Hey all,
I did a search on the forums and couldn't find anything that matches my problem. I recently sold my YJ (R.I.P. buddy) and bought myself a nice '98 XJ. Great condition and everything runs great, EXCEPT
The Air Conditioning System
Now, bear in mind, I live here in Qatar (Middle-East) and now during the summer months the temperatures are constantly 35 - 50 degrees Celsius (112 degrees Fahrenheit). An A/C here is a must.
My A/C runs fine after starting the car, blows cold air like a champ. Sometimes, the air will come out of the defrost vents when I increase the throttle. I've read up about that and have come to the conclusion that one of the vacuum hoses is old and worn out. That's not my problem though, because in the end, cold air will still come out.
My issue is: After 30 - 40 minutes of driving, regardless of highway or city, the A/C will lose power and slowly increase in temperature. The compressor is still running and while it's not warm air coming out of the vents, it not as cold as it was when I started the car. I've recently recharged the unit with R-134a gas as stated on the manual, but that didn't seem to fix the problem. I personally think it might have something to do with the plumbing system. I have a suspicion that the A/C freezes as ice builds up in the system, because, after leaving the car parked somewhere with the engine OFF for an hour or two, the A/C will blow out sweet cold air again.
Has anyone been having the same problems as me? I will probably be taking it to an A/C shop to have a mechanic look at it, but it would be nice to have a starting point or some advice from the experts at Jeep Forum.
Any ideas or suggestions are greatly appreciated! Cheers beer :cheers:
I did a search on the forums and couldn't find anything that matches my problem. I recently sold my YJ (R.I.P. buddy) and bought myself a nice '98 XJ. Great condition and everything runs great, EXCEPT
The Air Conditioning System
Now, bear in mind, I live here in Qatar (Middle-East) and now during the summer months the temperatures are constantly 35 - 50 degrees Celsius (112 degrees Fahrenheit). An A/C here is a must.
My A/C runs fine after starting the car, blows cold air like a champ. Sometimes, the air will come out of the defrost vents when I increase the throttle. I've read up about that and have come to the conclusion that one of the vacuum hoses is old and worn out. That's not my problem though, because in the end, cold air will still come out.
My issue is: After 30 - 40 minutes of driving, regardless of highway or city, the A/C will lose power and slowly increase in temperature. The compressor is still running and while it's not warm air coming out of the vents, it not as cold as it was when I started the car. I've recently recharged the unit with R-134a gas as stated on the manual, but that didn't seem to fix the problem. I personally think it might have something to do with the plumbing system. I have a suspicion that the A/C freezes as ice builds up in the system, because, after leaving the car parked somewhere with the engine OFF for an hour or two, the A/C will blow out sweet cold air again.
Has anyone been having the same problems as me? I will probably be taking it to an A/C shop to have a mechanic look at it, but it would be nice to have a starting point or some advice from the experts at Jeep Forum.
Any ideas or suggestions are greatly appreciated! Cheers beer :cheers: