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BoxsterLL11

BoxsterLL11

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On the way back to the north east from the Cumbria Motor Show yesterday I realised that my a/c was blowing warm air.
This morning I checked the fans in the front wheel arches, the offside one was stuck solid.
I took out the wheel arch liner and blew out all the little stones.
Started the engine up, fans still not working.
Checked fuses, fuses ok.
When the a/c button is pressed it sounds to me as if the a/c compressor is not doing anything as there is no change in engine speed/note.
Suspect it could need a re-gas gas but this was done only 15 months ago just before I bought the car.
Anyone have any ideas or similar experience?
 
Hi

Not sure what car you have but the AC compressors on the later models dont engage like the older models.
They are constantly on and the electronics controls the flow through the compressor so it is unlikely that you will hear the familiar clunk on 987 (i think - off the top of my head without checking) models onward.
This may be the reason why.
But you should be getting air at about 5-7degrees out of the vent when AC is fully engaged. If not then a little bit of checking is required. Good diagnostic equipment can tell you whats going on nowadays with the 'actual values' seen by the ECU's

Thanks
 
Mine is a 2012 981.
That engaging of the compressor clutch was what I was expecting but if it doesn't have one that would explain it.
Its strange that nothing is working.
The vent temperature is just ambient temperature and I was expecting about 5 deg.
Its booked in at an OPC next week for a check but just wondered if there was anything I could investigate & fix beforehand.
Having searched the web there does seem some common threads that the ecu's for the ac "go to sleep" and need "re-booting" to wake-up.
Not sure how valid that could be.
 
Hi, can’t understand why you have had to re-gas the aircon on a car that is relatively new? I am still running my Audi on a 2007 plate and never had to re-gas the air-con, when we took our 981 in for its first service at only 2 years old and 6,000 miles on the clock the Porsche dealer was trying to sell us a re-gas and some other cleaning process, totally uneccessary and no doubt trying to make money for work that is not required so they got short shrift. Doesn’t answer your current problem sorry.

 
Have you looked at the a/c radiators, easily seen through the intake vents either side of the mumber plate? These are almost guaranteed to crumble sooner or later leading to total loss of refrigerant and thus your a/c. The other common failure is pinholing of the a/c pipes, which will be identified when the systen is pressurised and the u/v trace identified with a lamp.
 
There are a host of sensors - temp, sunlight, flap positions etc that can be checked which all have an input to the AC system, but realistically you need PIWIS or similar to do this.

Mechanically the obvious things to look for are leaky condensers in the front bumpers (they can get punctured by stones) if the car has been re gassed recently then it should have a dye in the refrigerant which will fluoresce under UV light which can help in identifying potential leaks, but to be sure you would probably need to take your bumper off to fully check the condensers, and as already mentioned the pipework could be a bit leaky, again traces of dye (if added) would assist to identify this.
The refrigerant circuit pressure can also be checked to see if it is in spec - but this is likely to need someone with the right equipment.

 
Keith,

On my 987.2 CS there's a slight change in engine note/load when switching on the A/C. There's a pressure sensor in the refrigerant circuit, so if the refrigerant has leaked out then the compressor won't trip in.

With the engine running and with the A/C set to LO (the lowest temperature setting), both fans should be running at maximum speed.

As Ian has suggested, you're better running some diagnostics - PIWIS or similar - to get to the root of the problem.

Jeff
 
Ever since I found all the stones in the fan shrouds last year I regularly check the condenser lower edges for debris and blow them clear with compressed air.
Obviously the stones come from the wheels throwing them forward through the wheel arch liner grills, other debris comes through the bumper ducts.
It was re-gassed before my ownership started, but the history was again stuck fans but why the re-gas I don't know.
The thing that puzzles me is that with the a/c on and set to low, neither of the condenser fans are running so it appears to be total system electrical failure which is why I checked the fuses but all were ok (one for the fans and one each footwell fuse box for the control units).
Perhaps one of the sensors mentioned is tripping the system.
So will have to wait for feedback from my local OPC next week.
I always get the impression from their service desk that they treat every customer as a mechanical imbecile and that they try to baffle you with science so that the worst case scenario is what will happen and you pay the cost.
I used to go to sea, I have worked on & inspected bigger refrigerant plants than the service desk manager could ever imagine so it annoys me when he tries to blind me with technical terms as if I am a dunce to set me up for a whopping great bill to fix my a/c.
So am hoping it will be a simple fix and it is still under warranty.

