AC Blows Cold Around Town But Hot On the Interstate

[GLOCKer]

Very good. You've got AC again and it's cold, enjoy that. You are caring of your cars, that's great.

Let me lend you mine(swap) for a couple of months, and you can work out a few little bugs it has. I haven't had time to do anything really with mine, I just drive it and work it every day, approaching 224k miles now.

HAHAHA NO! I seem to have NO time!

In fact, my lack of time is what dictated why this thing went to a shop. I have a mechanic friend who works for our county's fleet maintenance department; before I was promoted and put back in a patrol car, he used to get stuck fixing my unmarked police trucks (I had a Ranger, an Explorer, and a F150). He does some work on the side for VERY cheap, and helped me (basically he did the work and I was getting in the way) rebuild my suspension and rear-end ($100!). He also did the brakes and rotors on my Explorer ($40!). He offered to do the AC and said that it'd be $125 to $150 if it was worse case scenario and the compressor needed replaced (if I supplied the parts). Unfortunately, after my promotion in January, my hours just didn't line up to do this. So out of convience, I had to drop it at a local shop for the work. It sucked paying the extra money, and not helping him out by putting a couple of bucks in his pocket. Back when I was working 8 hour day shifts as a "carpet cop" (I was a training instructor at the time), it was convenient to wake up early on a Saturday and take a 1 hour drive up to his house to screw around with the Explorer.

I work crappy shift hours now, from roughly 4:45PM to 5:30AM. I sleep from 7:00AM until 2:00PM on a good day. Once I get up and moving, I might have an hour or two before my wife comes home from work. I do ANYTHING I can to maximize my time with my wife because with these work hours I never see her. And then around 10:00PM she goes to bed. So I have a very small window of time that I can actually get stuff done with, practically, on any day off. If our master bedroom wasn't next to the garage, I'd be in there all night working on projects, like the Explorer. Unfortunately there is just no way to do that without disturbing my wife and making the dogs bark. On top of that, I have a back-log of yard work at the house, I need to repair the fence in the back yard, pressure wash our cabin at the lake, do some rust repair and painting on our cabin, and do yard work at the cabin.

ARGHHHHHHH There is just no time!!!!

One thing though; I want mine to see the mileage you are seeing with yours. I'm just over 158,x.. miles after 1 year of ownership (I think it had 156,38X when I got it). That means I plan on hanging onto my Explorer for a LONG time unless something catastrophic happens (please no!) or I end up in something like a new Ford Ranger 4x4 (probably wont happen!).

 

[koda2000]

The only thing not working perfectly on my 2001 Eddie Bauer is the light bulb on the headlight switch.

 

[CDW6212R]

Time is more precious than anything, period. We all have too much to do. I'm going to bed now and knowing I have to get my father's taxes all to the CPA tomorrow, court deadline coming soon.

I bought my black 98 Limited with 158k miles on it, about three years ago now. The mileage isn't the big key, age is really, wear of the obsolete parts and figuring out what obsolete parts I need that I don't have yet. Rear hatch latches I couldn't find, both hatch seals are long since unavailable. Those are the items I never had a hint of finding.

 

[GLOCKer]

A quick question:

Let's say the blend door is broken, and I successfully replace it. Now I've got to hook up the heater core again. Is there any special process to do that? What I'm getting at is, is there an issue if air is trapped in the coolant system or will it just work it's way out? Or will I need to do something to burp it out?

 

[CDW6212R]

That will be no trouble, the coolant flows through the HC constantly with the HCV open. You will just need to drive it a day or so, and then top off the over flow reservoir.

 

[GLOCKer]

That will be no trouble, the coolant flows through the HC constantly with the HCV open. You will just need to drive it a day or so, and then top off the over flow reservoir.

GREAT!
I just ordered a set of hose clamp tools so I can properly loosen and release the heater hose clamps. I went ahead and ordered a set; can't hurt ot have more tools to do future jobs!

 

[koda2000]

Tip - If you're reinstalling the OE squeeze style hose clamps on hoses that were previously installed, be sure to place the clamp exactly where it was on the hose (following its previous indentations) or it may leak.

