Hi everyone, just wanted to throw this out there for some advice from you guys.

I've got a 2006 elegance 2.0PD and love the car but the air con has packed up (according to main dealer).

Car had new A/C pump under warranty (approved used in June 2010) now been told it needs new one at £650. The new pump fitted was sanden type and according to dealer there's power to the pump but its not turning (pulley does). I'd like to know :

Should I get a second opinion from a air con specialist

Can these pumps be fixed i.e new clutch or is it a complete unit

Car has full service history and I'm shocked its only lasted for 3 years (and the original )

I've logged a complaint with skoda uk but they won't offer any help

When looking at new pumps online consensus seem to be that you must also replace the reciever/drier to prevent any debris ruining the new pump but can't find evidence of that being done by dealer in 2010,so is there a case of job not being done properly and pushing skoda for help.

Any thoughts guys

Thanks

Is the nut on the end of the compressor not turning? That would explain why the pulley turns but the shaft is seized

Unfortunately the compressor is a poorly designed item which does fail

I haven't looked at it with the engine running I'll take a look tomorrow

I've just managed to look under the bonnet it seems the centre nut is turning, any ideas anyone??

Get it scanned by someone with VCDS. They will be able to see what the compressor shut off code is and also loads of other useful info that will tell you what is happening.

My guess it is a shut off code 3 due to insufficient refrigerant which will mean that the compressor isn't running and will show 0rpm and 0 bar pressure.

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There's no clutch on the pulley so the compressor is always turning. Either there's no refrigerant, the compressor is bust or the valve which controls flows is dead. You should be able to determine which with VCDS.

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There's no clutch on the pulley so the compressor is always turning. Either there's no refrigerant, the compressor is bust or the valve which controls flows is dead. You should be able to determine which with VCDS.

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Mine showed 0rpm due to a shut off code 3. Regass and all is fine. Been to 3 different AC places now and none of them can find the leak, even testing with Hydrogen. Takes a year to lose the refrigerant, but I don't know where the leak is so don't know what to replace to fix it long term. My guess is a pinhole in the condenser somewhere or a perishing rubber O-ring on a join somewhere.

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Forgot to mention it holds pressure when connected to the AC machine fine so has them a little stumped.

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Forgot to mention it holds pressure when connected to the AC machine fine so has them a little stumped.

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As people have said if the nut is turning then this indicates that the compressor has not seized.

Having said that you are right they should have replaced the condenser and drier with the compressor but often they do not. Tried to get away without when mine failed but eventually admitted I was right and did the whole job properly. but if yours hasn't seized you probably got away with that. debris is only a risk not a certainty.

If it is turning but not getting cold then either there is no refrigerant or the bypass valve ( that replaces the clutch on this system) are the most likely causes. As suggested above if you can find someone with VCDS and or an aircon specialist that might be a good idea. But the first thing I would do, given that the compressor has not seized, is ask the dealer that diagnosed a new compressor to explain his diagnosis. It might be sound but unless he can give evidence to justify it then I would run a mile to someone else.

Thanks for all your help guys, I had the system regassed during the "air con service" the dealers do. They took out 90g of gas and put back in the full amount of gas/oil and it held vacuum for 10mins this was 3 weeks ago and when the system didn't start they said something about the temperature sensor showing on scan hence larger of the two fans running but not showing overheating on dash. I rebooked it in last week only to be told the pumps gone. So maybe it's the bypass valve. Is this replaceable or will I still need a new pump?

Apparently they can be replaced separately by a proper air con place, but not by the dealer, they will just replace the compressor as a unit.

If you only had that little gas in you have a leak somewhere.

Get it scanned with VCDS or it is all guesswork.

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Thanks does anyone know of good air con specialist in the Folkestone area of Kent, as far as I know the car hadn't been gassed since the compressor was fitted in July 2010 and I thought they all lost gas over time and needed doing every couple of years. If its only the valve and it can be changed this will hopefully save some cash which can be put to better use.

Forgot to mention it holds pressure when connected to the AC machine fine so has them a little stumped.

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Really long shot but perhaps the weep is where the machine is normally connected, ie sealed when connected to a machine but weeping slightly when its not

Had that on a Corsa before, it was the actual valve leaking.

Had it filled with Hydrogen, machine disconnected and a gas sniffer couldn't detect the leak.

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If the compressor was seized I wouldn't give the aux belt very long to live and I assume it would make a terrible noise.

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If the compressor was seized I wouldn't give the aux belt very long to live and I assume it would make a terrible noise.

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Isn't the shaft designed to snap if this happens?

