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2009 Prius A/C not blowing cold

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by cidh, Apr 16, 2019.

  1. cidh

    cidh New Member

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    Hopefully I'm on the correct forum here.

    I have a 2009 Prius (156k miles) with A/C that's not blowing cold. I can press the A/C button on the display, and it beeps and indicates that the A/C is on. But the air coming out of the vents isn't cold at all (so it's as if I have the vent running without A/C on). A/C was working towards the end of last year, but I didn't try it again until March or so this year (never needed to run it during winter while weather was cold). So something happened between then and now.

    The heat works fine when I run it.

    Here are a few things I've checked/tried already:

    - Checked A/C fault codes (hold recirc/auto buttons on steering wheel at the same time, press power button twice while holding those, see what codes flash on the screen). The code displayed on the screen is 42, then
    98 (then it just alternates flashing between those two numbers forever until I turn it off) in that mode. I tried to look those up but haven't had much luck finding anything useful.

    - Checked fuse under steering wheel area. That looks good.

    - Had refrigerant checked and was told that's not the problem.

    I did have a problem with the ABS a couple of months back which required the ABS accumulator and resistor replaced (done at a local shop, not a dealer). That fixed the problem with the ABS, and the car is running like a champ with no other issues now, but the A/C isn't working.

    The thing is, I'm also not sure if the A/C problem occurred before or after the ABS stuff because that work was done in about early February (ie, when it was still cold here, so I hadn't run the A/C in at least a few months by that point anyway). I'm wondering if maybe there's something just hanging unplugged behind the dashboard, but I'm also not sure what specifically I'm looking for.

    Any suggestions? I can at least tolerate driving around with the windows down since it's not incredibly hot here right now, but I really don't want to drive around in a car that doesn't have working A/C when the weather here really start heating up over the next few months.
     
    #1 cidh, Apr 16, 2019
  2. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    Welcome to PC! Refrigerant is the most common cause I've seen. Did a pro check it?
     
    #2 jerrymildred, Apr 16, 2019
  3. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    can you hear the compressor running?
     
    #3 bisco, Apr 17, 2019
  4. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    The codes you noticed are associated with DTC B1442 and B1498. B1442 means there is a fault with the air inlet damper control servomotor circuit. B1498 is a communications failure between the hybrid ECU and the air conditioner inverter circuit. Either or both of those might have been caused by someone messing around with the dashboard. The comm failure might be caused by damage to the wiring harness connecting to the inverter (which had to be removed for access to the actuator).

    Its too late now, but I would not have had the resistor replaced at the time that the brake actuator was replaced due to the effort involved and the risk of damaging dashboard components. The worst case issue caused by a mismatched resistor is that the actuator will make more noise than it otherwise might.
     
    #4 Patrick Wong, Apr 19, 2019
  5. Dxta

    Dxta Senior Member

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    I'm still imagining what sort resistor you're talking about in the ABS assembly.
     
    #5 Dxta, Apr 19, 2019
  6. John321

    John321 Senior Member

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    Here is a picture of the resistor they are talking about- it is in the brake actuator motor circuit. It is located in the vehicle interior, drivers side high up behind the dash. It is actually accessible without removing the dash. you have to lay on your back and do some tight work to replace it. I removed and replaced mine in about 30 minutes this way. Having done it once I think i could do it now in about 10 or 15 minutes if everything went right.
    The vehicle was a regular 2008 Prius.





    upload_2019-4-19_6-25-36.jpeg
     
    #6 John321, Apr 19, 2019
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