Air conditioning condenser issue is real

[NotSerious]

Scotty Kilmer has some information on the diagnosing the problem of getting cold air out of the passenger side but not out of the driver's side.

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[bluecivicsport]

I see that some aftermarket Companies are supplying 10 Gen Honda Condensers.
I wonder if they are more reliable than the Honda ones.

The actual cost of the is not that high (about $100), the major cost is the labor and the charge they charge you for putting your own refrigerant back in !!!!

You're right. These are pretty cheap.

https://www.carparts.com/details/Ho..._Cyl_1-dot-5L/KVAC30008.html?showfitment=true

Anyone know the approx cost for labor/refri if I have to do this myself in a few years?

 

[SCOPESYS]

You're right. These are pretty cheap.

https://www.carparts.com/details/Ho..._Cyl_1-dot-5L/KVAC30008.html?showfitment=true

Anyone know the approx cost for labor/refri if I have to do this myself in a few years?

At todays prices, 2 8oz cans of R1234yf + low pressure gauge is about $110.
You will probably need a 3rd can ($40).
You will also need a A/C Vacuum pump, to pull vacuum, once you have fitted the new condenser. I have seen these as low as $100 including a full High & Low Pressure Gauge manifold set. (A full manifold Gauge set is useful for Diagnosing A/C comonents problems, that are more than simple leaks).
You will also need new seals for any connections you open, and its worth changing the valve seals as well while you have the system open.
The major cost is the R1234yf refrigerant, the Gauges and Pump are a one time buy.
You will also need a small quantity of R1234yf "Oil", and it might be a good idea to put some UV dye is the system as well, so that you can monitor for future leaks.

Finally, you will need to read up and understand how to correctly charge the system, as the pressure are dependent on ambient temperature & humidity.

Its really not that difficulty, if you are prepared to do the work yourself, and educate yourself on the correct way to do it.

The "PROS" (?) make it out to be all very complex, and will lead you to believe that only a trained PROFESSIONAL can do this, but in fact, "MANY" don't have even have the basic understanding of what they are doing, and just muddle though the servicing, and hope for the best !! Nothing to stop you training yourself with the help of the Internet, and chances are, you will do a more careful job for yourself, than some young kid at a Dealership.
Tools and material are going to cost you far LESS than having anyone do it for you, and thereafter, you have the tools to do it yourself, whenever you want for very little, and without being under the threat of NO-Warranty, and paying major buck at a dealership for something that most enthusiast car owners can easily do themselves.

 

[bluecivicsport]

At todays prices, 2 8oz cans of R1234yf + low pressure gauge is about $110.
You will probably need a 3rd can ($40).
You will also need a A/C Vacuum pump, to pull vacuum, once you have fitted the new condenser. I have seen these as low as $100 including a full High & Low Pressure Gauge manifold set. (A full manifold Gauge set is useful for Diagnosing A/C comonents problems, that are more than simple leaks).
You will also need new seals for any connections you open, and its worth changing the valve seals as well while you have the system open.
The major cost is the R1234yf refrigerant, the Gauges and Pump are a one time buy.
You will also need a small quantity of R1234yf "Oil", and it might be a good idea to put some UV dye is the system as well, so that you can monitor for future leaks.

Finally, you will need to read up and understand how to correctly charge the system, as the pressure are dependent on ambient temperature & humidity.

Its really not that difficulty, if you are prepared to do the work yourself, and educate yourself on the correct way to do it.

The "PROS" (?) make it out to be all very complex, and will lead you to believe that only a trained PROFESSIONAL can do this, but in fact, "MANY" don't have even have the basic understanding of what they are doing, and just muddle though the servicing, and hope for the best !! Nothing to stop you training yourself with the help of the Internet, and chances are, you will do a more careful job for yourself, than some young kid at a Dealership.
Tools and material are going to cost you far LESS than having anyone do it for you, and thereafter, you have the tools to do it yourself, whenever you want for very little, and without being under the threat of NO-Warranty, and paying major buck at a dealership for something that most enthusiast car owners can easily do themselves.

That isn't bad at all. Knowing that, I'd definitely consider doing it myself. I have some buddies who may even have the AC specific tools, so I'd just be out the R1234YF.

 

[SCOPESYS]

That isn't bad at all. Knowing that, I'd definitely consider doing it myself. I have some buddies who may even have the AC specific tools, so I'd just be out the R1234YF.

If you have AC knowledgeable "Buddies", you might find it interesting to talk to them about the owner of a more recent model car, working on his own car, switching to R134 from the ridiculously expensive newer R1234YF.
(Now that's opened Pandora Box !! )

 

[tonton81]

Got my car back from where I bought it. They had the machine hooked up and put dye in the system and purged/refilled the entire r1234yf refridgerant, runs cold now and blows cold on drivers side now
will see how long it lasts, didnt pay anything took about 2 hours of waiting at service.

