Minor cooling problem

[Jason94sport]

Since the south FL heat has come back, so has my cooling problems. The problems is when it's really hot out & I run my X a little hard, & then when I sit in traffic for 10 minutes. I have the AC cranked. The temp rises to the L in normal, & gradual rise to L. Then the AC gets warm. It's fine if I'm moving & the radiator gets airflow the temp comes back down & my AC comes back.
This doesn't happen all the time either. Just sometimes.
I had the same problem last summer & replaced the following since then.

Radiator
Rad. cap
Hoses
Heater core

Heater bypass valve
heater hoses
new coolant with water wetter
fan(new, no cracks)
fan clutch(I know it's working for sure)
thermostat(I know it's working for sure)
both temp sensors
drivebelt

I was thinking it's just a bad gauge, but that wouldn't explain why the AC gets warm as the temp get hot.

No codes, & my X runs just fine. No air in system.

At this point I'm stumped.

I just ordered all new AC stuff & going to install that & recharge the system. See if that does anything. The AC system is about the only thing original left.

 

[410Fortune]

Have you considered an actual tempature gage instead of the factory dummy gage? If you can monitor the actual tempature of the water in the block behind the thermostat instead of jsut saying it gets to the "L" you will know what the actual temp is and if it is acceptable

 

[mikeinri]

Here's something to try, might not be your problem, but it's FREE to try this (and this WAS my problem, same symptoms):

The auto tranny has a cooler in front of the A/C condensor. There are two rubber lines connecting the cooler to the metal tranny lines under the radiator. If you follow those up to the cooler (behind the grill), you will see where they connect to the cooler.

If those rubber lines are old, they will leak. When this happens, if you let it go long enough, it will coat the front of the A/C condensor with tranny fluid. This will attract and retain all sorts of road grime, leaves, etc. and block air from moving through the A/C condensor and radiator.

To fix this, replace the rubber lines (and clamps) and clean the front of the A/C condensor. You might also check to be sure the tranny cooler itself isn't leaking.

Most likely, you would see tranny fluid on the ground under the radiator, but it's still worth checking the front of the A/C condensor just to be sure it's not blocked up by this or something else.

Hope this helps.

Mike

 

[Jason94sport]

Those rubber lines are new as well. Replaced when my tranny was rebuilt 10K miles ago. No leaks anywhere. I'm replacing the condenser as well with the AC stuff.

 

[Jason94sport]

Have you considered an actual tempature gage instead of the factory dummy gage? If you can monitor the actual tempature of the water in the block behind the thermostat instead of jsut saying it gets to the "L" you will know what the actual temp is and if it is acceptable

Can you recommend something cheap & easy to install? Nothing permanent either.

 

[Tony H]

The AC needs air passing over it to help the condensor. Extreme heat and no air movement will have a warming affect on AC.

Last time you replaced teh T-stat, how crudded up was the inside of the Intake manifold? you could have an internal circulation problem that pops up in extreme heat.

 

[Willard]

have you thought about the water pump, usually it leaks when it goes bad, but i guess there is a possibility that it wouldn't.

 

[Jason94sport]

Intake manifold is clean, no buildup, The water pump I have not checked cause this problem is not consistent. Sometime it will do it & sometimes not. It's not leaking anywhere & it's been pressure tested. But I will look into it.

 

[Willard]

just seems to me that is the only thing left