external schrader valve on the side of the dryer canister and has two wires going to it. Mine started doing the same thing as yours (sometimes worked, sometimes didn't, and seemed to be sensitive to the ambient temperature) and I made sure the R134a was at a proper level then shorted the contacts on the cycling switch and sure enough the compressor clutch kicked in. (A/C control in dash was "on" for the test). Took out the jumper, clutch quit. Shorted the contacts again, compresor kicked in. Went down to Checker and got a new cycling switch for twenty bucks, installed it in two minutes, turned on the A/C and it works like a charm. Saved me a trip to the shop, because I was at the end of what I could think of.
Hope you have some good luck also. ;-)
Hope you have some good luck also. ;-)
Senior User
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 182
Likes: 1
MY 250 super duty 05 is doing exactly the same
It has totally shut down, blacked out twice now. Let it sit for an hour, or the outside air cools down and the unit wakes up on its own. I read tonight people have had luck turning on and off the headlights. WHAT???? Up here in Canada the headlights are on constant. What would the headlights have to do with the heat/air control panel going dark. Will I try it? You bet I'll try it. Anything is better than 1000 buck repair, on a truck with only 50,000 miles. Respectfully feel it has no way nothing to do with the refrig level or the clutch kicking in and out. This is a pure electronics problem for sure. By the way mine has automatic temperature control also.
Lead Driver
Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 5,374
Likes: 46
From: Palm Bay, Florida
2 questions: Have you checked the air gap on the compressor clutch? it should be around .025 and any wider than that might cause the clutch not to kick in all the time--do a search in the '99-'03 PSD forum for "a/c clutch" and you can read all the info on checking/adjusting the gap.
Also:for the poster who changed the cycle switch...do you need to discharge the system to change this switch?? do you loose the refridgerant/open the system??
Also:for the poster who changed the cycle switch...do you need to discharge the system to change this switch?? do you loose the refridgerant/open the system??
