# A/C just stopped blowing cold air



## Snipesy (Dec 7, 2015)

At a certain point with a refrigerant leak the ECM sees that it’s unable to make pressure. So it will not engage the a/c clutch at all. That can give the appearance of the a/c suddenly just no longer working.

Or a line or seal just blew apart and it all leaked out within minutes.

Thankfully this Cruze uses the cheap readily available refrigerant which you can buy at Walmart. So if you want you can try that. Those kits almost always have UV dye in them.


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

Sounds good. Thanks for the reply.


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

Freon contains oil. Oil contains the dye.

All freon is dyed.

And while you can buy cans. It's really not recommended without knowing what your high pressure reads. You're only going to need roughly 2 to 4 oz. out of that 12 oz. can.


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## Thebigzeus (Dec 2, 2018)

Well, you can’t really buy Freon anymore... Now R134, which is what our cars use, yes you can buy.


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

You can buy freon anywhere.


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## Thebigzeus (Dec 2, 2018)

snowwy66 said:


> You can buy freon anywhere.


Link plz


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

Thebigzeus said:


> Link plz


All over the internet. Your choices are HUGE.

And your flavors are r12, 22, 134, 1234, etc.


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## Thebigzeus (Dec 2, 2018)

snowwy66 said:


> All over the internet. Your choices are HUGE.
> 
> And your flavors are r12, 22, 134, 1234, etc.


Link plz


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

Thebigzeus said:


> Link plz


Www.google.com


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## Thebigzeus (Dec 2, 2018)

snowwy66 said:


> Www.google.com


TFW you know you’re wrong lol...

Anyway enough thread-jacking, sorry OP.


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

Thebigzeus said:


> TFW you know you’re wrong lol...
> 
> Anyway enough thread-jacking, sorry OP.


ROFLMAO

You never looked or you'd know how wrong you are.
Www.ebay.com is another link. LOL

I don't need to prove AGAIN what's already been posted.


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

Ok. An update on the A/C not working. I got in the car Monday after not driving it for the weekend, and the A/C was blowing cold air again. Tuesday I drove my other vehicle, and today (Wednesday) I drove it to work, and no cold A/C again. So now I'm really confused.


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

Does your car have an outside temperature sensor. If so. What does it read?

A few cars have had that effect their ac. Car reads -40*


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## Snipesy (Dec 7, 2015)

snowwy66 said:


> *1234*


*Laughs in $400 for 4 lb*


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

Snipesy said:


> *Laughs in $400 for 4 lb*


Where you seeing that at?

Last I heard it was something like $700 for 10 lb. Cylinder. Almost a year ago.

NM. Pricing is all over the place now.


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

snowwy66 said:


> Does your car have an outside temperature sensor. If so. What does it read?
> 
> A few cars have had that effect their ac. Car reads -40*


Outside temp reading was normal.


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## WillL84 (Aug 5, 2019)

Thebigzeus said:


> Well, you can’t really buy Freon anymore... Now R134, which is what our cars use, yes you can buy.


All refrigerants are still "freon". Freon is just a trade name like Jet Ski.



> Not all refrigerants of this type are labelled as "Freon" since Freon is a brand name for the refrigerants R-12, R-13B1, R-22, R-410A, R-502, and R-503 manufactured by The Chemours Company.


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## hbilow (Sep 17, 2016)

I had my A/C suddenly stop working last July on the way through Texas. It was working fine, we stopped at a rest area. When we got back in the car, no A/C. About 10 miles down the highway I couldn’t take it anymore, and shifted into neutral, shut the engine off and restarted, put back in drive. A/C started blowing cold again. Good old Microsoft reboot. 😁


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

I don't know about all semis. But the newer Freightliners have a way to reset the ac. 

Wonder if cars have something.


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## gid58 (Mar 23, 2020)

kbarzo said:


> I know this question is pretty open, but has anyone just had their air conditioner stop blowing cold air? I was driving a couple days ago in the morning and the air conditioning was working fine blowing cold air. I went home for literally 5 minutes. When I came back out and left again, the air was no longer blowing cold. There was no sign of the air gradually getting warmer at any point. Car has 122,000 miles. Of course, any shop is at least 10 days out before looking into anything hvac related.


