# Air Conditioner Problem



## large168 (Jun 7, 2002)

Hello. It seems there is something wrong with my airconditioner on my 1998 200sx se-r. I posted on another section, but I have a new question: If I turn on the AC button and turn on the fan, should I notice or hear the compressor going even if I am out of refrigerant? I had thought that I was out of refrigerant, but now I noticed that even when I turn the AC on, the car seems to have no reaction to the AC. Any ideas on how I can check to see if it is something other than the refrigerant.


----------



## BORNGEARHEAD (Apr 30, 2002)

The compressor may not kick on with low refrigerant. Did the a/c cool less and less over time or did it just stop working? If it just stopped working it could be a number of things. Have you tried jumping the relay and the high pressure switch. If you jump them and the compressor kicks on, you need the one that you jumped. Try that first. 
Oh, by the way, If you turn your a/c on, your a/c fan should stay on.


----------



## large168 (Jun 7, 2002)

BORNGEARHEAD said:


> *...Have you tried jumping the relay and the high pressure switch. If you jump them and the compressor kicks on, you need the one that you jumped. Try that first... *


How do I 'jump' the relay and high pressure switch? 

I'm learning something new everyday. Thank you.


----------



## BORNGEARHEAD (Apr 30, 2002)

On the high pressure switch- I think on your car, it is on the receiver/drier, which is that big bullet looking canister. I think it's right next to your condenser. There is an electrical connection to it. Unplug it, bend a paper clip like a "U" and stick it in the to slots in the connector on the harness. That's how you jump the pressure switch. Do it with the car running. If you hear the compressor kick on when you do this, then it needs a high pressure switch. 
On the relay-Look for the a/c relay in the fuse block under the hood. Pull the relay out. If you have a relay that looks identical to the a/c relay in another slot, you can put it in place of the relay you took out for the a/c relay(of course don't pull out a relay to use that will not allow the car to run. Do this with the car running also. If the compressor kicks on then that is what you need.


----------



## large168 (Jun 7, 2002)

Thanks, Born, I will try it out and hope that I don't get electrocuted....I love this forum!


----------



## large168 (Jun 7, 2002)

OK, I checked the Fuse for the A/C Compressor (under the hood) and it was FINE. Then I 'jumped' the pressure switch and, lo and behold, the compressor hummed to life and the associated fans started to spin. 

If I remember correctly, it seems that the A/C was cooling less and less over time, so I'm going to guess that the refrigerant ran low and that's why the pressure switch cut the A/C off so it won't ruin the A/C clutch (I was doing a little research).

It seems that I'm gonna have to bring the car to the shop and have them take a gander at it for shits and giggles. 

By the way, I found this sight that seems to have a lot of OEM parts for Nissan vehicles, but be warned, I have never ordered from them. But they DO have great diagrams for almost all the parts of the car that anyone may be curious about...it helped me to figure out which piece was the 'pressure switch' for sure...
http://www.parts.com/ 

Oh, just out of curiosity, I just went out to my car and jumped the relay again, but this time, I left the paper-clip on the harness and went into my car for a few minutes....NO Cool air at all....so I suppose that this test shows that I am more than likely out of refrigerant....damn, and it's close to 90 degrees outside!

Many thanks to the Forum.


----------



## large168 (Jun 7, 2002)

Just to finalize this post, I took my car to Gregoris Nissan on LI and had them refill the refrigerant. They quoted me a price of $129 for the recharge and dye test, to test for leaks. They did this and immediately said that most if not all the refrigerant leaked out. The culprit was the High Pressure Hose. So, they had to special order the hose and I will have to go back to get it installed when it comes. In the meantime, I had to pay the $129 eventhough all the refrigerant is already leaked away. 

Now, a few days later, I go back to the shop and they install the high pressure hose. It took about 1.5 hours to install and recharge. Everything went fine, however, I am out another $200 beans. 

But, after all that, I have cool air in my car and thanks to the advice on this forum, I was able to test the major components of the a/c before going into the shop. At least I sounded like I knew a little of what I was talking about at the shop so they couldn't rape me. Although $300 is not chump change, it's better than having to replace the compressor or other major a/c components.

Thanks again for all those that helped.


----------

