So I've noticed the AC seems to have stopped working in my 2000 Legacy. Normally, when you press the AC button or turn on the defroster you'll notice a slight bump in RPMs, hear it kick in, and most importantly the air gets cooler and drier. Well none of that happens now.

 

However, my question is this: I just had the head gaskets and timing belt replaced a few weeks ago, and it seems like that is when I first noticed the AC had stopped working. Is there perhaps something that the mechanics simply forgot to hook back up that could cause this? I'm not very savvy when it comes to car AC systems; however, I do know that AC repairs tend to be very expensive, so hopefully nothing is actually broken. Thanks for any insight!

Go and make sure there is a belt running to your A/C unit for starts. Its under your hood and will be to the right of the alternator. Then we can go from there.

Right on, make sure the belt for the a/c was reinstalled. When you're standing in front of the car looking at the engine, the a/c compressor is the accessory on the right near the battery.

 

If the belt is there, the connector to the a/c compressor might be unhooked so you could check that too.

 

Or the system may have a leak or lost pressure. That could be due to the HG work. Typically you just swing the a/c compressor out of the way so that it does not have to be depressurized. In doing so a line may have gotten damaged, or maybe it was just unhooked and not repressurized.

My AC quit working before last summer, ended up just needing a full recharge. System won't kick on if there's not enough refrigerant in the system.

It is possible they forgot to plug the ac compressor clutch back in. Look under the hood and trace back from the AC cluthc. You will see a black wire. Follow it and see if its plugged in.

 

nipper