Big $$$ AC repair on 03 Ford

[kenmac]

I have a dodge that the evap. devloped at about 4 yrs old . These things are probably made in china & a poor grade of alum. is being used. I do home a/c & you should see some of the evap. coils that I've replaced. They are eaten up & some only a coulpe yrs old. They wanted $1200.00 to replace everything on my dodge except the comp..I made repairs myself. If you have run the compressor low of refrigerant , you could have ruined it. You can sometimes get a better deal from a local A.S.E. certified shop than from dealer because they tend to have lower shop rates


Heck, If I were a DOC. I would just buy a new truck

 

[N80]

In United States:

Phone:
800-392-3673
800-232-5952 (TDD for the Hearing Impaired)

Mail:
Ford Motor Company
Customer Relationship Center
P.O. Box 6248
Dearborn, MI 48126

Hours of Operation:
8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. (Monday-Friday)

to contact Ford ,use customer service, they will refer rep to you.

John

Thanks John.

 

[RayH]

Before you take it in for another shop to look at, do some research, visit some Ford F series forums or sites and ask the same question. Vehicles usually develope patterns in terms of problems, I'll bet other Ford F series owners have experienced the same problem. They may be able to walk you through some troubleshooting so when you take it to someone else, you will already have a good idea whats wrong. Knowledge also helps you identify the BS.
It never hurts to go in armed with information.

 

[N80]

If you have run the compressor low of refrigerant , you could have ruined it.

That could be the case. I've been running it about 2 weeks like this. But, if its cloudy or not too hot outside it would still cool very nicely. The only time I noticed a problem was in high 80's or more and/or direct sunlight. I guess the refrigerant lubes the compressor?

You can sometimes get a better deal from a local A.S.E. certified shop than from dealer because they tend to have lower shop rates

That's what I'll look for.

Heck, If I were a DOC. I would just buy a new truck

Well, next time I see the owner or the service guy (both patients of mine) I may have to do some testing on their flux capacitors and positron modulators. Just never know what expensive conditions might turn up.

I'd never complain about my general financial situation, but no matter how much you have you can always find ways to spend too much of it (land, tractors and wiv's and daughters with horses (grrrrrr)). And no matter how much you have things like washing machines, dental crowns, painting the house, auto AC breakdowns, septic tanks, etc are never fun ways to spend it.

And I've grown to abhor car payments. Cars and trucks are a terrible waste of money, especially on long loans. They don't stay new, exciting or pretty long enough. Like I said, I'd love a new F-250.....but it aint gonna happen. Historically I've always driven whatever I have until it dies or gets totalled.

 

[AMP762]

Have them write up an est.with each item on it.Be sure to have them put the system pressures on the est.you can tell alot about the problem from the pressure.

 

[RayH]

I guess the refrigerant lubes the compressor?



.

Yes, it does. Actually the refrigerant has an oil in it that lubes the compressor.
Fortunately A/C problems are pretty easy to track down with the right tools. Unless its an electrical issue, which it sounds like it isnt, a good shop should be able to tell you in a few minutes what is wrong.

 

[RayH]

Have them write up an est.with each item on it.Be sure to have them put the system pressures on the est.you can tell alot about the problem from the pressure.

True, its all about pressures. The whole system is designed to change pressures. They can hook up gauges and tell what the pressures are in a second. They can find leaks in a second. The only actual mechanically moving part of the coolant system is the compressor.

 

[N80]

Although I've bought a fair number of Fords over the years, with the exception of one, I've had few problems other then what one would expect with a used vehicle.

Well, in 4 years this has been the only real problem with this truck. Relatively low miles (55k) but still, nothing else and that's not bad at all. Just a shame that the first problem is such a duzy.

So, once the third party shop evaluates the problem, N80 may want to return to the dealer and discuss this with the manufacturer's rep. Even though Ford is in financial difficulty, they cannot afford to alienate their customers on a failure that should not have occurred.

Yep, they are in a tough spot. I really doubt Ford is going to do anything about this and I really don't expect them too. Stuff happens. But they do have to think about this sort of thing.They'll have to decide if spending the money to maintain good will is worth it in the long run when money is already tight for them. And even if I got offered a great trade-in price toward one of those 250s I've been drooling over, do I want to risk the same thing happening again when I could go look to a competitor? Just a theoretical question of course. All of the big three are struggling.

In any case, I'll do my homework, get a second opinion, drop Ford a letter and see how things play out. In the end, I'll have to fix it or buy new. New is tempting and exciting but I'm less than a year away from no truck payment and that's pretty exiting too!

 

[cp1969]

There is some confusion on 'the whole shebang' going bad at once.

It doesn't. It's probably just the compressor but no one will warrant their replacement compressor unless you replace receiver/dryer, etc, at the same time.

The a/c went out on my '98 Ranger quite a few years ago. Not worth it to me to fix it. I don't think these R134 systems are nearly as durable as the old R12's were.

 

[kenmac]

There is some confusion on 'the whole shebang' going bad at once.

It doesn't. It's probably just the compressor but no one will warrant their replacement compressor unless you replace receiver/dryer, etc, at the same time.




You hit the nail on the head. Most shops won't warranty if just some parts are replaced. Same with home a/c. The refrigerant doesn't lube the compressor on auto a/c all that much. It uses it's own oil as a lube / oil about 8 to 12 oz. As it's not a hermetic sealed compressor, you have to add oil b-4 installing it . the refrigerant does lube the seals in the line set & such . Most of the time on auto a/c the seals just go bad at the line set connections & a very small leak occurs & the refrigerant is leaked out over time so it's not noticed until on a very hot day & it don't cool. Most of my dealings with auto a/c has been a leal in the evap. which is in a very easy place to get to & replace when you pull all the insides of the vehicle out dash & all