AC suddenly stopped working

JSON

My AC has always been super cold and never had any issues with it. A few days ago, I was driving to work with it on and working, and all of a sudden while driving, it completely stopped being cold. It blows air fine, but it will only blow outside temp air.

I don't know if it's in my head, but I felt like I felt a small, quick vibration in my pedals and maybe heard something (had music on so not sure) before it went out. It has been raining hard for the past few weeks here btw.

I tried checking for the fuse in the 3 fuse box locations, but the only one I thought was relevant was the "Air Cont" 10A fuse in the box behind the battery. Are there any others I can check? From searching, someone mentioned that there are 4?

I'm really hoping it's not the compressor. What can I do to check before taking to dealership?

FYI, 2009 with 80k miles.

Thanks

SouthArk370Z

Check if the compressor is running (compressor clutch pulled in). If not, check for a fusible link near the battery. Could also be a bad relay in the IPDM (next to the battery, also).

Edit: Location of all pertinent fuses will be in the Owner's Manual. If you don't have an OM, you can download one from Nissan's web site.

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fryzia23

Most common problem with no AC is lack of refrigerant. And this is where you should start diagnosing AC. Id start with checking at th condenser through the front bumper using flash light. If you see any darker circled spots, there’s a leak. Look closely as they can be very hard to get spotted.

B&W_Evader

Easy stuff first...
Check if compressor clutch engages. Usually you will see a slight variation in RPM when you turn it on and off. Better to actually look at it.
Look at refrigerant tube routing for any damaged areas. Anything aftermarket routed close to ac lines are known issues.
After that worry about refrigerant. You should hear some knocking sounds coming from the compressor at idle if there's no refrigerant.
My first guess would be the compressor clutch fuse, next would be aftermarket parts damage.

Good luck, hope it's something cheap and easy.

From my experience in CA, the pumps/clutch should last about 15 years or over 200k miles. Yours seems too new to be going out.

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JSON

Thanks for the replies.

I don't have a manual, but I downloaded one from the forum, and the page with fuses didn't have specific info about which ones were where. I didn't see it in the FSM either. I looked at the labeling on the 3 fuse box covers, and nothing really jumped out at me about it being related to AC or compressor.

https://imgur.com/SI1FHMq

Can I just get the freon recharge kit from the auto parts store to check pressure/refill? I was googling, and some people made it sound you shouldn't do that on this car.

I definitely still hear RPM going up when I turn it on, as usual. I thought the pulley was turning fine, but I took a video, and I'm not sure if that whole assembly is supposed to rotate (the silver rivet isn't moving in the video), although I assume that the pulley is on a bearing sitting on that stationary part, so no?

I still need to take a look at the lines and condenser. I'm also trying to figure out which fuses I need to look at, because unless I missed something, the labels in the fuse boxes didn't indicate anything about AC compressor.

Here is the video - I was turning AC on and off.

https://youtu.be/Hm3omRVkUSc

fryzia23

Yes you could try auto parts store kit, just make sure you get the better one with pressure gauge this way you don’t overcharge it. I did it once to my Z as emergency and never had a problem.

SouthArk370Z

It doesn't look like the clutch is engaging but I'm not 100% sure (my eyes aren't what they used to be). You should hear a click/clunk from the clutch when it kicks in and the center part of the clutch will start spinning. There may be a power relay nearby - don't confuse the click from it with click from clutch.

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Wabbyy

buy a can of AC pro at pepboys/advanced auto parts or whatever you got near you. Watch a youtube video first. Its very easy to do lol. That should bring your AC back to ice cold

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JSON

The pulley is spinning. I don't think I hear a click of the clutch engaging...but I feel like I've never heard it for some reason. Or my exhaust is too loud.

JSON

https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/...archTerm=r134a

https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/...rchTerm=ac+pro

Either should work, right? We use R134a, not R-12.

fryzia23

That should be good. And yes r134a

SouthArk370Z

The pulley spins whenever the engine spins. If the clutch is engaging, the center part will spin when the compressor needs to run. If the center part never spins, you have a clutch problem.

If the clutch is not working, check voltage going to the clutch. If the clutch is working, then check refrigerant charge, as per others above.

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Wabbyy

i just bought the ac pro and it worked lol

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Double Layer Tints (5% on top of 15%), Muffler/Resonator Delete, Z1 Long Tube Intakes, Z1 Aluminum Undershroud, H&R Lowering Springs

Wabbyy

whats the difference between r134a and ac pro?

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Double Layer Tints (5% on top of 15%), Muffler/Resonator Delete, Z1 Long Tube Intakes, Z1 Aluminum Undershroud, H&R Lowering Springs

fryzia23

I don’t think there’s much difference besides the price.