My


kbarzo said:


> I know this question is pretty open, but has anyone just had their air conditioner stop blowing cold air? I was driving a couple days ago in the morning and the air conditioning was working fine blowing cold air. I went home for literally 5 minutes. When I came back out and left again, the air was no longer blowing cold. There was no sign of the air gradually getting warmer at any point. Car has 122,000 miles. Of course, any shop is at least 10 days out before looking into anything hvac related.


 My 81 year old sister had that problem lately and she went and get 2 estimates and one was 1500 and the other 1200 to fix. So I am not too experienced in AC or have tools. but I asked to take a shot at it. I made a homemade adapter and added compressed air (knowing not good for ststem) and found that the PRESSURE SWITCH on the condenser was leaking on top where wire plug in was. Bought a cheap switch at Autozone and refilled the Freon, all good now for 2 years...Saved her from spending STUPID money......Hope that helps


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## Gabbyduck (Dec 31, 2019)

kbarzo said:


> I know this question is pretty open, but has anyone just had their air conditioner stop blowing cold air? I was driving a couple days ago in the morning and the air conditioning was working fine blowing cold air. I went home for literally 5 minutes. When I came back out and left again, the air was no longer blowing cold. There was no sign of the air gradually getting warmer at any point. Car has 122,000 miles. Of course, any shop is at least 10 days out before looking into anything hvac related.


1)There are many things that can cause this so here are a few . Blower motor resistor , this controls blower speeds. 2) low pressure switch, this is located on the low side line of the A/C system. 3) 4) damper air control motors 5) wire issues.6) leak of R-134 refrigerant. I will stop there. Anything else will most likey require a shop too trouble shoot. 7) fuse question what made it blow? 8) can bus module


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## Roberts CRUZE (Nov 23, 2019)

kbarzo said:


> I know this question is pretty open, but has anyone just had their air conditioner stop blowing cold air? I was driving a couple days ago in the morning and the air conditioning was working fine blowing cold air. I went home for literally 5 minutes. When I came back out and left again, the air was no longer blowing cold. There was no sign of the air gradually getting warmer at any point. Car has 122,000 miles. Of course, any shop is at least 10 days out before looking into anything hvac related.


Hi, Have you got your A/C to work again? I have a 2013 and having the same problem>


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

Roberts CRUZE said:


> Hi, Have you got your A/C to work again? I have a 2013 and having the same problem>


No I haven't. I disconnected the battery last night in hopes of a hvac reset but still nothing. Currently on a 10 day wait list to have it looked at. Everything else works like it should, just no cold air.


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## Gabbyduck (Dec 31, 2019)

Is the blower motor working at low medium and high speeds ? Does the low pressure line on the A/C feel cold? Dose the A/C switch button light up when turned on ?


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## Roberts CRUZE (Nov 23, 2019)

kbarzo said:


> No I haven't. I disconnected the battery last night in hopes of a hvac reset but still nothing. Currently on a 10 day wait list to have it looked at. Everything else works like it should, just no cold air.





kbarzo said:


> No I haven't. I disconnected the battery last night in hopes of a hvac reset but still nothing. Currently on a 10 day wait list to have it looked at. Everything else works like it should, just no cold air.





kbarzo said:


> No I haven't. I disconnected the battery last night in hopes of a hvac reset but still nothing. Currently on a 10 day wait list to have it looked at. Everything else works like it should, just no cold air.


