My Ranger has always had very cold A/C. Obviously, I didn't use it all during the winter and a couple weeks ago, I went to turn it on and nothing. I don't hear the compressor kick on at all. I also don't feel the power loss that comes with it.

Blown fuse? Maybe something that is common on these? I am hoping it is a cheap fix.

How much would it be if I needed a new compressor?


Truck is a 2003 Ranger with the 2.3L, 5 Speed. It has about 114,000 miles.

 

Did you check your fuse???

Your truck has 134a in it so you can go to advanced/pepboyz/autozone or any auto store and buy the recharge kit. It is pretty simple to recharge your a/c system by yourself.

 

Do you have a testlight or Voltmeter? Use that to see if power is getting to the AC clutch.

 

If your system lost its charge. The compressor won't turn on to prevent it from getting damaged. I would take it to the dealer so they can hook up a gauge and check the pressures.

 

yea but the system is supposed to be closed. just doesn't "go away".

You're not going to get any power to the compressor if your refrigerant level is too low. now, look around the lines for any oil, wetness, or dirt build up. obvious signs of leaking. now if you're going to stick some refrigerant in it, get some with UV die, and get the glasses and light. fill it, wait a day or two after running it a few times, and then look for the die. See if you can find your leak...

 

From what a Ford dealer told me, the A/C clutch relay is a common failure area. I took my Ranger in just before the warranty expired just for a check to make sure it was working properly. They added a little Freon and changed the A/C clutch relay. Less than one year later that relay went out and the A/C stopped working. I took back to the same dealer and they charged me $25 to replace it again. That fixed it. A couple weeks later I received a check in the mail for $25. Apparently, they decided since they repaired it under warranty less than a year after repair, it should still be covered under warranty.

 

Thanks for all the ideas...

Admittedly, I have not had a chance to look under the hood with everything else I have going on. Maybe I'll get some time this weekend.

I don't think it is the freon, unless there is a major leak somewhere since it was blowing very cold the last time it was used.

What is the A/C Clutch Relay? Same thing as the fuse?

Anyone know which fuse it is? Is there a map of sorts in the fuse box? ... I bought the truck in 04 used and I didn't get a owners manual.


FYI - Other than this and a dead alternator, the truck runs great at the 114K mile mark. I am hoping to get 200K+ out of it.

Thanks again

 

Oh, let me also say that I have a bottle of 134a refrigerant that I bought about 3 years ago. I could try that with my trusty Haynes manual that I was finally able to find today.

 

I didn't change the relay and I don't know exactly where it is. I do know it is not the same thing as the fuse. My guess would be that it is in the same box under the hood with the fuses. I know there are other relays there.

I just took a look at my owners manual to see if it shows the location. It indicates 25 and 47A are for the A/C clutch solenoid. I looked in the box and 25 is a fuse and 47A is a relay. Someone put a big red X on 47A, so I would bet that is what was replaced. That was for 3.0 and 4.0 engines for the model year 02. For the 2.3L engine it shows 25 and 56A being for the A/C clutch solenoid. It looks like 56A would be the A/C clutch relay. I doubt there were any changes for the 03 model year.

 

Mine died for about 2 months, then it all the sudden started working again.... Not much help, sorry

 

I work on residental and comercial AC but not to familiar with MVAC..I say check voltage,high and low pressure,if the compressor wont come on try to find the pressure switch and by-pass it,I have had alot of pressure switches go out in my line of work.

 

I've been having the problem too. A/C worked fine all summer, then durring the winter i knowticed that the compressor stoped engaging with the heat on, and now the compressor wont engage and I have no A/C.

I changed the clutch relay and the fuse looks good too. But it's still not turning on.

Any Ideas?

 

you lost all your refrigerant

 

Besides everything mentioned so far, you may also have a problem in the compressor itself - specifically the compressor clutch - at least that's the problem that occured when my A/C started failing.

The A/C would work intermittently - the A/C relay, and electrical connections were all ok. Had a friend who is familiar with automotive A/C look at it, and it was diagnosed as a faulty compressor clutch - apparently a fairly common occurence, especially after about 5 years from new.

You can buy just the clutch, and just replace that, but the whole compressor works out to a better $ value - but it's not cheap either way.

If you have to replace the compressor, you'll also have to purge the whole system, replace the receiver/accumulator, probably the orifice tube, vacuum out any moisture, and then refill the system with the proper lubricant and refrigerant - in all a job best left to the experts with the proper equipment and know-how; not really a job for the DIY'er.

Hopefully, your problem may just be a simple one - a relay, or an electricial connection.

Anything more complicated, and you're probably not going to be able to deal with it easily.