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2008 335d climate control/aircon not working- no cold air

As per subject line, the climate control seems to have packed-in on my car.= All the lights and controls behave as normal. The green light on the snowf= lake symbol comes on when pressed and the fan/blower kicks in, suggesting t= hat the system is trying to control the cabin temperature. However, the air= never comes out at anything less than ambient. The heating function still = works. I must confess that I cannot be sure whether the aircon failure is the culm= ination of a gradual reduction in efficiency, or whether it is a sudden fau= lt. It came to light about three weeks back, when the missus borrowed the c= ar for a long trip on a very hot day. I had several, increasingly desperate= phone calls from her, asking how to get the aircon working. I ran through = all the adjustments I could think of, but somehow imagined that she must ha= ve failed to follow instructions. When I got the car back, it transpired th= at the system was indeed failing to produce cold air, no matter what. Hoping that low refrigerant level might be the root cause of the problem, I= took the car to Kwik Fit for vacuum removal and replacement. No change (bu= t no charge either, since I didn't get my =3Dor>10% reduction in air temper= ature). I have checked fuses 6, 77 and 88 which, according to the fusebox diagram, = are involved in aircon. No problems with these. So, my question is, where to next? Is there anything else I can easily chec= k before I resign myself to GBH of the wallet at a garage or aircon special= ist? Incidentally, would people here recommend an aircon specialist or a BM= W dealer? Advice appreciated. Regards,

Jim.

Reply to
Jim Walsh
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So, when you press the button in, do you hear a ka-chunk from the AC compressor as the clutch pulls in, and then hear the engine load increase? If not, no voltage is getting to the compressor clutch to turn the AC on.

In order for the AC to turn on, the box in the dashboard has to be ready, and two or three pressure valves in the AC system need to be ready. If you have the Haynes manual you should be able to identify them all and check with a meter to make sure they are closed.

If the system pressure is too high or too low, those switches won't close and the AC won't turn on.

Your problem is that you don't have a gauge package so you don't have any way to determine what the system pressures are. But you CAN check the pressure switches at least.

I'd suggest an independent BMW specialist, but the AC systems are really pretty easy to work on. Got a friend with a gauge set?

--scott

Reply to
Scott Dorsey

Jim.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++ My suggestion is to visit the local air conditioning shop. Look in the morning newspaper -- it's kinda like a blog, but you cannot reply, and they throw it in your driveway or you get one at the donut shop -- for a coupon.

You can raise the hood (bonnet) and _LOOK_ at the air conditioning compressor to see if it is cycling on and off, but since you had to ask if you could check this, I'm not sure I could explain where to look.

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

I don't hear any noises when I turn on the a/c, over and above the air circ= ulation fan kicking in. I'm not sure I ever noticed a noise on engaging a/c= , even when it was working. I'm in the habit of having the system permanent= ly turned on and climate control set to "auto". Consequently, the noise of = the a/c compressor engaging has always been drowned out by fan noise. If I = press the snoflake (a/c on) button without air circulation, should the comp= resor still engage?=20

Thanks,

Jim

Reply to
Jim Walsh

I think I am resigned to booking it into an a/c specialist, but out of curi= osity, is the compressor the aluminium-bodied device at the nearside (UK, s= o left hand side) front upper portion of the engine bay, connected to the s= ame belt that drives the alternator? There is a clip-on access hole cover i= n the plastic engine cowl that allow the thing to be viewed from above.

Thanks,

Jim.

Reply to
Jim Walsh

I don't know on your model. It does on most older models, it does not on most newer ones.

If the hood is up and someone presses the button while you look in the engine compartment, you can hear the ka-chunk and see the engine shift as the load changes pretty easily.

--scott

Reply to
Scott Dorsey

I think I am resigned to booking it into an a/c specialist, but out of curiosity, is the compressor the aluminium-bodied device at the nearside (UK, so left hand side) front upper portion of the engine bay, connected to the same belt that drives the alternator? There is a clip-on access hole cover in the plastic engine cowl that allow the thing to be viewed from above.

Thanks,

Jim.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

We don't get the 335d over here in the Colonies, so I cannot tell you where it lives. But on the gasoline engines, the AC is driven by itself, that is there is a belt from the crank to the AC, and it goes nowhere else.

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

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