Why Is Your Car’s Air Con Not Cold?

Bradley Jando | Monday 30th August 2021 3:09pm

As summer reaches its peak, keeping cool in your vehicle has never felt more important. There’s nothing quite like beating the heat while driving. But if all your air conditioning seems to do is blow hot air in your face, there are a whole host of things that could be wrong with it.

If your car’s cooling system has left you feeling red-faced recently, read on to find out some reasons why.

Checking your car’s air con

Your car’s air con health is not typically checked in a usual service. Since air conditioning in a car is more of a comfort than a safety feature, mechanics will prioritise things like brake and engine oil checks instead.

But that doesn’t mean your car’s air con isn’t important.

Book a Free Air Con Check with Kwik Fit today for a diagnosis of why your car’s internal climate is not cool anymore. It could be any one of the following reasons:

1. Your need an air con regas

As the most common reason for poor air-con performance, the level of charge left in your AC system is likely to be the culprit for all that hot air.

To solve this problem, you’ll need to undertake an air con regas procedure. This can be a complicated process, so it is recommended that you get a specialist to regas your air conditioning system for you.

2. Your air con condenser is blocked or damaged

Your car’s condenser is a crucial part of your air conditioning system.

Working to convert the hot, high-pressure gas from the compressor into a cool liquid, the condenser is the element responsible for the cooling factor. Over time, dust and dirt particles can accumulate there, reducing the efficiency of the condensing process and eventually causing a blockage.

If this blockage is not addressed soon enough, it can cause damage to the condenser. When blocked or damaged, the condensed liquid is no longer able to be cooled effectively — hence the hot air. Every so often, it is advised you visually inspect the front of your car condenser for debris.

3. Your air con fans have failed

The condenser can also cause problems if its fan motors fail. This, again, is caused by the accretion of dust and dirt in the condensing system, but can also be triggered by electrical issues like a blown fuse.

The motor fan can also be damaged by collected debris, preventing the flow of cool air. Repairing fans can be a tricky process, so trust it to one of our professionals.

4. Your air con’s refrigerant is leaking

Another common reason for a car’s air con failure is leaking refrigerant.

But, what is refrigerant? Refrigerant is the low-flammability cooling fluid that maintains the pressure of your air conditioning system. A leak can occur anywhere across the whole system. If this happens, the pressure drops and all elements underperform – especially the compressor.

Check for an oily liquid leaking in your air conditiong system but be careful not to touch any of the liquid as it can be extremely dangerous.

Sometimes, a leak can be fixed by placing sealant over the weakened area. However, occasionally all the refrigerant needs to be flushed out and replaced. For this procedure, we recommend you get in touch with your local Kwik Fit centre for specialist help.

5. Your compressor has failed

The element responsible for pumping the refrigerant around the AC system is called the compressor. If this fails, the overall pressure of your car’s cooling system will decrease, causing a noticeable drop in performance. Compressor failure can have a number of causes, most notably leaking refrigerant, as mentioned above, or an electrical fault in your vehicle.

6. There is an electrical fault

If your car’s electrical system is not working properly, your air conditioning doesn’t stand a chance. Blown fuses, switch failure, and a shorted blower control circuit are all possible culprits. While these issues are often minor and easily treated, if left unattended for long periods of time, more serious problems can occur such as acid buildup.