Air-Con Issue - Regas hasn't fixed it, but garage say no leaks

[Rossi1001]

Hello,

As above really! 2003 E85 2.5 Auto and the air-con was ice cold until a couple of weeks ago, then it suddenly stopped working. Had the car in a garage for and MOT and service today and got them to look at it. They said the gas was less than half the level it should be, so they regassed it (for £70) but said it didn't feel that cold. Drove it home and it's slightly cool at best, but definitely nowhere near as effective / cold as it was previously.

Where do I go from here please? The local garage have directed to me a local (Southend and Benfleet) specialist called Bonair, though whilst generally positive, there are some real scathing reviews on their Google reviews page!

Any advice or Essex recommendations would be much appreciated.

Thank you as always! Ross

 

[Pondrew]

If it's got sufficient refrigerant and the compressor is running, first thing is to check the electric fan is running when the a/c is on.
If there is a high pressure issue (fan not running or clogged condenser) the compressor should 'cycle', as the HP switch will cut out and in.

It could be your compressor is on it's way out. When they are almost knackered they can 'let by' the valves, so reducing efficiency massively. It could be a number of things like crud or moisture in the expansion valve.

You really need to take it to a car A/C specialist who know what they are doing, definitely not a garage.

 

[Rossi1001]

I think you're probably right. This stuff is well beyond my limited abilities!

Not sure if these from my code reader help?