Dear HJ
Help
I have a high mileage Vectra SRI 96P. I bought it from a friend who lived in the North West and never used the Air Conditioning. The result is that the A/C does not now work and I assume it needs a recharge of Freon. I do not wish to try this as I guess the compressor seals are shot and it will be money wasted.
As I do not particularly want or need A/C I would like to remove the compressor and fit the shorter auxiliary belt from the non A/C car. Is this possible or do I need to change the engine mount or other components? I would be very grateful if you could help me.
I would like to finish with a short rant re the motor manufacturers who seem intent on forcing A/C on all of us. A friend of mine with a Renault Safrane had to shell out over a grand to keep his vehicle on the road when his A/C compressor seized. Again like me he does not want or need it but there is no poverty model of his car with a non A/C belt arrangement.
The sad thing is fitting A/C is a good reason not to fit a sun roof. However for anyone living outside SE England or who is not a rep driving at mid day, A/C is not necessary and also not very green. I wonder just how many MPG my vehicle loses turning over the A/C compressor even when not in use.
OK I realise why they are fitted, most new cars are given a Europe wide spec and A/C is worth its weight in gold in Italy say, however, I do believe removing it shuld be made straightforward. A friend in America tells me they all take the woodruff key out of the A/C pulley in winter and let it slip!!!
Thank you very much, please excuse the rant
Peter Bowman
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Peter
I have to disagree - I'm a fan of aircon! My (now departed) Vectra SRi had a/c and I'm amazed yours had a chance to sieze up. You and your friend have missed out on a great safety benefit. This may be because you view a/c as something you use only in the middle of summer, which is a good way to ruin it. Year round use, and my car a/c was fine at 76k. It was definitely a 'must have' for the replacement.
The big safety benefit of a/c comes in colder, wet weather. Because the chiller dehumidifies the air, it dramatically improves the speed at which windows are demisted. Get into the car on a wet day and with full heat combined with a/c and the screen starts to clear almost immediately. This ability to quickly clear misted windows and keep them that way all year round is a huge safety bonus, and therefore is well worth having. Don' think a/c is only used with the temperture control turned to cold. However, I have to say this is an RTFM issue! Also, there is a safety benefit in being comfortable in the car year round - there's nothing like being hot and bothered to ruin concentration.
As for a sun roof being a substitute for a/c, it isn't. A sunroof doesn't cool the incoming air, I can live without the noise you get from an open roof, and there is the lost strength and stiffness resulting from having a hole in the roof of the car. You sure don't need both a 'roof and a/c.
As for fuel consumption - despite careful checks I was unable to detect any significant fuel consumption deficit, so it was simply not an issue. I'm interested in green issues (it's part of my job) but there are compensating safety factors here. Anyway, the Vectra would do 40 miles/gall on motorway runs in the summer with the a/c on.
So my advice is - DON'T ditch it! Get it fixed and use it properly and you'll be converted. As an aside - if you think it doesn't work too well your car needs a new pollen filter. These I found are blocked by 30/40k, and rarely changed by the dealers unless you ask, especially on company cars. A new filter will allow much more air into the car, improving the heater too.
regards
john
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Spot on, as always John. I have a/c in my Renault Espace. With all the glass including 3 sunroofs!!!!! a/c is a must all year round to keep it it demisted especially as it has been a tad damp of late. Incidentally I have recently discovered a Wynns product which is sprayed in a fine mist into the heater on full blast on recycle. It disinfects the heat exchanger and kills any bacteria lurking in the condensation and has certainly sweetened up the interior air. You are correct about the pollen filters, on the Renault it is an annual event while on my VW T4 it is every three months! Most of my customers are unaware of their existence. I removed one from a 90,000 mile Mundano which was absolutely solid and by coincidence the heater started to work again!
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Thanks Andrew! If I still had the Vectra I'd be spraying the Wynn's. It could sure smell at times. I'll bear it in mind in case my new car gives the problem.
