2006 Prius A/C Temperature Stuck?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by daveyedgar, Dec 5, 2025 at 3:30 PM.

  1. daveyedgar

    daveyedgar Junior Member

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    2008 Prius
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    Two
    When I camp in my prius and have it running overnight the a/c is blowing cold through the center vents
    ok. I have the auto off. It's in Florida so it is hot during the day and cold at night right now. Once I set it to
    center vents, max blower, max low temp it works fine, until I wake up the next morning and the car is warm with cool but not cold air barely coming out of the center vents as they were originally set. The blower fan is still blowing on max but the air flow seems restricted or blocked somehow.

    Its as if the temperature is stuck around 70 for example. I should be able to blow ice cold air fully through the center vents even if it is cold outside.

    I cycle through the different modes and blends and toggle the auto several times
    to try to unstick it, but it doesn't work.

    It seems like both the blend and mode door actuators are working since during
    the day when it's hot out I can cycle through the different modes and also can get it to go to heat and back to cold.

    Eventually later in the morning as I start driving the cold air finally comes
    back and blows strong. Playing with the buttons doesn't seem to have an effect.

    Have any of you experienced this? Would like some input before I start pulling stuff apart and throwing
    parts at it.
     
  2. Tombukt2

    Tombukt2 Senior Member

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    Maybe you're evaporator core is freezing up and you're trying to blow thru a brick of ice .?
     
    BiomedO1 likes this.
  3. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

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    There should be a sensor that prevents that, but running in manual mode with max. fan speed; you never know. You on recirculate or fresh air? How does your interior air filter look? You need to take a deep dive with techstream to see what all your sensors are seeing to nail-down the problem.
    Your radiator fans may not be turning, so it can't remove the heat from the R134. It works while the car is moving, because your pushing air through the condenser.

    Good Luck.....
     
    #3 BiomedO1, Dec 5, 2025 at 5:33 PM
    Last edited: Dec 5, 2025 at 5:39 PM
  4. daveyedgar

    daveyedgar Junior Member

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    That might be a possibility because I noticed that at the bottom of the heater box behind the center console I pulled the floor carpet aside and noticed some droplets of condensation that were frozen. How could I prevent that?
     
  5. daveyedgar

    daveyedgar Junior Member

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    Thanks, I leave it on fresh air overnight. The cabin filter is new. I'll check the radiator fans.
     
  6. pasadena_commut

    pasadena_commut Senior Member

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    What happens if you set the temperature to 68F, or basically anything other than MAX COLD?

    You might want to verify that the drain hose from the evaporator core is flowing normally. It runs under the passenger side foot well carpet.
     
  7. daveyedgar

    daveyedgar Junior Member

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    Thanks, good idea I'll try setting the temp like you said. I cleaned the drain tube last september, I'll check it again.