Ok thanks. I have checked all my fuses the A/C clutch spins freely with my assistance when it is off. Not locked up at all. Just not kicking on when i turn on the A/C. I have had so many issues with this **** car that i do not want to put any more of my hard earned money into it. Thanks


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## Gabbyduck (Dec 31, 2019)

My 2011 1.4L LTZ Cruze has 209,000 miles. About every 40,000 miles it will have a small antifreeze leak that usually is the outlet O-ring. Have you had actual engine problems with the engine or just A/C issues. My tranny and engine have been bullet proof. I have replaced the water pump and thermostat once at 170,000 miles. I had a oil leak with the timing chain cover gasket at 170,000 miles note that's when I change my water pump. Usually A/C system is simple to fix. If your only having issues that aren't actual engine or tranny issues but only accessories like water pump A/C , alternator I wouldn't get rid of the vehicle.use only OEM parts with these cars


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

Gabbyduck said:


> Is the blower motor working at low medium and high speeds ? Does the low pressure line on the A/C feel cold? Dose the A/C switch button light up when turned on ?


Everything works like it should, all blower speeds, mixer, all lights on settings, and also shows up on the radio when switching everything.....just no cold air.


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## Gabbyduck (Dec 31, 2019)

Feel the low pressure line where the A/C low side goes.It should be cold.If it is you may have a blend door motor issue. Is the A/C drain working/water dripping from drain


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

Gabbyduck said:


> Feel the low pressure line where the A/C low side goes.It should be cold.If it is you may have a blend door motor issue. Is the A/C drain working/water dripping from drain


Not sure where to look for that. I dont hear the compressor kicking on when I go from regular vent air to A/C though.


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

Look at the compressor to see if it's engaged and spinning. Unless you got a noisy compressor. You won't hear it kick on. 

I can't hear mine, anyways.


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

I looked at the clutch (on the outside of the pulley) and when I turn the A/C on, I dont see it spin with the pulley.


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## WillL84 (Aug 5, 2019)

Then it's either an electrical problem or not enough refrigerant pressure in the system. Easy thing to do is get a can of the R134a stuff from anyplace (Walmart, Advance auto, etc) with the little gauge on it and hook it to the fill port - it'll look just like a tire valve. Make sure you shake the can and hold it upside down. Do it with the engine running and AC on to max. If it is a pressure problem once you start filling the system you'll see the compressor kick on. Then you need to either find the leak yourself or bring it to a shop.

My 02 Silverado had a pressure sensor in the system that was never hooked to anything. Water got into the pins and corroded them to the point where the middle of the sensor corroded out and the system leaked. A can of AC charge to find the leak, a $7 sensor and another can to fill the system back up and done.


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

WillL84 said:


> Then it's either an electrical problem or not enough refrigerant pressure in the system. Easy thing to do is get a can of the R134a stuff from anyplace (Walmart, Advance auto, etc) with the little gauge on it and hook it to the fill port - it'll look just like a tire valve. Make sure you shake the can and hold it upside down. Do it with the engine running and AC on to max. If it is a pressure problem once you start filling the system you'll see the compressor kick on. Then you need to either find the leak yourself or bring it to a shop.
> 
> My 02 Silverado had a pressure sensor in the system that was never hooked to anything. Water got into the pins and corroded them to the point where the middle of the sensor corroded out and the system leaked. A can of AC charge to find the leak, a $7 sensor and another can to fill the system back up and done.


There are 2 ports. One is up against the firewall on the passenger side, and one is by the passenger side wheel well. Does it matter which one you hook into?


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

Yes it matters.

One is a high pressure port. The other is a low pressure port.

You need both ports for an accurate reading on pressure.


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## WillL84 (Aug 5, 2019)

If you get the can from an auto parts store it'll only hook to one port. The other is a different size. Yes to get it proper you need both but that's special tools. To see if you have a leak all you need is the one port and the can with the gauge on it like this


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

Just heard from a local mechanic on the A/C issue. He said the compressor is not getting power, and on his research GM has problems with body control modules, where it could be getting the power from. He checked everything else and it was OK. He said he doesnt know what else to do with it. I would think that would be somewhat of a simple issue, but of course it never is.


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## WillL84 (Aug 5, 2019)

kbarzo said:


> Just heard from a local mechanic on the A/C issue. He said the compressor is not getting power, and on his research GM has problems with body control modules, where it could be getting the power from. He checked everything else and it was OK. He said he doesnt know what else to do with it. I would think that would be somewhat of a simple issue, but of course it never is.


