Have an A/C issue:

Cold A/C air will stop after driving two hours or longer.

The AC continues to work on the long trip, but the air isn’t cold.

After the car has been sitting for a while, it starts to work just fine again.

Did anyone experienced similar issues and was able to solve it?

Please Advise
Thx

 

Lots of threads on here with similar AC issues. Search and read the old threads for the best information.

My guess: low freon level in the system and icing. Have the freon level checked by a pro with proper equipment (not the store bought gauge - not accurate at all).

 

I just went on a car trip to Florida. During the trip my car went past 60,000 miles. I'm now at 60,380. So I guess I'm out of warranty. The air doesn't work after a few hours. I read online on a different forum there is some sort of heat exchanger under the car that can easily be hit by road debris and the coils are now all mashed together which is my problem. The fins on the coil must be awfully thin and thus a design defect. I've never done anything but Atlanta highways to and from work and the I-75 to and from Florida in the car. Does anyone know how to get Honda to fix this other than a class action lawsuit for defective design? It isn't something you would realize was an issue until you go on a long trip as the car works just fine around town.

 

Some have had this covered by their insurance, so you might look into that. Once it's replaced, look into protecting the new condenser with gutter guard or something similar. There are several threads on how to do so.

 

This is due to low refrigerant, a defective evaporator thermistor, or a defective expansion valve. Either condition results in the evaporator coil (a heat exchanger inside the cabin) freezing up. Turning off the A/C for a while allows the ice to melt and the A/C to function again. Either of these three conditions can cause the A/C to "work harder" and freeze up. More than likely just low refrigerant. Have it serviced by Honda or some other certified A/C tech.

All cars share this design (some sort of [A/C] heat exchanger in the front of the radiator). Most cars have an open lower grill that would allow rocks or other road debris thrown up to hit this. Very few have grill that would block these. Of the 4 cars in my driveway: 95 Miata, 97 Camry, 03 Accord, 09 Fit, all have open lower grills.

If the condenser coils in front of the radiator had been holed by a rock, it would not cool at all; all the refrigerant would have leaked out in seconds.

The warranty is 36K miles or 36 months. I don't think you have grounds for a lawsuit. You could ask the service manager for a "good will" repair, and if he is unable to provide this, call NA Honda Customer service. I don't think either will be forthcoming as there is no design fault and the car is far out of warranty.

If it was damaged by road debris, this is not a warranty fix anyway; it would be up to your car insurance comprehensive policy.

from the owner's manual:
Again, that it works at all is an indication of the problems listed above. It probably just needs topping off with refrigerant.

I feel like a bit of a Honda apologist; but really, this is common to all cars. The repair, if just adding refrigerant is less than a couple hundred dollars.

 

The problem is USDM Fits have a much larger opening in the front below the grille. The rest of the world has a smaller opening and no reports of condensers being damaged by flying debris.

Like others have mentioned there are several threads about protecting the condenser using cheap hardware store type things.

 

mmmm visit any parking lot and make a visual survey. I think you'll find that there isn't a big difference between the Fit's lower grill opening and other makes. Some cars have smaller grill openings, but I think this is more aesthetics than protection (and that goes for JDM Fits). And the rest of the world doesn't have a significant difference in condenser damage that I'm aware of. Perhaps the rest of the world has less road debris. I think I've only heard of one person here having to replace the condenser on their Fit due to damage. There are several that have had freezing issues unrelated to condenser damage, and quite a few complaining about inadequate cooling (normal operation).

There are an inordinate number of people here adding gutter-guard to their grills I've noticed. Might be peer pressure. The Fit's condenser is not painted black, so people notice it more. That might be the main difference.

ahh, a poll I missed. OK 9 out of 143: 6% of respondents (I didn't respond). That's significant, but I don't know if it's more than any other car.

 

I did the DIY on the lower grille protection located in the forum. The one DIY I cannot find or at least I think there is one, is the A/C insulation of the hoses.

 

yeah, somebody put neoprene pipe insulation around their low pressure (return) A/C hoses. Really some obsessive folks here...

 

^^ really

This appears to be a bigger problem

No report of having to replace the condenser either...

 

I had the same problem as the OP last year on vacation. I thought it needed refrigerant, so I made an appointment with Meineke. They said it didn't need to be charged, but they had found some sort of TSB about ALL Hondas with A/C. This TSB said that on long trips at highway speeds, the A/C line freezes. Turning it off for awhile lets it thaw and it works again. The "fix" is to do a complete A/C charge (even though it technically doesn't need it)--that re-creates a vacuum and doesn't allow water vapor in (which is what freezes). Since it was the end of summer when I found this out, I put off the A/C charge. I just had it done last week, because I'm going on a road trip next week. Hopefully, that fixed it--and it cost only $95 at Meineke.

 

I'd be interested in seeing the TSB. I think Meineke made that bit up. Evacuating and recharging can remedy moisture and incorrect refrigerant levels which is probably why they chose to do this (it's also the easiest).

There's a lengthy troubleshooting procedure. Excessive moisture in the system is just one possibility. A faulty temperature sensor is another likely cause.

 

Just found this thread on a search as the AC in my 2009 FIT can't seem to handle the high 80's low 90's heat we are experiencing. The car is new to me with less than 30k miles with extended Honda warranty. I am bringing it into the shop on Friday. It also lost almost all cooling on the way home yesterday while driving about an hour and a half on the hwy and it was barely blowing out cold. The car sat for about 20-30 minutes went back in it and it blew cold again. Never really as cold as it should be for a car's ac but cold all the same. Hope its just a recharge and I will search to see if I can find that TSB! Will post what happens for the next guy.

 

That all sounds like the evaporator coil freezing up because of low refrigerant to me. I'm having the same problem with my 2012....planning to take it to the dealership and let them look at it. I hope they don't charge me an arm and a leg because I'm well out of warranty.

-Dustin

 

Just had similar problem ac was working fine then blew only warm air, after awhile it started working okay. Traced problem to intermittent ac relay malfunction located in engine compartment. CRVs having same issue and is same part number for relay. Wears out from ac cycling so much. Replaced relay problem solved. I also bought gutter guard to provide extra protection for rocks going through grill to damage condenser...seems to work good.

 

I had trouble with my blower only working at high speed. My 2009 fit has less than 25000 and on a case by case basic Honda USA will consider "Goodwill" service for the TSB Technical Service Bulletin 09-097. That I found out through this site. No cost to me.
Thank you Fitfreak!

 

Sorry for not following up, they wouldn't cover it under warranty but they did recharge it with a dye for a little over a hundred bucks if I remember right. They said if the ac stops working and some parts are needed it would be covered. So far this summer it has worked fine and blew nice and cold.

Now if the service manager would call me back about my cracked arm rest as he promised I'd be doing great. I think I might pull the door skin and epoxy the split. That should fix it.....

 

Just had the same problem with my AC- the blower was actually running
with no air coming out of the vents, then air started coming out at room temp.Then i contact AC SERVICE CYPRESS,they do excellent work.Actually they are experts and high technicians.

 

I have a bit of a Fit problem... My A/C is out and I need to fully diagnose the issue. I tried recharging with R134a and when I was about halfway through, the compressor started cycling (I had the car on with MAX A/C) and I heard a pressurized leak accompanied with a leathery smell. Is it the compressor coils or just the A/C tube itself? I need to know the exact part I need to purchase to DIY. Any advice is much appreciated!

 

There is a bank of 3 relays located in engine compartment drivers side which control AC fans and compressor. It is quite common for compressor relay to fail causing intermittent AC operation to none at all. You can test by swapping relays but be careful as other relays control cooling fans so not for super long when testing.