Hello group,
I'm experiencing some unusual behavior from the A/C on my 3L 2001 Ranger, and I'm wondering if anyone may have encountered this issue. I bought this truck a month ago, and I noticed this behavior for the first time within the last few days. The A/C was functioning perfectly during the hot weather back in August, and it still seems to work just fine when I turn on the A/C now.
I first realized that something was amiss when I parked the truck after driving to work the other day, and I noticed a puddle of condensate running along the ground from behind my right front wheel about wheel twenty minutes after I arrived. If I had actually been using the A/C within the last three weeks this wouldn't be considered a problem, but this has been happening every time I drive it recently, even if I have the heater controls set to the "off" positon.
At first I suspected that I had a leaking heater hose, but the hoses look brand new and show no evidence of a leak. Further inspection revealed that the A/C lines were very cold, with an even coating of condensation (unfrozen water droplets) all over them. Once this had my attention, I noticed that the A/C compressor is engaging and dis-engaging every thirty seconds or so, even when the system is delivering heat in any of the heat or defrost modes inside the cab. This condition remains constant throughout the entire range of the temperature control knob on the dashboard heater controls.
I suspect that I have a relay or switch problem somewhere that is engaging the compressor intermittently whether I want A/C or not, so I thought I'd ask if any of you folks had seen this issue before.
Cheers,
Ken