since ive had the car the aircon has never worked, i checked all the fuses on top there was all ok, today i put a 12v feed straight to the compressor clutch and it kicked in ( started spinning) but still no cold air, is this a big indication that there isnt any refigeration in the system? thanks

Probably needs to be regassed dude

There are 3 thermostats that play a role-

F14- coolant temperature-- open circuit above 119°C

F38- outside air temperature-- open circuit below 5°C

F18- thermostat for turning on radiator fans

and a pressure sensor:

F129- pressure sensor for aircon system

(This is for a '99 TDI with AGR engine)

I'm not an expert on this, but if any of these are failing, then the aircon computer isn't going to let things run.

Edited 24 June, 201313 yr by Andrew Ray

With the engine running if you turn on the ac do the radiator fans turn? Sometimes they take a min to start but they should both turn.