The A/C on my wife's car works absolutely fine (in terms of chucking out lots of very cold air) but when it's first truned on, there's a soft gtating/grumbling noise from the system which settles down after a bit.
What are the likely causes?
(It's a Mitsubishi Space Star fwiw).
Tim
might be pump, but first check if there is an idler/tensioner for the belt for the air con, it may just be a noisy bearing in that.
mrcheerful
With most cars I've seen on the air con compressor pump there's a pulley driven by a belt, and behind the pulley there's a solenoid operated clutch which engages/disengages the compressor drive when you switch the air con on/off. It could be worn and slipping, or maybe the compressor bearings are drying up or shot. I'd check the simple things first though, eg a slipping belt, because the other two things I mentioned are pricey repairs.
Have you had it regassed lately, and was it done professionally? AIUI, when the refrigerant is topped up/replaced there's also a quantity of oil which must be added to the system. If it is low on oil it'll wreck your air con system. Also, do you only use it once in a blue moon? Not switching the air con on once a week or so will allow the oil to run back down to the lowest point in the system, which may mean the compressor pump starts dry each time you run the air con, until the oil circulates back round the system. Air con should be operated regularly or it will have a shortened life expectancy.
Dave
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