Rav4 Aircon Stops When High Ambient Temp

[RichardCZ]

My aircon worked perfectly when cool ambient temperatures of 18C, however when air temp rose above 18C aircon would stop working. Toyota dealer changed compressor, ambient air temp sensor, and the two pressure valves all to no avail. Eventually an independent air con specialist in Alton solved the problem when he diagnosed a faulty coil pack in the magnetic compressor clutch. So now £1500 poorer but problem solved. The independent aircon specialist stated that Toyota and Honda do not include a new clutch with a replacement compressor which is short sighted as often the problem is the clutch.

[gjnorthall]

The converse is that we're quick to blame manufacturers for supplying only complete units when one requires just a discrete bit. In some respects, it's a good thing that the clutch drive is supplied separately to the main aircon compressor since in this case, replacing the clutch would have been significantly cheaper than replacing the full compressor unit. The fault is with the garage that diagnosed the failure of the wrong part - and I'd certainly want the cost of the compressor refunded on the basis of incompetent diagnosis. You're probably paying these people £80 + VAT per hour so for that sort of cost you'd expect them to get it right - there's really no excuse.

There's nothing that's very car manufacturer specific on aircon systems and generally aircon specialists will be more knowledgeable, proficient and cheaper than main dealers.