Air con problems...doesn't work

[Curlymurt]

I am getting a lot of things cleared up on my Saab but I'm having trouble with the air conditioning. I have the circuit diagrams for everything but I didn't see anything I can do. I traced some of the wiring and it all looks fine. I'm not sure if the problem is mechanical or electrical. It's on a 97 900se. I was going to see if the compressor is charged, but apparently the compressor is always on? I didn't know if I needed a recharge of the r134a or whatever it is. I was thinking I was going to try to check to see if it has pressure, but I'm not sure which valve I need to put the pressure gauge on. Is it the one under the grill or the one in the engine compartment between the radiator and the engine?

[matt16v]

Hi
The first step would be to be check how much refrigerant is in the system this needs to be done with a proper a/c machine. If you have no experience of a/c | would not recommend you start fiddling with valves in case you injure yourself.
The pressures need to be checked on the high and low side. I would imagine that gas is low you get natural seepage over a period of time. It would be a good idea to get some 'glo-leak' added when the gas goes back in then a uv light can be used to spot any leaks.

Matt

[Curlymurt]

[ QUOTE ]
If you have no experience of a/c | would not recommend you start fiddling with valves in case you injure yourself.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeah, I was thinking that...unfortunately, I have no way of having the dealer check it out because I get off work at the same time that they stop taking appointments - and it's an hour drive for me.

I'm taking it to a local shop that most likely won't know how to fix it and charge me a large sum of money anyway. It won't be the first time they've done it to me. Anymore suggestions on the AC...maybe I can pass these suggestions on to them to ensure I at least get a full check.

[DickSaab]

If it's climate first try recalibration/faults display. Start engine then press auto and off together. It will take about 30 secs to recal and display the number of faults on the fan bar.

It is possible it may be just a gas leak and I gather cheap re-gas kits are available over there from supermarkets so that may be worth a go.

If not and the fault checks OK then get it looked at by a specialist who will g'tee his diagnosis if you have the work done. Otherwise you risk paying for him to experiment at your cost.

Happened to me. Said it needed gassing, paid £90 but no better. Said it needed a compressor and quoted £400. Not confident so got a refund (less £35 for "diagnostic fee" which was wrong anyway ) and went elswhere. I'm a fool but not a big fool

Turned out to be the solenoid/switch on the compressor itself. Saab have dropped the price of NEW compressors so not worth all the work to repair the old one or getting a recon. Had a new one fitted with re-gas and all is great. Deserved plug for Wessy over here at www.nottinghamsaab.co.uk who sorted mine

Dick

[Curlymurt]

Update (it's a long one): I tried pressing auto and off at the same time with the fan on high and a 0 appeared on the screen. I did it again with the fan on medium and a 1 appeared. I did it again with the fan on low and received a 0. After all these attempts, the fan would only blow out the dash vents, but the screen said it was the windshield defrost. I pressed everything, but could not change the vents in which the air blows from (but I could change fan speeds). I now turned off the car, restarted it, and pressed both buttons again. This time, I received a 1 and the fan was on medium. So, I turned the car off and on again, this time it showed a 0. Now, the screen reads windshield defrost and it also blows there. However, now I can't change it to blow on the dash or floor vents - but I can change the fan speed. Any ideas as to what that might be?

Do you know which valve is the correct one for the gas recharge kit? There are two, and I don't have a Haynes manual (on the way). Is it the valve under the grill or the one in the engine compartment between the radiator and the engine?

[chrisd]

Mine didnt work either. If you reset the display in the car, just let it do its thing until its finished. That made no difference in my car, but at least it was free!

I then had it re-gassed. Experts reckon the quality of the hoses, compressor and other associated paraphenalia is very good and Saabs respond well to a re-gas. For your information, the compressor only works when its called for by means of an electrical clutch on the unit. Mine responded well to a re-gas but lamentably developed a leak behind the dash, so I havent bothered trying to fix it!

Good luck!

[bwana]

Call a local air-conditioning/fridge-freezer mobile repair man (yellow pages), they charge a very modest price for recharging auto A/C units (even SAAB dealers use these guys and charge you 3 times as much!)......take it from there

[Curlymurt]

AC is up and working! I had it recharged and it seemed to be fine. Then, I started driving and the throttle response was worse than I had expected. I continued to drive and after just a few seconds the engine died while shifting. This was due to a lack of RPM and it just died - while shifting. I talked to a guy at the shop and he assured me the compressor seemed to be in fine condition and he double checked the gas pressure before he finished it. So, he said to drive it around and let the computer work itself out. It seems this WAS the problem and after 5 minutes of driving, the RPM's didn't die while shifting. The throttle response has increased to an acceptable level and the computer is able to maintain an idle of 1000 while never dropping below.

Therefore, it seems, the problem is fixed. Thanks to all responded. It was very helpful. Hopefully this will be useful to some in the future.