**** BCM's ******* everything up. Who's stupid idea was it to start using a computer to control EVERYTHING?


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## plano-doug (Jul 1, 2015)

WillL84 said:


> *** BCM's ** everything up. Who's stupid idea was it to start using a computer to control EVERYTHING?


Having recently looked at many drawjngs for car wiring, I concur - lots of functions are now in the BCM which were not previously. Part of that may simply be moving BCM-controlled relays from the fuse boxes into the BCM. But part of it is, no doubt, added complexity...of questionable benefit.

For example, used to, the drivers window switches sent power (thru a l*arge* bundle of wires) to all the other windows. Now when the driver's switch for the right rear window is pressed, it sends a 1 or 0 to a micro which communicates over a serial bus to the BCM, which in turn communicates serially with the micro in the RR door which in turn sends a 1 or 0 to a relay (or FET) which powers the window motor.

I can see this saving appreciable cost in copper wiring , and the installation thereof. And it adds remote control features - it's now possible to raise or lower the windows via the fob or OnStar. Your grandad's Electra 225 couldn't do that 

But I question the cost benefit. There's added silicon cost. And added complexity when troubleshooting - ie, more repair cost. And what is the net change in system reliability? I'd love to see what the reliability&maintainability guys have to say about it.

The real genius of the Apollo program was keeping the electronics from being overly complex. The astronauts had enough control so as to be able to over-ride the computer, if necessary. The systems were very manageable.

Historically, in automobiles, a couple things done very well have been power steering and power brakes. The power features are piggy-backed onto essentially manual systems. If the power fails, you can still steer and brake, albeit at greater effort.

IMO, that perspective should always be taken when designing any complex system: What is the simplest solution to my complex problem? And how do I ensure it fails gracefully?

(And why are all those extra features not enabled in my Cruze?)

I read an article from 2009 that said the average car, with all 100+ micros combined, has a 100 million lines of code. 100,000,000.

Anyway, as I continue studying the various drawings for my Cruze, trying to understand all the busses linking all the modules together, I keep having thoughts similar to WillL84.

OTOH, I'm perfectly happy using a cord - be it audio or USB - to connect to my radio. But the market has evolved, and nowadays, if a car doesn't have wifi and bluetooth, half the potential customers will walk away. And that's why the complexity keeps going up.

Doug

.


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

plano-doug said:


> Having recently looked at many drawjngs for car wiring, I concur - lots of functions are now in the BCM which were not previously. Part of that may simply be moving BCM-controlled relays from the fuse boxes into the BCM. But part of it is, no doubt, added complexity...of questionable benefit.
> 
> For example, used to, the drivers window switches sent power (thru a l*arge* bundle of wires) to all the other windows. Now when the driver's switch for the right rear window is pressed, it sends a 1 or 0 to a micro which communicates over a serial bus to the BCM, which in turn communicates serially with the micro in the RR door which in turn sends a 1 or 0 to a relay (or FET) which powers the window motor.
> 
> ...


So from all that I gather it could be in the bcm?


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

kbarzo said:


> Just heard from a local mechanic on the A/C issue. He said the compressor is not getting power, and on his research GM has problems with body control modules, where it could be getting the power from. He checked everything else and it was OK. He said he doesnt know what else to do with it. I would think that would be somewhat of a simple issue, but of course it never is.


One other thing I noticed was the fan not kicking on. I sat with the car parked and running for about 10 minutes in 85° heat. I opened the the hood and the fan never kicked on, with and without the A/C being on.


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## plano-doug (Jul 1, 2015)

kbarzo said:


> So from all that I gather it could be in the bcm?


I've attached a drawing for the AC under the hood. You say the compressor is not coming on when you turn the AC on. Looking at the drawing, in this case, it appears the BCM is not in the loop. So we can forget about it for now. 