 

[LittleRedCivic]

I bought a used 18 from dealership. Just went past 3750 mi dealer warrenty without buying any extended warranty. Im guessing this won't be covered under manufacturers warranty?

 

[grimmy]

Brought mine in for AC issues and they said it was a leak. My warranty expired back in March but I only have 26k miles on my 16 civic. Repair cost is 2k and they said the would contact the District manager to see what they could do about the cost.

If this is a known issue why should we have to pay for the repair? Warranty shouldn't matter.

 

[Sitio23]

So I just got my quote to replace the AC in my car. Picture attached. Seems a bit steep if you ask me.

 

[19redsi]

Has anyone condensed (great pun...get it?) the information in these threads into something more viewable by trim level and year? I'd be curious to see if the condensers failing are on non-turbo cars more often. The intercooler blocks the condenser, so it should protect it.

 

[Captain Falcon]

My AC has been blowing warm on the driver side. It took a really hot day here in the Northeast to really expose the problem. I was having the problem a couple months ago but it wasn’t hot enough outside for me to really notice. I’m currently at 37 months and 17,000 miles. I called Honda corporate and they told me to basically suck on a brick. I'm waiting for my dealer service manager to call back. I can't believe how petty Honda corp is being considering my situation -- 37 months and 17,000 miles!!!!

 

[Moonlit]

I am now in this sad group. I bought out my lease as I had super low mileage and liked the car. Two months after the purchase (ie, the car was 38 months old and under 10k miles) on the first hot day of the season, the air blew hot. They couldn't find a leak but put dye in and recharged. This week, two months after that recharge, hot air again and the condenser needs to be replaced. The guy at the dealership strongly felt there would be at least a portion paid via goodwill but the bad news is, condensers are backordered and I will spend at least three weeks in a hot area of the country, in summer, without A/C. I'm gutted and wish I hadn't purchased it.

 

[npike]

Add me to the club. My 2016 Civic Touring 40,300 miles recently went in for a checkup and they took 6 hours to tell me that:

- Condenser and compressor need to be replaced. No sign of road damage.
- I had reported an additional symptom that the driver side is blowing hot whereas passenger side is maybe 5 degrees cooler (still not COLD). Service Advisor stated that even after replacing the AC components, there may be an issue inside the dashboard near driver side that would continue to prevent adequate AC flow. She referenced an "article", but I can't find it.

On top of all of this the parts are "backordered for months", so they can't even do the [quoted] almost $1800 repair if I wanted to pay it.

Service Advisor "sent an email to Honda Corporate" to ask for some good will assistance, but she hasn't heard back from them yet.

So here I am, Southern California, waiting to hear back if I should be selling my not even 4 year old Civic and going somewhere else. Disappointing. It's been such an awesome car.

 

[Sitio23]

Add me to the club. My 2016 Civic Touring 40,300 miles recently went in for a checkup and they took 6 hours to tell me that:

- Condenser and compressor need to be replaced. No sign of road damage.
- I had reported an additional symptom that the driver side is blowing hot whereas passenger side is maybe 5 degrees cooler (still not COLD). Service Advisor stated that even after replacing the AC components, there may be an issue inside the dashboard near driver side that would continue to prevent adequate AC flow. She referenced an "article", but I can't find it.

On top of all of this the parts are "backordered for months", so they can't even do the [quoted] almost $1800 repair if I wanted to pay it.

Service Advisor "sent an email to Honda Corporate" to ask for some good will assistance, but she hasn't heard back from them yet.

So here I am, Southern California, waiting to hear back if I should be selling my not even 4 year old Civic and going somewhere else. Disappointing. It's been such an awesome car.

Same thing happened to me... You can take it to another shop and ask for a freon refill and that should work. At least it did on mine.

 

[Moonlit]

Same thing happened to me... You can take it to another shop and ask for a freon refill and that should work. At least it did on mine.

This is an interesting idea. I didn't think to ask the dealership, "hey, if the condenser can't be a replaced for a month, how about you just recharge my refrigerant and let it slowly leak out so I can at least not die every time I step into my car?" I may call them tomorrow to ask. I mean, it has seriously affected the way I have to do things because it's just unbearable here, 90's and humid, and you're in what is essentially a greenhouse. I can only run errands or do things in the early morning or after dark.

I wouldn't go to another shop because it's hundreds of dollars around here and maybe the dealership would do it for cheap or free based on the circumstances.

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