 

[masospaghetti]

I had trouble getting the OE clamps to seal with new hoses. Never had this problem before (usually the OE style spring clamps seal the best) but I mine leaked in multiple places. New worm-drive clamps took care of the problem.

The parts stores all carry cheap worm-drive clamps now but you can still get good ones on Amazon. Search for "Breeze" or "Tridon" clamps, still USA-made.

 

[CDW6212R]

Ditto, OEM clamps are about the best, but top brand worm clamps have been a standard for decades. The stock type are just tough to remove in some locations, and the special $40 tool made for them helps a lot for those.

 

[GLOCKer]

Today was one of my days off from work but I went in for a couple of hours to teach a class, and I decided to drive the Explorer for the 1 hour round trip.

The AC does not get hot when cruising at interstate speeds anymore, and keeps it a comfortable temperature. It doesn't get as cold as I would like it, but it is cold and comfortable. I want ice cubes forming on my face cold, and I've probably gotten too used to the power and efficiency of the HVAC systems in new cars.

 

[CDW6212R]

Today was one of my days off from work but I went in for a couple of hours to teach a class, and I decided to drive the Explorer for the 1 hour round trip.

The AC does not get hot when cruising at interstate speeds anymore, and keeps it a comfortable temperature. It doesn't get as cold as I would like it, but it is cold and comfortable. I want ice cubes forming on my face cold, and I've probably gotten too used to the power and efficiency of the HVAC systems in new cars.

Do you run it on MAX, or just the AC? I use MAX and adjust the temperature to around 71-74 depending on outside, and switch to AC after a long while. MAX recirculates the air, and it is colder, but after a long time the evaporator needs some outside air to keep it from freezing(which reduces airflow).

 

[GLOCKer]

I was running it on MAX and it was set to 60 degrees. It was comfortable, just not freezing.

 

[CDW6212R]

Does it feel like it blows a lot of air, volume? If not, then it could help to remove the blower motor and clean out the pocket behind, up against the evaporator. Mine had a handful of stuff, I replaced the motor thinking it would help long term.

 

[GLOCKer]

Good morning! Yes, it's my morning; I woke up at 2pm. Ughhhh. What a long weekend.

So I just woke up and went out to replace the blend door actuator with the crescent gear that @koda2000 sent out to me. What I found was the peg from the gear fell into the hole in any orientation and is not engaging the top of the blend door. When I stuck my pinky finger into the hole, it felt like the top end of the axle of the blend door isn't lined up in the hole the gear fits into. When I try to move it with my pinky finger, it feels like it moves around pretty freely. It's hard to tell, but it feels like the socket at the top of the blend door axle where the gear goes into it is missing on one side! I'm ordering a new blend door!!!

 

[koda2000]

Good morning! Yes, it's my morning; I woke up at 2pm. Ughhhh. What a long weekend.

So I just woke up and went out to replace the blend door actuator with the crescent gear that @koda2000 sent out to me. What I found was the peg from the gear fell into the hole in any orientation and is not engaging the top of the blend door. When I stuck my pinky finger into the hole, it felt like the top end of the axle of the blend door isn't lined up in the hole the gear fits into. When I try to move it with my pinky finger, it feels like it moves around pretty freely. It's hard to tell, but it feels like the socket at the top of the blend door axle where the gear goes into it is missing on one side! I'm ordering a new blend door!!!

Viola! problem identified.

 

[GLOCKer]

I drove the Ex to the lake today, loaded up with stuff to do yard work at our cabin. I'm happy to say the AC was very cold driving home. I wonder if fooling around with the blend door yesterday put it in a position that allows the AC to cool more efficiently. Friday I'll do the blend door repair!

 

[GLOCKer]

Ughhhhh. I tore my back up loading and unloading the mower to cut the grass at the lake. I'm hoping that my back still isn't jacked by the time I wake up Friday afternoon so I can do this blend door repair.

 

[Mbrooks420]

I highly suggest a cargo basket for such things...

 

[masospaghetti]

Or just a sheet/blanket works too!

 

[Mbrooks420]

Or just a sheet/blanket works too!

Not gonna save your back .

I had a heavy duty two place dirt bike carrier that I used all the time. I had a sheet of plywood that would sit over the rails and screwed down. Hauled all sorts of stuff on it.