Hello,

I got in my Scala during this mini heatwave here in the UK, the outside temperature was over 28C and the car had been in the sun so the in car temperature was into the 30s for sure. I had to go out so the AC went on and was turned down to Lo and speed/power set to Max (the AC was definitely running as the car's performance really dropped off) but after about a 40 minute journey the AC system had only got the car's inside temperature down to approx 23 degrees inside!!

I last properly used the AC about a month before and whilst the outside temperature was lower it seemed to function OK cooling the car down although I don't tend to go for arctic temperatures inside like some do but as I say it seemed to be working OK.

Given the sudden / marked drop off in performance this can't surely be down to 'normal' refrigerant loss and must be a fault/failure of some kind surely. My Scala is only two and a half years old so I'd like to get it booked in under warranty, however I'm concerned that the dealership whatever they say will just re-gas it pushing the problem on a few months and then yup you guessed it the car's out of warranty and it's gonna be my £££s problem not Skodas problem!! It'll cost me but I was wondering would it be better to get an inspection by an independent AC specialist with something in writing so I would then have evidence that there was a problem within warranty and then (having independent evidence) take the car into Skoda to be fixed properly.

Grateful for any opinions please? has anyone else had any problems with the AC in their Scalas?

Robert

If you have a thermometer you could do a quick test yourself. The temperature of the air coming out of your vents should be around 1-8 Celsius (35 to 48 degrees Fahrenheit). when set to max cooling

r0b3rt, similar experience in my 23 plate 1.5 manual with manual AC. I believe it is due to the refrigerant (R1234yf) used in the AC system. Previous cars (2xVW Bora, 1xVW Golf) used R134a and while it was never as good as R12, it would do a passable job of keeping the inside of the car comfortable. R1234yf just doesn't cut it - it will take the internal temperature down a few degrees C but as you say, in the current mini heatwave, it isn't enough to give the level of comfort that you would expect from experience of older cars.

Look on the bright side - the Global Warming Potential of R1234yf is much lower than that R134a or R12 (although this is only relevent if all your refrigerant somehow leaks out) so you're doing your bit for the environment. It's also much less likely to result in that disgusting smell that most older AC systems seem to acquire after a few years use.

We've had similar in our Kodiaq this last couple of weeks... An apparently sudden drop off in A/C efficiency. Our car is 7 years old though.

I took the chance on getting it regassed during the week at an independent garage and it apparently only had about 15% of the gas in it that it should have. It passed a leak test though was regassed and has been fine today in temps of up to 30 degrees.

Si in answer to your question... Yes get it checked and regassed.