AC set at cold went warm for 5 minutes then worked again

[donm527]

AC stops blowing cold air when idling, comes back when moving

just checking if anyone had similar experience or idea what could be happening...

driving home from work (40 min drive) as usual and AC running fine at 73... near home i feel the AC losing it's cool slowly. I park the car to check further and test by dropping temp to lowest and have it blow at max speed... and all cold is gone and just warm air. i try turning on and off, AC on and off, increase/decrease temp and nothing. i check the water temp gauge and running at the middle as usual. so i turn off AC because it's just blowing warm air now and start driving home...

i'm thinking crap i need to take the car in tomorrow morning and i turn on the AC while driving home just to check it again... then all of a sudden it's working blowing cold cold air.

wtf?? the water temp was normal pointing at middle while the air was blowing warm so thinking not the fans failing. anyone else? any ideas? anyone else? any ideas?

thx.

 

[Fab]

There have been some problems with overheating. One of the symptoms has been the AC. Not sure if that is your problem also or not. For me, the AC would blow warm air when idling, but would blow cold when driving again at highway speeds. There is a TSB that replaces a fan i believe. You might want to check out a lengthy thread on this board about overheating.

 

[new to ford]

I'll bet it's the cooling dual fan sensor. There is a TSB which indicates three possible symptoms:
overheat
loss of AC
Fans squealing at shutdown

Have this fixed ASAP before it turns into an overheat problem and leaves you stranded on the side of road.

 

[donm527]

thx. yeah, guess i was just hoping it wasnt the fans but could be and will have to take it in... definitely something...

last two days keeping an eye to try and figure it out... i notice at a light or stop at times the engine idling with a little extra noise... a light whine or growl... when that happens i notice the air losing it's cool and if i max the fan speed the air loses it completely and gets warm when showing 72-73. once i start driving the air will get cool/cold again.

fortunately watching water temp the whole time it's at normal level... maybe just lucky its in the 70s in floriday right now and not 90s.

ugh. guess, i'll tell them about my a-pillar noise and power liftgate not stopping properly.

well, could be worse... at least the wheels aren't falling off.

http://www.cnbc.com//id/45618936

I'll bet it's the cooling dual fan sensor. There is a TSB which indicates three possible symptoms:
overheat
loss of AC
Fans squealing at shutdown

Have this fixed ASAP before it turns into an overheat problem and leaves you stranded on the side of road.

 

[peterk9]

thx. yeah, guess i was just hoping it wasnt the fans but could be and will have to take it in... definitely something...

last two days keeping an eye to try and figure it out... i notice at a light or stop at times the engine idling with a little extra noise... a light whine or growl... when that happens i notice the air losing it's cool and if i max the fan speed the air loses it completely and gets warm when showing 72-73. once i start driving the air will get cool/cold again.

fortunately watching water temp the whole time it's at normal level... maybe just lucky its in the 70s in floriday right now and not 90s.

ugh. guess, i'll tell them about my a-pillar noise and power liftgate not stopping properly.

well, could be worse... at least the wheels aren't falling off.

http://www.cnbc.com//id/45618936

Ask me again in 6 or 7 months. Snowed a bit here today.

 

[davek4]

I just had the opposite problem yesterday. Driving with heat on. Stopped to run an errand & when I got back in & started the vehicle, cold air was blowing. Turned climate on & off, adjusted temperature, etc but nothing helped. About 5 minutes later, heat started to blow again??????????

 

[vig1116]

I just had the opposite problem yesterday. Driving with heat on. Stopped to run an errand & when I got back in & started the vehicle, cold air was blowing. Turned climate on & off, adjusted temperature, etc but nothing helped. About 5 minutes later, heat started to blow again??????????

happens to me a lot too... i am hoping the new update in jan/feb will fix it..

 

[peterk9]

I just had the opposite problem yesterday. Driving with heat on. Stopped to run an errand & when I got back in & started the vehicle, cold air was blowing. Turned climate on & off, adjusted temperature, etc but nothing helped. About 5 minutes later, heat started to blow again??????????

I'm just wondering how much the engine may have cooled down. I think mine may operate the same way. I'll have to pay more attention to it. It could just be the way the system works. Unlike the old systems that just blow air as soon as you turn them on and then gradually warm up, the newer systems seem to remain off until the engine/coolant reaches a certain temperature and then they come on.

 

[donm527]

i'm definitely going to have to take mine in to fix cause with every day... it's obvious now that when the car idles thru a long light and i have the temp set at lo and max, it starts blowing at room temp/warm... green light and i car gets at speed, in about a mile the air is now blowing finger numbing cold. i'm pretty sure the fans are not running at idle. just lucky the water temp doesnt change from middle position.

what an inconvenience... i thought buying in May i missed the bad fan issue... and also i have to tell them about the apillar rattle on drivers side and the power liftgate not stopping when you want it to stop.

I'm just wondering how much the engine may have cooled down. I think mine may operate the same way. I'll have to pay more attention to it. It could just be the way the system works. Unlike the old systems that just blow air as soon as you turn them on and then gradually warm up, the newer systems seem to remain off until the engine/coolant reaches a certain temperature and then they come on.

 

[donm527]

UPDATE... took the Ex in this saturday morning at 8am... got it back at 3pm...

Bad radiator fan... locked up. fortunately they had the part and fixed it. got a LOT of air circulating in the engine bay, my AC is ice cold at red lights and the fans spin quietly.

the fans are crap out of factory and thought i missed the reported issues having a may car. but telling ya... if you find one day your ac running warm or hear whirring type noises from the engine bay... take it in and get the fans replaced.

i also told them about the a-pillar noise and they tried to fix and didnt work so they are looking into it.

also told them about my power liftgate and not being able to stop it while in motion until it gets to end... they said their shop data says that's normal... even though someone posted a youtube vid showing otherwise. they said they'll look into it.

what a waste of a day dealing with it. but the dealership was great.