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Common AC Leak Points or Failure Grand Prix

mainecrab

mainecrab

New member
I have a 97 Grand Prix GT. I have an AC leak that I can hear is near the compressor area but cannot pinpoint where. Should I just replace the entire hose ac accumulator and compressor and that should fix it? well I mean as well as the orifice tube and vacuum check pressure and refill?

Its weird ebcause when I put in the freon it will hold about a day but last night I could hear it coming out but it was cold so it seemed maybe a bad O ring or something? Would a bad compressor still get cold temps? it wasnt too loud either.
 


you can use freon with leak detector die in it so where it turns red, you found your leak, then repair where the leak is and recharge it.
 
Yeah I used UV dye but I didnt see it anywhere that I could fit the UV lamp. I guess ill have to try it again.
 
same thing happened to me...put die in let the a/c run for a while to circulate the die..never found a leak..but i always lose the freon...however once it gets down to like 15 psi it holds and doesnt go any lower..odd to me lol..im assuming its an o-ring that cant handle the high pressure but can handle the lower pressure.
 


keep in mind i have dual zone, and i have almost heat on driver side and ice cube air on the other. BUT i have A/C. on both sides. :th_scratchhead:
 


probably a bad heater control valve, not letting coolant get into the heater core

4THGENCAMAROFAN said:
same thing happened to me...put die in let the a/c run for a while to circulate the die..never found a leak..but i always lose the freon...however once it gets down to like 15 psi it holds and doesnt go any lower..odd to me lol..im assuming its an o-ring that cant handle the high pressure but can handle the lower pressure.
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14.7psi is atmospheric pressure, it won't leak itself into a vacuum lol

/threadjack.

OP, if it's coming out to the point where you can hear it, i would imagine you could see the UV dye or notice a pretty big hole. a bad compressor would lead to no cold air, and it would also sound like sh!t. if you charge it and it blows cold, you probably just have a major leak instead of a broken part. you could try replacing the lines going in to and coming out of the compressor and then pulling a vacuum/charging/see if it works. just check all of your parts really well to make sure the leak isn't in the condenser, etc. i'd hate to do the same job twice
 
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4THGENCAMAROFAN said:
hmmm..im gonna take my UV light tomorrow night and check there too..thanks for the idea Rynoman
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No Prob basically just follow the lines with a uv light and glasses wherever it goes you look. I hate HVAC BS. Mines not working again. Last time i had issues with it, it took me 600 bux to get it right again.
 
keep in mind that gauge pressures don't tell you a whole lot about the amount of refrigerant in a system just because of the nature of gases. if you really wanna test to see if you're low on refrigerant, open all the doors to give the system an infinate cooling load and listen to the compressor. if it cycles on and off quickly, you're low on refrigerant.
 
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Poil336 said:
probably a bad heater control valve, not letting coolant get into the heater core



14.7psi is atmospheric pressure, it won't leak itself into a vacuum lol
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HAHAAHAHAH WOOOOOWWWWW...no wonder, thats makes perfect sense..i NEVER thought of that...so long story short..im loosing ALL my freon lol..im soo dumb for not rememerbing that atmospheric pressure is 14.7
 


Poil336 said:
keep in mind that gauge pressures don't tell you a whole lot about the amount of refrigerant in a system just because of the nature of gases. if you really wanna test to see if you're low on coolant, open all the doors to give the system an infinate cooling load and listen to the compressor. if it cycles on and off quickly, you're low on refrigerant.
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Sh!t my compressor won't even turn on right now lol. But i'm not gonna hi-jack your thread man. Good luck!
 
jerZcavy4120 said:
so what does it mean when your car has a/c but absolutely zero heat?
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Does the heat come on when you have it turned all the way up and does the DIC work? I had this same problem. My heater only worked when it was turned to the highest setting and my DIC didn't work. I replaced the ignition switch and it fixed both problems
 
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