bustle Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 O.K. so I am the proud owner of my first Subaru (88 GL wagon 4wd 5 spd non turbo). I put a new clutch in it and everything seems great except I am not sure how to run the A/C. The A/C works on "normal" but when I push the Max A/C button it doesn't seem to be working at all. Any tricks or tips? I have bought an owners manual off of Ebay but it will be at least 10 days getting here. This board has been a great help. thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MudisFun Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 If the fan is still running when you push it into maxa/c then try recharging the system with new oil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthWet Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 If the A/C works (blows cold air) on the normal A/C setting then the A/C mechanicals should be working OK. It sounds like the switch may have a problem if you then push it again for "Max A/C" and the fan stops running or the air turns warm, or the fan is running but no air comes out of the vents. Is it a complete "nothing is working" or one of the above partial failures? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hank Roberts Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 Have you got the glovebox manual for your car? If not, when I get home I can send you the info -- because I was baffled completely by the A/C on my 1988 GL as well. I've only had it a couple of weeks. The manual gives several pages to how to operate this. It's a totally non-obvious combination of the little lever down by your left knee (AC/Vent) and use of the buttons and temperature slider, that decides whether you're getting recirculated inside air, or outside air. All I remember now is that I thought the manual contradicted itself -- one place it says set that AC/Vent lever to AC to get recirculated air, and another place it says that when that lever is set to AC and the AC button is pushed, then you're getting outside air. Or something like that. Don't trust my memory, I don't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bustle Posted April 25, 2005 Author Share Posted April 25, 2005 I have bought a manual off of Ebay hoping that will help but it will be a few days getting here. I am not panicked yet I was just trying to figure out what works and what doesn't before we trundle off somehwere. I do get cold air on normal but when I push in the max button the air seems warmer. All the fans etc seem to be working, I get good air flow. I did have the little lever down at my left knee set to "blue". I do suspect its "operator eror" rather than a system fault. Would there be a vaccum line/switch or similiar that needs to activate? Thanks for all the help folks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thealleyboy Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 Bus: You need to figure out if the compressor is cycling on when you press in the "max" switch. You should hear a metallic groan. My guess, based on your description, is that it is not coming on. The compressor needs a certain amount of pressure to switch on, and a system leak will prevent the compressor from working. This is a common (and likely) cause for non functioning A/C. No need to fret. It's probably just a matter of locating the leak, replacing some o-rings, and recharging the system. I would recommend evacuating the system if at all possible, as R-12 and R-132 are not fully compatible. good luck, John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthWet Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 ... My guess, based on your description, is that it is not coming on. The compressor needs a certain amount of pressure to switch on, and a system leak will prevent the compressor from working. This is a common (and likely) cause for non functioning A/C.... John, he says that he is getting cold air from the A/C, so a low-pressure condition is unlikely. The "AC/Vent" sliders at the end of the dashboard near the doors just controls whether or not the air it gets is from outside (vent) or the heater/AC system. It in no way controls whether or not the heater and/or AC functions. The air out of the center vents is always heater/AC processed air, so that is where you should check for cold air on the AC settings. As far as I know, the MAX AC sets the ventilation system to recirculate (as others have said), and I think that this is all vacuum actuated. It is possible that when the button is set to max that the compressor might get switched off (might be different sets of contacts in the button/switch, with one set not working right). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thealleyboy Posted April 26, 2005 Share Posted April 26, 2005 John, he says that he is getting cold air from the A/C, so a low-pressure condition is unlikely. I had considered this possibility when I made the following comment: You need to figure out if the compressor is cycling on when you press in the "max" switch. You should hear a metallic groan. My guess, based on your description, is that it is not coming on. I'm not convinced that the compressor is cycling on at all. The normal A/C setting can get a "cold blast" that is not air conditioned. The fact that the max setting is blowing warm, tells me that the compressor is not cycling on. My hunch is that the system is drained of refridgerent. First step, the owner has to establish whether the A/C system is functional - or not. The compressor is can be checked visually, and this will lead to the next step. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bustle Posted April 26, 2005 Author Share Posted April 26, 2005 Nope the compressor is not cycling at all. That air conditioning was just cold mountain air. So I also suspect the system is out of refridgerent. That has to go back burner for a while then. We are two months away from any kind of summer anyway. Thanks for all the advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thealleyboy Posted April 26, 2005 Share Posted April 26, 2005 There's an outside possibility that the A/C fuse is blown, or that the wiring to the compressor is bad. You can check for juice at the connector. good luck, John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bustle Posted April 26, 2005 Author Share Posted April 26, 2005 Thanks I am going to try that but I don't hold much hope. I think the system is likely depleted. I have found on domestic cars that the fuse usually blows when the system gets low. There's an outside possibility that the A/C fuse is blown, or that the wiring to the compressor is bad. You can check for juice at the connector. good luck, John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bustle Posted April 27, 2005 Author Share Posted April 27, 2005 We have good news and bad news. The good news is that the compressor works and it appears that the only reason I have no A/C is that some rocket scientist removed the inner belt. You know, the one that is supposed to actually drive the A/C, so it was turning to slowly and the pulser shut it off. That took both the Chilton manual which had detailed diagrams of the belt paths and Haynes that explained the pulser. So I will get a belt and give it a whirl. I managed to coax it into running a bit(by feathering the on off switch) and it seems like the system is charged. The bad news? Its friggin snowing! I love living in the mountains, I love living in the mountains, I love..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bustle Posted May 3, 2005 Author Share Posted May 3, 2005 I finally got the new belts on and the air seems to work fine. I don't think I have ever had quite such a time putting on drive belts though. Thanks to all those that wished me luck. That seems to have done the trick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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