I would start with KR29, the AC compressor clutch relay in the underhood fuse box. It sends +12V to the compressor clutch. Or it's supposed to. If you see +12V on X3-44 coming out of the fuse box, but the clutch is not engaged, then trace the wiring to the clutch/compressor, looking for a bad connection. If you don't see +12V on X3-44, then try swapping relays to see if that helps.

If a different relay doesn't help, make sure the relay is getting power. Remove it and check the sockets for relay pins 85 and 30. Both should be at +12V (with the key on).

If the relay is getting power, check pin X3-34 into that fuse box. It controls the relay. When the compressor is (supposed to be) ON, that pin should be low, ~0v. If that pin is not low, the ECM is not turning on the compressor. That could be due to a bad refrigerant pressur sensor reading, or failure of the serial link from the HVAC control module to the ECM (altho I might expect some sort of warning of failed comm on the DIC , if that occurred).

Those are a few things to check, to try to isolate the issue. I can't go trhu every possible combination, but I'll try to help more if you can give us some feedback on these tests.

Below are the RPO's called out in the drawing. In my comments above, I have assumed you don't have any of teh 1.6L options. 

Doug

L2W ENGINE-GAS, 4 CYL, 1.6L, MFI, L4, DOHC, FAM 1, GEN S200, 80 KW, E20 MAX
LXT ENGINE-GAS, 4 CYL, 1.6L, MFI, DOHC, 80KW (GMDAT)
LDE ENGINE-GAS, 4 CYL, 1.6L, MFI, DOHC, VVT, VARIABLE CAMSHAFT PHASING, VARIABLE INTAKE MODULE (VIM)

LNP ENGINE-DIESEL, 4 CYL, L4, 2.0L, CRI, DOHC, TURBO, 120 KW
LVM ENGINE-DIESEL, 4 CYL, 1.6L, CRI, DOHC, FGT, 81KW

2H0 ENGINE-GAS, 4 CYL, 1.8L, MFI, 103KW, DOHC
LFH ENGINE-GAS, 4 CYL, 1.8L, MFI, E100 MAX
LUW ENGINE-GAS, 4 CYL, 1.8L, MFI, 103KW, DOHC, E85 MAX

.


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

plano-doug said:


> I've attached a drawing for the AC under the hood. You say the compressor is not coming on when you turn the AC on. Looking at the drawing, in this case, it appears the BCM is not in the loop. So we can forget about it for now.
> 
> I would start with KR29, the AC compressor clutch relay in the underhood fuse box. It sends +12V to the compressor clutch. Or it's supposed to. If you see +12V on X3-44 coming out of the fuse box, but the clutch is not engaged, then trace the wiring to the clutch/compressor, looking for a bad connection. If you don't see +12V on X3-44, then try swapping relays to see if that helps.
> 
> ...


Would you mind coming up to Michigan to take a look at it? Lol. Thanks for the info.


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

kbarzo said:


> Would you mind coming up to Michigan to take a look at it? Lol. Thanks for the info.


Is KR 29 labeled as a number in the owners manual? I dont see that particular number.


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## plano-doug (Jul 1, 2015)

kbarzo said:


> Is KR 29 labeled as a number in the owners manual? I dont see that particular number.


Sorry about that. I meant to cross check that earlier. It should be relay #1 as shown in the pic below. That gibes with the owner's manual listing under "micro relays" following the fuse list.

FWIW, I get these drawings via my library who provides card holders with access to Chilton's on-line stuff. But the navigation sucks. Getting to the place where it says "KR29 = #1" was like finding the proverbial needle in the haystack.

If I was paying a subscription fee, I'd be screaming at their tech support. That is, I don't know if this is the same on-line documentation as what someone might purchase from Chilton's, but if it is...well, it's difficult to find what you're looking for without wading thru pages and pages of search results, sort of like web search engines before Google came along 

Doug









.


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## kbarzo (Jan 31, 2016)

Well, finally got the word from the dealer. Compressor was bad. $1,033 installed.


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## WillL84 (Aug 5, 2019)

kbarzo said:


> Well, finally got the word from the dealer. Compressor was bad. $1,033 installed.


Ouch -_-


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