Aircon re-gas

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Fri 25 Jul 2014 21:19
Aircon re-gas - Trilogy

Is this now part of the service routine for car or does it have to be asked for? My friend The K.I.A. Man thinks it is included. He has never bothered to ask.

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Fri 25 Jul 2014 21:36
Aircon re-gas - elekie&a/c doctor
Test the operation of the ac is part of a service ,but anything more is a chargeable extra.Garages make good money out of servicing an ac system ,especially when it is not needed.
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Fri 25 Jul 2014 22:08
Aircon re-gas - Trilogy
Test the operation of the ac is part of a service ,but anything more is a chargeable extra.Garages make good money out of servicing an ac system ,especially when it is not needed.

How often should aircon be regassed?

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Fri 25 Jul 2014 22:40
Aircon re-gas - daveyjp
If you never turn it off very rarely. I have never had it done on any car with aircon I have owned and the aircon has worked well until the time I sell it.

Edited by daveyjp on 25/07/2014 at 22:42

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Fri 25 Jul 2014 23:25
Aircon re-gas - Big John

The air con on my 2003 Superb was working OK but had it re-gassed as part of my service this year as the garage had an offer on. They said it was down a little bit before hand but not too bad. However now I've had it done and the hot weather has hit us it now feels like a meat locker inside the car - well chilled!

N.B. I don't use ECON mode in the winter so air con is engaged all year round as the demisting is great and keeps the air con moving and lubricated

Edited by Big John on 25/07/2014 at 23:28

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Fri 25 Jul 2014 23:51
Aircon re-gas - Pondlife

My 2000 Jag S-Type has never been re-gassed and the air-con still works well after 14 years.

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Sat 26 Jul 2014 09:00
Aircon re-gas - carr

How frequently do you have your fridge or freezer regassed? The clue may be in the title... air-CON.

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Sat 26 Jul 2014 10:04
Aircon re-gas - bathtub tom

A fridge or freezer doesn't have to tolerate the extremes of temperature and vibration an air-con system does, neither do they have flexible pipes between the compressor, heat exchanger and evaporator.

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Sat 26 Jul 2014 12:41
Aircon re-gas - Engineer Andy

A fridge or freezer doesn't have to tolerate the extremes of temperature and vibration an air-con system does, neither do they have flexible pipes between the compressor, heat exchanger and evaporator.

In that case, does the garage include re-sealing all the holes/joints and replacing hoses/flexible pipes as part of the re-gassing job? If not, what's the point of re-gassing the system - it'll just leak out in no-time!

I suspect the problems come with either design faults on the part of the manufacturer (not accounting for in-use vibrations and expansion/contraction of components due to the temperatures involved) or the owner driving over particularly poor road surfaces literally shaking the components/pipes loose!

Amazing in my experience that most of the manufacturers that offer frequent 'deals' on A/C regassing are those with the worst reputation for quality/reliability! I don't ever remember coming across one (or at least prominently advertised) at the dealerships of the Japanese cars I've owned. I know Ford often has these deals on as I pass the local garage a lot (and my Dad has one as well). Touch wood I've never had a problem with mine on my (8+ yo) Mazda3.

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Sat 26 Jul 2014 18:17
Aircon re-gas - oldroverboy.

I remember quite well the day we had a customer come in and A/C not working.

went out to car and switched the little tiny switch with the snowflake ON.

No charge sir!

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Sat 26 Jul 2014 19:17
Aircon re-gas - groaver

Touch wood I've never had a problem with mine on my (8+ yo) Mazda3.

SWMBO's 61 plate Mazda 2 is now needing re-gassed 1 year on from its last service. Hoses etc are probably the cause and the fact she only uses it occasionally.

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Sat 26 Jul 2014 19:41
Aircon re-gas - elekie&a/c doctor
A 3 year old car that needs recharging is not acceptable,whether the ac is used or not.I would guess you have a problem.get it checked under warranty.
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Sun 27 Jul 2014 13:07
Aircon re-gas - Engineer Andy
A 3 year old car that needs recharging is not acceptable,whether the ac is used or not.I would guess you have a problem.get it checked under warranty.

If I remember correctly, its the lubricating oils which circulate within the pipework and components that will eventually dry out if they are not circulated regularly enough by using the A/C. This may contribute to the problem - possibly by the components not working smoothly , heating up/vibrating more than they should and cauing small holes/gaps (e.g. around connections) to form.

A shame that these A/C systems don't have a feature that automatically turns them on for a set amount of time (or at least reminds the driver that the A/C needs to be used for X amount of time) to circulate the oils to keep the system in good condition.

I wonder if A/C systems in buildings has an automatic function like this - I'll check at work. Maybe something for manufacturers to consider offering, considering (as you say) having to spend £100 just because you forgot to turn on the A/C regularly and still within waranty period is rather annoying to owners, even if its stated in the manual.

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Sun 27 Jul 2014 13:40
Aircon re-gas - elekie&a/c doctor
On most modern cars,the ac function is engaged when the defrost/demist is selected on the heater panel,even though the driver may not realise this.This even applies to manual systems found on lower spec models.If an ac system holds gas,then the lubricating oil is in suspension in the system to maintain the seals/ joints.The problem is when there is no gas in the system and this allows moisture ,air and corrosion to attack the internal workings .The other issue with auto ac systems,is that car makers work to a minimum quality.If the system lasts the warranty period,this is all that matters.
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Sun 27 Jul 2014 13:56
Aircon re-gas - Engineer Andy
On most modern cars,the ac function is engaged when the defrost/demist is selected on the heater panel,even though the driver may not realise this.This even applies to manual systems found on lower spec models.If an ac system holds gas,then the lubricating oil is in suspension in the system to maintain the seals/ joints.The problem is when there is no gas in the system and this allows moisture ,air and corrosion to attack the internal workings .The other issue with auto ac systems,is that car makers work to a minimum quality.If the system lasts the warranty period,this is all that matters.

Imagine if A/C manufacturers in the construction industry offered systems that only worked for 3-5 years? I know most of the better makes only offer waranties of around that long, but most (if inspected and properly once a year) last 15-20 years, often longer. I'd rather pay more up-front for a car whose components and body/paint lasted a long time, and besides, I thought we were all supposed to be trying to 'save the planet' by reducing the need for 'throwaway' goods and services which last 5 mins. Sadly we seem to be going in the opposite direction.

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Sun 27 Jul 2014 20:38
Aircon re-gas - groaver
A 3 year old car that needs recharging is not acceptable,whether the ac is used or not.I would guess you have a problem.get it checked under warranty.

I know their reply already, I'm afraid.

Warped front discs at 6 months (5K) were skimmed, not replaced.

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