Warm A/C when Idle

[richard schumacher]

Originally Posted by scorpionsix

A week later, I have found that if I turn off the Auto AC, and set the fan speed to medium or lower, I get a much cooler temperature in the warm Phoenix AZ afternoon heat.

That sounds peculiar. What happens if you leave it in Auto and simply set the temperature lower? But hey, whatever works :_>

[scorpionsix]

So, do all your vehicles run "ice cold" when idle or moving below 10 mph? Is this the same when the outside temps are around 85 to 95 Degrees and your car is warmed up? Currently, my AC is only "ice cold" above 60mph and above 20 mph its cold. But at low speeds and idle the AC feels like the ac isn't even on and I am simply blowing outside air in (mildly cool - like a warm day in the shade)...

Have a 2nd appointment to verify that I am not crazy - if this fails then I will be test driving a newer Prius to see if what my car is doing is normal.

Thanks again to everyones comments!

[richard schumacher]

Yes, nice and cold when the car is not moving. I agree it's not as cold as when the car is moving fast, but if you can't feel it at all then something is broken.

[scorpionsix]

3rd and Final Follow-up

$1725 dollars later (of which $1675 was covered by extended warranty) I am now happy to report that my AC is cold all the time. It turns out the compresser was coming a part internally and was only putting out 75 volts on High (when it should have been around 195 volts). A new receiver/dryer & compresser was installed and the system recharged.

NOW LIFE IS GOOD in the HOT Phoenix Summer weather!

Thank you all for your helpful responses

[mingoglia]

Originally Posted by scorpionsix

3rd and Final Follow-up

$1725 dollars later (of which $1675 was covered by extended warranty) I am now happy to report that my AC is cold all the time. It turns out the compresser was coming a part internally and was only putting out 75 volts on High (when it should have been around 195 volts). A new receiver/dryer & compresser was installed and the system recharged.

NOW LIFE IS GOOD in the HOT Phoenix Summer weather!

Thank you all for your helpful responses

Sounds good. I was going to suggest meeting up so you could compare yours to mine. I'm in Gilbert, but will be up in Glendale tomorrow evening.

Also, many may think their A/C is working perfectly if they for example live in Canada.... but in the southwest US, we really push our A/C and if it's not 100% we can feel a difference when we're trying to cool down a 150 degree interior that's been sitting baking under the sun on a 115 degree day.

[scorpionsix]

Thanks for the offer! If my last service visit did not fix the problem, I was considering trading in the car because you are SO right about the HOT temperatures here. Comuting in the HOV lane was always cool inside, but when you drive up to an accident or looky-loo's and have to slow down, it was almost cooler to simply roll the window's down.

I can not begin to put in words how much I missed my Prius when I had to drive in the regular lane -- Commuting 30 miles one way. It Sucked!

Thanks Again!