Phil

Isn't the shaft designed to snap if this happens?

Phil

don't know.

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Isn't the shaft designed to snap if this happens?

Phil

It is

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Does anyone on here know if these air-con units they're fitting to Octavias nowadays are either not fit for purpose or at least are slightly suspect?

I only ask this as I've read a few posts in various places now about some issues with these and only last week to my amazement my own vRS had its complete condenser unit replaced, thankfully under warranty and without a quibble, during its 29,000mls service after I'd mentioned at the check-in time that there was a slight whining sound from the air-con pump which developed over a month or so, even though the unit still kept the car very cool.

I mean, my daughter's VW 1.6 SE Golf has 157,000 mls on the clock and all its air-con's had is a service/ re-gas 2yrs ago and on some previous services throughout its life!! How come the difference??

Does anyone on here know if these air-con units they're fitting to Octavias nowadays are either not fit for purpose or at least are slightly suspect?

I only ask this as I've read a few posts in various places now about some issues with these and only last week to my amazement my own vRS had its complete condenser unit replaced, thankfully under warranty and without a quibble, during its 29,000mls service after I'd mentioned at the check-in time that there was a slight whining sound from the air-con pump which developed over a month or so, even though the unit still kept the car very cool.

I mean, my daughter's VW 1.6 SE Golf has 157,000 mls on the clock and all its air-con's had is a service/ re-gas 2yrs ago and on some previous services throughout its life!! How come the difference??

On some of them the drier is part of the condenser, so if the compressor fails bits end up in the drier so it has to changed. They do seem to be a fair few problems. The air con in swmbos 2003 seat Leon is fine and it has never had anything done to it.

Mind you on here you do generally only hear about the problems rather than all the people who have no problem, my dads Audi A3 has the same system and is still ice cold.

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I see, thanks for the explanation. You're right, we do tend only to hear about the bad news on forums but I do find that there are trends to be aware of and these are helpful to keep in mind for when things do go wrong.

On some of them the drier is part of the condenser, so if the compressor fails bits end up in the drier so it has to changed. They do seem to be a fair few problems. The air con in swmbos 2003 seat Leon is fine and it has never had anything done to it.

Mind you on here you do generally only hear about the problems rather than all the people who have no problem, my dads Audi A3 has the same system and is still ice cold.

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hi, just a quick one on this thread. You say no refrigerant is lost when connected to the pressure test kit? I have just diagnosed a similar issue with my VRs, turned out to be both the high and low service valves leaking!! This will not show when connected to any A/C test kit(sealed circuit), was only a slight leak over a period of time but enough to then render the A/C no good. Use a leak test fluid like Snoop on the service point vlaves to confirm. Replced both Schrader A/C service point valves..... now all is well, I am a qualified A/C tech to which helps

I'm getting confused now, I've just been back to the dealer (caffyns Ashford) to ask what the fault code was for the A/C problem only to be told that when scanned last week there were no fault codes showing for the A/C system. The only code showing was that a temp sensor was showing intermittent high values and according to the dealer this was because the system was not working and would clear when compressor was replaced. Dealer confirmed pump was turning and system was gassed with no leaks and there was power to pump but didn't know why it wouldn't work only that it would be fixed by a new pump. I'm concerned that if I replace the pump the cause of the failure will still be present and ruin the new one he also said they would only replace reciever/drier if the system leaked and he said it wasn't as he vac'ed out the gas and it weighed the same as it did three weeks ago. I'm now stumped as to why a gassed system and turning pump with no blockages won't work.

You need to find out what the shut off code is. This will tell you why the compressor isn't running. The diagnosis sounds dubious to me. Which temp sensor are they talking about - an engine temp sensor or one in the AC system? Ask them for the diag print out showing the dodgy sensor.

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hi, just a quick one on this thread. You say no refrigerant is lost when connected to the pressure test kit? I have just diagnosed a similar issue with my VRs, turned out to be both the high and low service valves leaking!! This will not show when connected to any A/C test kit(sealed circuit), was only a slight leak over a period of time but enough to then render the A/C no good. Use a leak test fluid like Snoop on the service point vlaves to confirm. Replced both Schrader A/C service point valves..... now all is well, I am a qualified A/C tech to which helps

It was me that said about the slow leak, not the OP. I have had leaking Schrader valves on my wife's old car, so these have been checked. The system was filled with Hydrogen, machine disconnected, left for a short while and then a gas detector was used which apparently finds even the slowest of leaks but nothing could be detected. Doesn't worry me as it works for a year fine :-). If I keep the car I will pursue further at some point.

Back to the OP's issue to keep the thread on track .........

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