Patient - 2007 Nissan Xterra with 4.0L, 5spd auto with ~150k miles
I have only owned this car about a year and a half, and I have put very few miles on it. I got it as a project car that needed brakes, a new transmission, and suspension work. It is my trail toy!
Last week my family and I loaded up the Xterra to head to Colorado for a week of hiking, off roading, and relaxing at altitude. From Iowa to our destination is roughly 11 hours...nearly 99+% interstate travel, most if it with the cruise set at 80 mph across Nebraska.
On the journey out, it was a cool day and we start out very early (3am). I did not have to use the AC for almost the entire trip out to CO. About 2 hours from the destination the cabin started to warm up, and I flipped on the AC. Everything worked great, and we cooled down quickly. The last 40 minutes or so was stop and go traffic, and it seemed like the AC was starting to struggle to keep up. By that time temps were in the low 90's with high humidity. I attributed it to tough conditions and slow traffic. We arrived fine and mostly in comfort.
The next several days were at high altitude with no need for AC - I am one of those nerds that prefers windows open, and only runs AC when totally necessary.
Trip home - this is where things go south...
Left around 5am, headed back home. Trip through CO up until Denver, there was no AC needed. Around Denver, the heat started to build...and I flipped on the AC. Instant relief, and all was well. During the long haul across Nebraska, the family started to notice it was getting warmer and warmer. The AC started to really struggle. I noticed the cycle time on the compressor was getting shorter and shorter, and the the time "off" was getting longer and longer. Finally we pulled into Lincoln and the AC was basically not working at all anymore. The family was getting grumpy!
We stopped and ate lunch in a nicely AC'd establishment, and I noticed across the street there was a farm store. In my past, the conditions that happened would tell me that I had a small freon leak, and if I could top off the system, it might at least get us home. After finishing lunch, we ran across the street to the farm store. I bought a pound of freon, and charges the system that takes ~1.5 lbs. Shortly after starting to charge, my wife gave me the thumbs up that the system was once again blowing cool air. I thought I had the problem solved...and we were only about 3 hours from home.
We start out from Lincoln, and we have to turn the AC down a bit...not sure it has ever been this cold before! It was great...but as the miles wore on, it began to warm again. Ok, I have a small leak, and I figured we were running out of gas again...no worries, we will get home, and I will fix it then. About 30 minutes from home the AC is totally dead again, and we are resulting to open windows and gasping for air ;-)
Next day...here is where things get odd...
We got home on a Saturday...unpacked and parked the car. Next day I go out and start it up to look for leaks. The AC blows ICE COLD for about 30 minutes as I let it idle in my driveway. I could not find a leak...or even a hint of a leak.
Yesterday I drove it about 15 minutes to and from a bike ride...AC blew ICE COLD for the trip out and back.
This morning I drove about 20 minutes to work, and the AC blew ice cold the entire time...even with 100% humidity...
So now I wonder what is going on? I am guessing I have over-charged the system, but why is it slowly failing during long trips? I have a real AC gauge set, but have not yet measured the high and low side (will do it soon). Am I freezing the evaporator side over, so it won't pass air? Is the compressor slowly giving up over long duration trips? I just have not seen this type of issue before. Any advice on where to start would be greatly appreciated!
I have only owned this car about a year and a half, and I have put very few miles on it. I got it as a project car that needed brakes, a new transmission, and suspension work. It is my trail toy!
Last week my family and I loaded up the Xterra to head to Colorado for a week of hiking, off roading, and relaxing at altitude. From Iowa to our destination is roughly 11 hours...nearly 99+% interstate travel, most if it with the cruise set at 80 mph across Nebraska.
On the journey out, it was a cool day and we start out very early (3am). I did not have to use the AC for almost the entire trip out to CO. About 2 hours from the destination the cabin started to warm up, and I flipped on the AC. Everything worked great, and we cooled down quickly. The last 40 minutes or so was stop and go traffic, and it seemed like the AC was starting to struggle to keep up. By that time temps were in the low 90's with high humidity. I attributed it to tough conditions and slow traffic. We arrived fine and mostly in comfort.
The next several days were at high altitude with no need for AC - I am one of those nerds that prefers windows open, and only runs AC when totally necessary.
Trip home - this is where things go south...
Left around 5am, headed back home. Trip through CO up until Denver, there was no AC needed. Around Denver, the heat started to build...and I flipped on the AC. Instant relief, and all was well. During the long haul across Nebraska, the family started to notice it was getting warmer and warmer. The AC started to really struggle. I noticed the cycle time on the compressor was getting shorter and shorter, and the the time "off" was getting longer and longer. Finally we pulled into Lincoln and the AC was basically not working at all anymore. The family was getting grumpy!
We stopped and ate lunch in a nicely AC'd establishment, and I noticed across the street there was a farm store. In my past, the conditions that happened would tell me that I had a small freon leak, and if I could top off the system, it might at least get us home. After finishing lunch, we ran across the street to the farm store. I bought a pound of freon, and charges the system that takes ~1.5 lbs. Shortly after starting to charge, my wife gave me the thumbs up that the system was once again blowing cool air. I thought I had the problem solved...and we were only about 3 hours from home.
We start out from Lincoln, and we have to turn the AC down a bit...not sure it has ever been this cold before! It was great...but as the miles wore on, it began to warm again. Ok, I have a small leak, and I figured we were running out of gas again...no worries, we will get home, and I will fix it then. About 30 minutes from home the AC is totally dead again, and we are resulting to open windows and gasping for air ;-)
Next day...here is where things get odd...
We got home on a Saturday...unpacked and parked the car. Next day I go out and start it up to look for leaks. The AC blows ICE COLD for about 30 minutes as I let it idle in my driveway. I could not find a leak...or even a hint of a leak.
Yesterday I drove it about 15 minutes to and from a bike ride...AC blew ICE COLD for the trip out and back.
This morning I drove about 20 minutes to work, and the AC blew ice cold the entire time...even with 100% humidity...
So now I wonder what is going on? I am guessing I have over-charged the system, but why is it slowly failing during long trips? I have a real AC gauge set, but have not yet measured the high and low side (will do it soon). Am I freezing the evaporator side over, so it won't pass air? Is the compressor slowly giving up over long duration trips? I just have not seen this type of issue before. Any advice on where to start would be greatly appreciated!