I bought a red touring model in Sept 1992. Currently has 9,900 miles on it. Always garaged, never driven in the rain. Perfect except ..... Took to Mazda dealer in Baton Rouge for alignment. A/C blowing not quite as cold as it should be. Technician added 18 oz freon (a lot more than I would have thought as it was still blowing cool). Drove it home and it was cold!. Did not drive till the next weekend - when I turned on the A/C, the fans turned on but I never heard the A/C clutch allow the compressor to come on. Turns out it was completely out of freon 12. Mazda dealer said it was the compressor leaking. Technician said there was oil on the bottom of the compressor.

Went back on March 20 to have the drier and compressor replaced. Followed my wife home and she said it cooled great. Also noticed, three stop lights were out. Not sure if this is connected or not. On March 24, I put a thermometer in center outlet with A/C fan speed set on #1 speed. The center vent measured 46 to 48 degrees F. Felt great. Yesterday, I took the car out in the afternoon and the A/C is again not working. Compressor will not cycle on. Looks like I am out of freon again.

Do you think the dealer would have replaced the compressor without doing a leak test? Do you think when they fill it back up with freon that I will need a new drier? Getting a little tired of the expenses. Really could use someone to tell me the steps I should expect the dealer to go through as they may not have been done.

Thanks for the help.

 

From my experiences with the dealer, I don't believe they actually *test* anything. They just keep replacing parts until they "get lucky".

It's fine for them, but you are the one paying the bucks when they are replacing crap that isn't broken...

You should do some searching around and see if there is a good rotary mechanic near you that isn't a dealership.

 

Check your evaporator, I had the same problem and the evaporator was gone.

 

Dealers suck. For a lot less than the cost of the old freon, they should have changed you over to the new freon and saved you big bucks. Now they are going to try to charge you for freon again. I had mine fixed by RP and they told me that except for the fittings, there is nothing different about the systems with the new freon gas. They did the retro fit and I can not tell the difference. It is actually against the law for them to not do a pressure test, but it is a dealership and they are lazy. You may not want to go any further without changing over to the new freon and find someone else to work on the car. No one should have their old system worked on until changed over to the new freon.

 

Yeah, I would get a second opinion before replacing more stuff. You are probably leaking somewhere. I doubt if anything is broken except for a leak since you had cold air before. If the compressor were broken, I don't see how you can get cold air after adding R12.

Look in yellow pages to find a specialist on auto air conditioning. You just can't trust those dealers. Don't ever go there again. They don't deserve your business and the only reason you should go back would be to get your money back on parts that aren't broken. File a complaint or something with the dealership owner or Mazda regional rep after you get it fixed by someone else.

 

Just do what I do in order to fix your a/c problem....never use the a/c! Using it is almost as bad as keeping the complete stock exhaust setup. Very restrictive to the mighty FD. No offense, but I'm not so sure that the FD is for you if you constantly have issues with the a/c functioning properly.

 

I've had my entire a/c replaced.... try checking your condenser for holes.... expansion valve (behind glove box) for leaks. then well go from there....
Ryker
P.S. dealerships will keep replacing stuff till they get lucky... lucky as in they just got you to drop another grand in that money pit we like to call an FD.

 

I don't think running AC is a sin! He lives down south and it's hot there. When I was living in NY and my Buick's AC broke down and we sat in traffic, it's miserable. Even living in Northern CA now, I get 100+ temp sometimes too.

 

I never use my a/c and I live in FL.

 

I'm always using my a/c... to keep the fans spinning on the radiator... since the damn things out of freon... speaking of which....where can you get the conversion kits at?
Ryker

 

Just wanted to let you know that the BR dealer fixed my AC. Several things were wrong. Mazda actually covered hundreds of dollars in parts for the repairs. They did it under "warranty." Having a problem is bad but having it repaired well and treated this well makes it seem like not a bad experience at all. Can recommend Diamond Mazda (Brandon) to anyone.

Mick

 

I just went thru having my A/C fixed also. If your dealer is doing the work properly, he should have put a fluorescent dye in the system. When even a small amount leaks, it will show up as a brilliant color when black light (UV) is shown on it. My compressor and the low pressure line both leaked. They have been replaced and the system works fine now. I did the R-134 conversion myself. You can get a conversion kit at most auto parts stores. The best way is to replace your drier/accumulator, pump down the system and add the new refrigerant. The R-134 is a lot cheaper than the R-12, but you need to get the leaks fixed before you do anything else. Dealer only took three attempts to get mine fixed, mainly because they were too impatient to let it sit to check for leaks before sending it home with me. Oh yeah- they also broke off my rear spoiler while it was in their shop and are refusing to pay for it. I have my lawyer going after them now. If you are lucky, you will find a specialty RX-7 shop so you do not have to go to the dealer. Dealer service on RX-7s generally is poor. You may have lucked out this time, but keep in mind that only a handfull of mechanics ever got the factory-sponsored training on the 3rd gen RX-7. I was going to the dealer because there is no one else close, but every service by them has been done wrong and required multiple trips back to get it fixed right. I have gotten too old and lazy to do the work myself, so now I have a one hour drive to go to a specialty rotary shop, but they will usually fix it right the first time. BTW- I envy your mileage on your FD. If you add a one and a zero in front of your mileage, that is about what is on mine. I have had to replace most every major part to get it back in shape since I bought it with 50K on the odometer.
Ron A.

 

I might have to try that dealership if I ever get the ***** to go to one

 

I bought a new clutch switch... the car still goes down instead of up on the RPMS...

 

Properly working A/C systems do not leak refrigerant over time, contrary to popular belief. In fact, the EPA requires that service/repair technicians locate and repair the source of the leak before topping off refrigerant. Would they replace a part without checking for leaks? I wouldn't doubt it for a second.

You can find the leak one of three ways.

1.) The way you're doing it now, replacing your system piece by piece....really expensive....not advised

2.) Soapy water test - coat your lines in soapy water after charging your system, and run it...look for bubbles...this isn't always reliable, as it may be a small, slow leak, or on the underside of a hard-to-see place.

3.) UV dye kit - some recharge kits come with UV dye built into them, others are standalone UV dye kits. These inject UV dye into the system, and the dye stains the area around the leak. You then use a UV light to "illuminate" your problem.

Note: Your A/C system runs off of 12a refrigerant. Don't go getting a 134a recharge kit with UV dye in it in order to DIY. Either get a cheapo MVAC certification and order a 12a/UV kit online, or just tell the dealership/shop to use dye to test for leaks.

Good luck

 

Wow, my bad ...just realized this thread was brought back from the dead. If OP still had problems, I'm sure they got over them by now.

 

l

This is quite possibly the stupidest advice I have heard to date.

Not using A/C doesnt add 3 inches, or make you some purist drift king. 95% of FD's are street cars.

To the OP, it does sound like you need to find a quality rotary mechanic or start researching and troubleshooting yourself.

 

^ Look at the dates man!!!!!