papo470

does anyone feel their a/c is not cold enough?..because my a/c is not that cold. i have to turn the fan speed all the way high in order to be comfortable in the car. my '87 supra blows colder than this, my mother's Sienna, my friends camry, and my sister's accord.

i took it to the dealer, and they flushed the whole system, filled it back up to the right pressure, and still is not that cold. i am going to take it back again, now that the weather here in nj is hot, and i can tested then and there once they are finished with it. i just wanted to know your opinions on the matter.


thanks

Gerardo

Z PHAT Z

iTrader: (46)

I also notice that too. The AC is no way near cold. Even older POS can blows colder air than the 350Z.

sinnj

i was think the same thing yesterday as I was driving home... had the air on high the whole ride!! I was thinking what the hell... this car is small, it should be freeeezzzzing in here.... My wife's car, (Caddy) you need a fur coat to keep warm if the air is on high. Not to mention the car is kind of a dog with the air on. I would think if it robs that much HP from the car, then it would have to get cold... but nope!

jim350z

the past few days i notice a strong stale air smell coming from the air conditioner unit when i start up. it goes away in couple of minutes. any else have this or know the cause?

sinnj

yup... I believe you would call that mold! heheheheh I have it to.... musty smell almost

samlc

Yes, the a/c is terrible. I find most economy rental cars (ford focus, mazda 323, kia) blow colder. I had the dealer check it and they said everything's fine. Just like the fit & finish, this may be something we all have to live with....

davidh

I agree. I live in Miami and MAN is it hot here. The a/c on my 'Vette was much colder than the Z, Although I find that my fingers get cold because it blows directly on them, the cabin doesn't cool very well. What the hell am I going to do in August and September?!

My_Tampa_Z

I noticed the same thing until I realized that the the A/C was defaulting to Fresh outside air instead Recirculate. Not sure why the car does this. Even after changing it to Recirulate it somehow goes back to Fresh. The Air is much colder on Recirculate.

flyzmd80

iTrader: (1)

95 degrees in Chicago today and the A/C kept the car cool enough to have to turn it down. I have the frost interior so that helps quite a lot.

BZ

dr_gallup

I have the moldy smell when it starts up but it gets cold enough for South Carolina. I have a Chrome Silver Z and use a windshield blocker which helps keep the inside temp down. I will never own a dark colored car again as long as I live in the South. I typically leave the fan speed on auto and set the temp about 66 or 68. That gets a little too cold on a long trip. I am pretty unaware of any power loss from the A/C, unlike my previous 4 cars where I frequently had to turn it off for fast driving/passing.

I think American cars in general have better (colder, faster) A/C systems than imports, but lousy controls. Just a cultural thing.

Lee3Z

I live in Louisiana and have a black 350Z. Temperatures have been in the 90's with high humidity. The air conditioning in my car works fine. I usually have to turn it on high too cool the car and then adjust the setting lower to keep the interior very comfortable. From my experience with Z cars, I have had 3, the air conditioning was always very poor. My 1976 280 and 1990 300ZX both had constant problems keeping the car cool and problems with the compressors. My 1990 had to have the compressor replaced after a year. Thankfully they replaced under warranty. The replacement costs for labor and the compressor was $1500. I hope I do not have the same problems with this car.

Inova

i've noticed the same thing. the a/c in the z really sucks when it is hot out. i used to drive a 99 toyota tacoma and the a/c in that OWNED. btw every toyota i've been in has had very cold and good a/c

MannishBoy

iTrader: (1)

While mine will keep me cool enough I guess, on a hot day, it rarely kicks down the fan from leaf blower mode. Kind of annoying.

I do have tint, which helps quite a bit.

My GM cars all have great air. My Syclone will freeze you out in no time, but of course, that was built back when freon was still allowed R134A just isn't as efficient as freon, and never will be.

RedComet

Mine seems to be pretty strong. I have that smell though.

papo470

guys i appreciate your feedback...as i wrote before, i took the car back to have it checked...now, how far can i take this?...'til they fix it right, or, am i screwed with it?


thanks again,
Gerardo

RedComet

I don't understand how it could be mold on my AC unit. I only have 950 miles on my car. It smells pretty bad right when you turn it on but it goes away pretty quick.

MrGraphics

The thing you guys have to realize is that these new air conditioning units do not work as well as those "old" POS systems you talk about. Who's to blame? The EPA.

They made automanufacturers stop using the old refrigerant because of the hole in the ozone layer, and mandated a new refrigerant. With this new stuff also came a whole new system to actually deliver the cool air (which is why you cannot put the old stuff into your new system, and vice-versa.) That would be all fine and dandy, except that this new refrigerant works at about 60-70% of the old stuff.

So - don't like your airconditioner? Write your congressman.

PS: it is rumored that the REAL reason that the refrigerant formula was changed, is because the patent was going to expire, and too much money would be "lost". So make a new system, patent it, and mandate its use. No more "lost" money.

JimH

I hate to throw a damper on this thread, but I cannot tell a lie! I live in the Phoenix area. And today, less than an hour ago, as I was driving home noted the outside temp was 112 degrees! I checked my A/C in my LS Touring (with tint) and it was on Auto (always) and the temp was set @ about 78 degrees. I have gotten into the habit of altering fan speed by changing the inside temp setting rather than taking the A/C off of auto setting to change the fan speed. Just habit I guess. Point being, it is 112 degrees and my fan is running at its lowest speed and I was very comfortable. I guess the only variable here would be our very low humidity, but my A/C works very well in 112 degree Arizona heat. Regards, Jim

lhapp

Another Phoenician here, and I agree with Jim, my a/c works great in the desert heat!

Intrepid175

I've only had one car with automatic AC of any kind. It was a Ford T-bird and it wasn't a fully automatic system. It would control fan speed and blend in heat if needed but the driver controlled where the air was discharged. The system worked well enough. The only time I ever had a problem with it not cooling turned out to be an issue with the electronics (an inside temp sensor) and not the refrigeration system. They replaced the sensor and and that cured the problem. Also, it cooled much better than it ever had before, even when new.

I have to wonder if those of you who have AC complaints, aren't having a problem with the automatic systems calibration, maybe even a weak or defective temp sensor. Just a thought!

A comment on some other statements made above. Humidity does take it's toll on the AC's ability to cool the air but I'm not sure I agree with the comment by McGraphics on the refrigerants being used today as opposed to what was used before. I've got a 2001 Honda Odyssey minivan that uses the same refrigerant and it cools the van just fine in 95+ degree temps and 80 to 90 percent humidity here in the Houston area, and I'm talking about a much larger space to cool down.

FWIW
Drive Safe,
Steve R.