2013 Mustang GT A/C problem

MidniteGT

Junior Member
Joined
Jul 30, 2018
Posts
4
Reaction score
0
I have a 2013 Mustang GT with 52k miles on it. Two weeks ago I had my a/c checked for a leak because it wasn't blowing cold anymore. They put dye in the freon and checked for leaks. They couldn't find anything wrong with it and until this past Saturday, I didn't have any problems with it. After about 30 minutes of driving it the other day, I stopped at a gas station. When I started it back up, and started to back out of the spot, I noticed a plume of blue looking smoke come out. There was no change in the RPMs or anything weird. I pulled back in the spot and raised the hood. I couldn't find oil or anything around the motor. I must of looked around for 3 minutes while the motor was still running. Got back in the car and noticed the a/c wasn't blowing cold and then noticed a pretty bad vibration in the shifter, pedals and just the car in general. I shut off the A/C and the vibrations instantly stopped. I'm assuming that it was the compressor kicking on and off putting undo stress on the motor. Last time when I talked to ford when they serviced the A/C I told them about a problem I had recently with the radiator fan where it stopped working. When I started pulling that apart I found that the connector to the radiator fan was melted with plastic stuck on the connectors. After I cleaned it up I did not have any problems. When I told him that he told me that if the fan doesn't kick on, that the car will dump the freon (I find this hard to believe because of freon being an EPA violation). Anyways I opened the hood again today and noticed right under the compressor what looks to be wetness; I am thinking this may be residual from freon. Anyways they can't get my car in until next week and I was just wondering if anyone here had maybe an idea of what could have happened. I'm not too savvy with HVAC stuff. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks!
 

MidniteGT

Junior Member
Joined
Jul 30, 2018
Posts
4
Reaction score
0
20180730_151309.jpg 20180730_151430.jpg 20180730_151534.jpg

Sorry for another post, but didn't upload the pictures on the first post.
 

ox white

forum member
Joined
Dec 2, 2017
Posts
95
Reaction score
14
Location
US
Judging from the pics, I would have to say your A/C clutch has disintegrated. And BTW, your car doesn't use Freon (R12).
 

MidniteGT

Junior Member
Joined
Jul 30, 2018
Posts
4
Reaction score
0
Judging from the pics, I would have to say your A/C clutch has disintegrated. And BTW, your car doesn't use Freon (R12).

Thanks for the quick reply. Can the clutch be replaced or would the whole compressor have to be replaced?
Also, I thought R134 was still bad for the environment; Just not as bad as R12.
 

redfirepearlgt

forum member
Joined
Mar 19, 2011
Posts
2,497
Reaction score
263
Thanks for the quick reply. Can the clutch be replaced or would the whole compressor have to be replaced?
Also, I thought R134 was still bad for the environment; Just not as bad as R12.

R134a is CFC free so it does not deplete ozone like Freon 12, 22, and volcano's do. However the govt has labeled R134a and R410 as "greenhouse gases". So there remains a need for being licensed and proper reclamation equipment.
 

Juice

forum member
Joined
Aug 24, 2017
Posts
4,622
Reaction score
1,904
Let me clarify on "car will dump r134a if the fan does not come on". All A/C systems have a high pressure blow off valve that will vent high pressure refrigerant, and fan not coming on WILL raise pressure drastically. But, the high pressure transducer relays the overpressure to the PCM and the PCM will turn OFF the compressor to avoid the atmospheric dump. So in reality, the A/C system should not ever reach dump pressure.
 

MidniteGT

Junior Member
Joined
Jul 30, 2018
Posts
4
Reaction score
0
Thanks Juice and redfirepearlgt for the explanations. It makes a lot more sense now. The car is in the shop at the moment. Talked to the guy and said they may have to do the condenser and valve as well depending on if the compressor seized or not. He said that if it seized, there can be debris in the condenser that they wouldn't be able to flush out. A/C is foreign to me as far as maintenance goes so I don't know if this is correct or not.
 

ox white

forum member
Joined
Dec 2, 2017
Posts
95
Reaction score
14
Location
US
He said that if it seized, there can be debris in the condenser that they wouldn't be able to flush out. A/C is foreign to me as far as maintenance goes so I don't know if this is correct or not.

The condenser can be easily flushed. I have done it many, many times. Remember, the the tech is more than likely on the flat rate pay system. Replacing the condenser pays A LOT more than flushing with compressed air (pays zero).
 

Latest posts

Support us!

Support Us - Become A Supporting Member Today!

Click Here For Details

Sponsor Links

Banner image
Back
Top