A/C Issue

[johnlew37]

I have a 2013 Ram 1500 Laramie with 5.7L around end of September 2023 my A/c decided one day when I went to turn it on that it wasn’t cooling anymore. Worked when I parked day before, next morning nothing. I chalked it up to needing work done and the fact it was down hill slide to summer k figured I would take care of this spring. Well spring rolled around this year and I started messing with. Thought I would start with a easy cheap thing by replacing the thermostat, and pick up a can of R134 with the gauge built on. When I went to add the R134 it showed the gauge pegged as high on the red as it could go, so didnt add of course. Puzzled how it worked one afternoon when parked, but didn’t the next morning started trying to think back to when it stopped. Well I remembered changing the fan clutch that I thought was bad based off responses on another post I had made then about a roaring noise. I don’t know 100% that is when it stopped, but I do know it was just about that time frame. When you turn a/c on you never hear the compressor or clutch engage you hear nothing. Then started thinking you know I never hear the fan engage ever either. Even lately in Dallas with afternoons in the mid 90’s sitting in rush hour traffic you never hear the fan ever. I have never had a vehicle I did not hear the fan as they typically loud when they engage. So is there something I could have done or not done when I installed the new clutch that has caused all of this? Mind you my engine temp never gets below 205 when it’s warmed up. Typically it’s staying 210-216. At that temp you should definitely be hearing a fan swirl. Any ideas of what I could try or look for? Any other thoughts or
suggestions/ideas?

 

[Sherman Bird]

I have a 2013 Ram 1500 Laramie with 5.7L around end of September 2023 my A/c decided one day when I went to turn it on that it wasn’t cooling anymore. Worked when I parked day before, next morning nothing. I chalked it up to needing work done and the fact it was down hill slide to summer k figured I would take care of this spring. Well spring rolled around this year and I started messing with. Thought I would start with a easy cheap thing by replacing the thermostat, and pick up a can of R134 with the gauge built on. When I went to add the R134 it showed the gauge pegged as high on the red as it could go, so didnt add of course. Puzzled how it worked one afternoon when parked, but didn’t the next morning started trying to think back to when it stopped. Well I remembered changing the fan clutch that I thought was bad based off responses on another post I had made then about a roaring noise. I don’t know 100% that is when it stopped, but I do know it was just about that time frame. When you turn a/c on you never hear the compressor or clutch engage you hear nothing. Then started thinking you know I never hear the fan engage ever either. Even lately in Dallas with afternoons in the mid 90’s sitting in rush hour traffic you never hear the fan ever. I have never had a vehicle I did not hear the fan as they typically loud when they engage. So is there something I could have done or not done when I installed the new clutch that has caused all of this? Mind you my engine temp never gets below 205 when it’s warmed up. Typically it’s staying 210-216. At that temp you should definitely be hearing a fan swirl. Any ideas of what I could try or look for? Any other thoughts or
suggestions/ideas?

After reading your post, I'd recommend you go over whatever you last did.... every nook and cranny. If you do NOT find that it is a result of you accidentally disengaging a connector or a wire, STOP.

Hire a professional to repair the A/C. That system is charged with a gas which can replace all the oxygen in your lungs and suffocate you if you experience a sudden, catastrophic discharge while you're under the hood and breathe it in, among other hazards (freeze your eyeball out of your head, e.g.)

Unless you have HVAC experience, leave the high pressure refrigerant system to a pro who is trained and has the proper equipment and PPE for that job.

Best of luck!

 

[Jeepwalker]

There is a whole bunch of possibilitiies. First and foremost does the hvac blower fan work (does it blow air out the vents)? Did you check the fuse for the AC, and the relay/s? Check those.

Things it could be:
Faulty electrical signal
Faulty main HVAC controller, or bad wire to it
Faulty AC clutch
Faulty pressure switch
Might be over-charged
Faulty blend door actuator/s (if compressor goes on)
Other 'engine code' (fault) unrelated to the AC.

...there's more possibilities, but the above is a common list of things. I'd suggest taking it to a 'trustworthy' AC shop too. First check the fuses/relays, and ohm out the contacts across the compressor clutch. You can do those yourself real quick. There's a bunch of videos on youtube. But by the time you watch all thoese and check things, you might have more into it than taking it to a place. Let us know what it turns out to be.

 

[johnlew37]

So my son took somewhere today to have checked out for me. So the guy told him that it was a faulty fuse panel because the compressor is not getting a signal to turn on. I am not completely sold this is the case. Any thoughts?

 

[Jeepwalker]

Are you saying they said it was a flaky fuse box?

Do you have a mechanic you can have them look at the fuse panel? There could be a short in the wire to the compressor clutch, or ...who knows? Someone who's good with wiring ought to look at it.

 

[Sherman Bird]

So my son took somewhere today to have checked out for me. So the guy told him that it was a faulty fuse panel because the compressor is not getting a signal to turn on. I am not completely sold this is the case. Any thoughts?

Typical strategy in these modern cars regardless of brand is for the computer to command relay ground side pick AFTER many other prerequisites are met. I've seen THOUSANDS of dollars thrown at this type of problem because the damned computer WAS functioning JUST like it was designed to do. It was programmed to shut off the signal to engage the compressor via the relay pick in a variety of scenarios.

An ambient temperature sensor telling the computer that ambient temp is -40F degrees on a 100 degree day has by and large been the most frequent issue I've encountered.

There are many parameters that MUST be met BEFORE the PCM will command the compressor clutch on.

How did the technician determine it was the fuse panel?

The law of descending logic states that the last thing messed with just before another failure occurs should be eliminated FIRST!

 

[EdGs]

So my son took somewhere today to have checked out for me. So the guy told him that it was a faulty fuse panel because the compressor is not getting a signal to turn on. I am not completely sold this is the case. Any thoughts?

As @Jeepwalker and @Sherman Bird have stated, quite a few things can cause the issue you have.

Definately take a 2nd look a what was done before the issue. It is very easy to miss something small (I myself am very easily distracted at times and have to double-check what I am working on).

If you are not comfortable with the answer that the repair shop gave, by all means, take it somewhere else. However you might have to pay another diagnostic fee.

Look at reviews for wherever you take it, if possible. That may help you with your choice.

Good luck, and smooth repairs.