By the way, I've now got a '99 323i Coupe. Good fun, and better handling than the Vectra. Any horror stories?
Regards
John
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Adam, if you had any idea how hard I'm biting my lip......................
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Bite, Andrew, Bite!! Adam
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Eh?
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John,
Sorry about that bit of silly banter between mates ! Andrew has a bit of a "downer" on BMs since one tried to kill him and his wife a while back. This totally irrational behaviour is generally well subdued, but boils over occasionally! I will try to ensure he sticks to his medication.
Regards, Adam.
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Adam
Thanks for the explanation - for a minute there I thought I was losing the plot. Very worrying!
Just make sure he keeps taking the tablets, and tell him that all BMW drivers are not the same!!!
Regards
John
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As usual, John Slaughter is right. My Mondeo doesn't seem to use any more fuel with the a/c on, so I leave it on all the time, turning it to maximum clod for 5 - 10 minutes every week to keep the seals lubricated. A car actually uses less fuel with the a/c on than it does with a sunroof or windows open because creating holes in the aerodynamic shape of the car carries a much higher fuel consumption penalty. The other advantage of a/c over sunroofs is the lack of a sunrood provides at least two inches extra headroom in most cars. But to stay in good condition the a/c MUST be used regularly. I don't think the Vectra SRi was ever available without a/c, but the 2.0iLS was, briefly, from August '96 to March'97, so a Vauxhall dealer should be able to supply uyou with the non a/c parts. Not that you need them. Unless the a/c is switched on the compressor pulley runs unclutched.
HJ
HJ
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No need to remove the a/c compressor, just don't turn it on! The compressor doesn't run all the time, only the outer pulley.
It has probably stopped working as all the gas has gone, in which case it won't come on anyway. I very much doubt through the front seal, more likely through the pipe that chaffs the side of the airbox, for which there has been a TSB from Vauxhall, and would have been replaced, probably under warranty, if it had been noted at the time. Failing that, on some engines a rubber hose runs very close to the exhaust manifold and can rupture, again I believe there was a TSB for this. Of course it could be a simple electrical or switch problem, but as you don't want it anyway, it's not worth getting it investigated. Just bear in mind, that when selling it on, punters are getting wise to buying cars with busted a/c, hoping it only needs a 'quick recgarge' to get it fully functional again.
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2 Years ago I had a 1997 Vectra 2.0LS with Air Con. When it failed I went to my local Vauaxhall Dealer. They Diagnosed a failed compressor and quoted an HORRENDOUS sum of £1000 to fix it , less a 20% Goodwill Gesture from Vauxhall. My company's fleet managers managed to obtain a further 20% from Vauxhall. After the garage fitted the new compressor they found a leak in a hose and fixed this as well. (They claimed the compressor had failed as well!!)
As a postscript the same hose failed 6 months later, this time they fixed it free of charge, without question.
As a result I shall be very wary of running an air-con car at my own expense in
future!!
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I can see why you should be wary, but the compressor only went because it was run with no gas. Eventually the compressor will shut down, but it sometimes takes a while. It could actually be that there was nothing wrong with it anyway, as many main dealers assume that because it doesn't turn, it must be broken, when in fact a fail safe device, like a pressure switch, has caused it to stop.
Out of interest, the same compressor is used on virtually every vauxhall, and the list price for a brand new one from my suppliers is £249 + vat, and it's not exactly the longest job in the world! I guess the dealers have to pay for all the glass and chrome buildings with something. Not to mention all the highly skilled, motivated, and helpful staff they employ!!
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John, you should have the steel bore liner block in your 323i coupe. You should also be getting mid 30's mpg cruising at 90 plus.
HJ
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Thanks HJ. Yes, it has a Dec '98 build date so should be OK. Certainly has been around the 35 miles/gall mark, but not quite at 90. I'd like to keep my licence for a while yet, but the performance certainly is a bit licence threatening. Never mind, it's fun!
Regards
John
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