One footnote : I have a 23 year old Mitsubishi FTO which I have owned for 12 years. I suspect the a/c gas has never been changed and I do not run the a/c on a regular basis.
I switch it on, it works, very well in fact.
So I do not understand these modern day car dealerships insisting on a/c re-gassing on a regular basis and insisting you run the a/c every time you drive the car.
I am an engineer, I can see the logic.
But the equipment must be very tetchy if it fails having not run for a few weeks/months. Doesn't say much for the build quality.
 
Found the culprit, offside condenser failed hence no gas in system.
I now have to decided do I really want to pay £500-1000 to get the ac fixed when I hardly use it.
Winter: its already cold with the roof up so the heater is on.
Summer: when the sun shines, the roof is down, why would I need ac.
 
Replacing a condenser is an easy DIY job and aftermarket rads. are available for under £100. Do both, replace the dryer, get it regassed and you should have change out of £300...
 
Have priced up two aftermarket condensers at £150 for a pair.
Is the dryer adjacent to the condensers or is it positioned somewhere else?
 
Keith,

I'm not absolutely sure but I think that the dessicator/dryer is located on the front bulkhead; maybe the passenger side?

Good to hear that you've got the problem sussed. Just be careful with aftermarket condensers - I seem to recall someone on the forum mentioning that some makes have very slight dimensional differences from original Porsche parts.

Jeff

 
Thanks Jeff.
Re the aftermarket condensers, the electrical/ac specialist garage I went to yesterday say they only fit Porsche OE condensers as they have found by experience that some aftermarket ones are slightly different in size which then strains brackets and pipework.
Having said that, the local indy Porsche specialist say they fit aftermarket ones as they do come with a 2 year warranty but they didn't say which brand they use (the two lads are both ex-Porsche trained technicians).
I also notice that Design911 offer either OE or NRF brand condensers so the intention was to purchase NRF units off the net at about half the price Design911 sell the aftermarket ones for.
 
As stated, the dryer is in the bulkhead area on the nearside, easily accessed and changed - make sure yours includes the 'O' rings as they are eyewateringly expensive when bought seperately!
I bought my aftermarket condensers from Euro Car Parts and they fitted perfectly, choosing those over the far more expensive Porsche items bassd on the fact that the OEM ones only last 5 minutes anyway...
 
Thanks.
Just checked ECP have a "discount code" this weekend (as they do most weekends) so have ordered two OE quality condensers plus OE quality drier, unfortunately the o-rings were out of stock.
Got the above for under £200.
Thanks again for the heads-up on ECP.
Will be a nice little job to do when I return from holiday !!!
 
I have watched the one where the guy cleans out the nice 'n dry leaf debris (presumably in California then) in his 986 and its amazing how much crap gets trapped between the condenser & radiator.
Haven't found one for a 981 but there can't be much difference.
Have already had the wheel arch liners out to clean the fans from the rear side.

Do the condensers come with new o-ring seals?
 
Have just picked up the parts from Euro Car Parts to fix my ac and the drier comes with the o-rings.
I opted for the OE quality drier which was twice the price of the cheaper one but then with the discount code got about 30% off the price.

Both drier and condensers are branded/boxed NRF.
Condensers made in Taiwan.

Also cannot seem to find the drier by the frunk bulkhead.
With the plastic cover removed, two pipes go down by the offside A-post.
Having removed the wheel arch liners completely last year, seem to remember something like the drier behind the front wheel arch liner rear section.
Have just checked my pictures from last year, that is where it is.
 
It must have moved to that new position on the 987 turning a 10 minute job into a 90 minute one. Good old Porsche!
 
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