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A/C Problems???

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Old Oct 22, 2003 | 09:33 PM
  #1  
majelopa's Avatar
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From: Palmdale, CA
A/C Problems???

Has anybody been having trouble with their A/C ??? Mine seems to blow cold then intermittently you can detect it warm up for just a second and then go cold again......It's like the clutch keeps kicking on or off too frequently????
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Old Oct 22, 2003 | 10:02 PM
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Majelopa,

I live in Valencia and I can say my car does the same thing. I was told that it is by design to keep the engine, which runs hot to begin with, from getting overly taxed. It is the air conditioner clutch cutting in and out.

I was told not to worry about it so I am not.
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Old Oct 22, 2003 | 10:03 PM
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From: Corrales, NM
Mine does the same thing. Dealer hinted that a fix is in the works.....and I hope he is right. Next summer the AC won't be worth two cents the way it is working now.
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Old Oct 22, 2003 | 10:06 PM
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it was 102 in So Cal today....I think it can handle the summer just fine.

It's kinda neat actually. Just when the fingers start getting numb, a hing of warm air blows across the fingers to restore feeling.
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Old Oct 23, 2003 | 07:33 PM
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From: Little Rock, AR (was vegas)
We have 115+ here in vegas, and it works just fine.

Sometimes under cruise, the compressor switches off to save power/economy.

This is NOT different than most other cars out there. My WRX did it.

Just get on the gas a bit more and it'll kick right back in.

102???? I'd need to wear long sleeves and bring a jacket, lol.
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Old Oct 24, 2003 | 07:05 PM
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It's good to know I'm not the Lone Ranger on this......I still think something isn't quite right....My F-150 NEVER does this!!!
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Old Oct 24, 2003 | 07:16 PM
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From: portland oregon
if you search for "air conditioner" or "conditioning" you will see that it is quite normal. the air doesn't even actually get warm but is just a few degrees above teh cold so it feels warm for a second or two. it also turns of at 65% WOT.
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Old Oct 25, 2003 | 06:51 AM
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From: O'Fallon, IL
The dealer spent 200 miles working this issue w/ Mazda (when I picked it up, it had just over 200 miles... when I started the questions, it had 17) and they're saying that it's working as designed...
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Old Oct 26, 2003 | 08:23 AM
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From: St. Charles MO
I thought I saw a post on here a while back where Mazda admitted there was a defect in the design of the pressure switch which caused the compressor to cycle too frequently?

I don't think my A/C works well at all. I have the warm-cold-warm-cold thing happening with mine.
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Old Oct 26, 2003 | 07:05 PM
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From: Nashville, TN
I had my dealer check mine for similar issues, and they found a loose connection. Seems to work better now. It does make a sighing sound- I guess when the compressor cycles- you cant hear it unless the radio if off and the rpms are low.
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Old Nov 3, 2003 | 07:49 AM
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Well, my air has worked well and continues to work however, yesterday on the interstate we were traveling when we noticed a cycling buzz - like the sound of a clothes dryer end of cycle buzz only fainter. We figured out that it was coming from the AC when I turned it off. Then today it was raining when I left for work. The buzzing continued but I noticed that it does not do it at idle, just underway. IT is extremely loud at around 15-20 mph. I put the window down and heard it loudly. The air is cooling. I am going to the dealer tomorrow.
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Old Nov 3, 2003 | 02:17 PM
  #12  
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From: Richmond, VA
Today in VA we had a warm spell, sunny and 85 and the A/C wasn't doing very well. It would blow cold (MAX, RECIRC, FRONT VENTS ONLY) for 5 seconds warm up and kick back on for 5 seconds. It was kicking on every 10 seconds or 360 times per hour! How long do you think that A/C clutch will last? It better not be longer than 3 years and 11 months. In any case it was never able to overpower the solar heat gain and I arrived back at work with nice sweaty palms. It's not going to be pretty come next summer. This is not a well engineered system, period (read defective).
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Old Nov 4, 2003 | 12:35 AM
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While this system may not be properly designed and cycle too much or too little this is normal.

Any AC compressor on a car cycles. It has nothing to do w/ economy or overtaxing the engine - if not enough heat is being transferred or too much pressure is detected it will cycle off and one. Perfectly normal. I have no particular idea about which type of system Mazda uses to cycle the compressor these days.

I doubt there is anything special about it's AC - this is surely standard Mazda/Ford fare.
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Old Nov 5, 2003 | 10:50 PM
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From: Fort Myers, FL
My compressor bearings failed Sunday 11/2. They are currently replacing the compressor.

The air worked great before that.
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Old Nov 6, 2003 | 11:15 AM
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Amazing RodsterinFL - sorry to hear that - did it lock up and by chance also burn out the belt?

Just a little aside if interested... Back in teh 70s and early 80s Rx7s like most Japanese cars never got factory air if I recall. They were sold new w/ what i used to call 'Texas Air' sometimes installed often at the POE like Houston or elsewhere or by the dealer or a local shop contracted by the dealer. The AC option would even be pre-printed on the window sticker and all as if it was factory air but definately installed stateside. Many of those cars came pre-wired and designed to easily facilitate post manufacturing installation. Around '84 or so I started seeing true factory installed ACs from Japan - interestingly enough - while the installs were obviously cleaner/neater than a retro-fit could ever be - they weren't quite as good in my experience. I had more leaks, never could 'quite' match the temps and replacement parts were so expensive and always had to be ordered - it was easier and cheaper to just fabricate custom replacements in many cases.
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Old Nov 6, 2003 | 01:06 PM
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From: Fort Myers, FL
no it didn't lock up or anything just made a lot of noise. It cooled well too.
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