A/C driving me up the wall...2000 Civic Hatch

wrenchhead427

New Member
Hey everyone, I'm a newbie here and I need some help with my wife's Civic. The A/c in her car is driving crazy, I have charged it multiple times and I can't get it to operate right. There are no leaks, I have replaced the compressor, receiver drier and condenser and fan assembly. I have charged it with 1.37 pounds give or take, I have a scale so I know I should be good there. I don't even know where to start, the compressor cycles quite a bit but the length of the cycles varied depending on if I am idling or driving, sometimes it just starts clicking on and off rapidly. The idle doesn't seem to be coming up enough when the compressor comes on and the engine almost stalls. My friend has the same car and we had similar problems with his which leaves me wondering if the systems are just crap on these mosels or what? Can anyone help me? I live in the desert and it has been 105 plus lately, my kids are doing swim lessons 30 miles away and I'm afraid that the system is going to blow up. Thanks for any help in advance!:cool:
 

RonJ

Banned
Stock 00 Civic hatch? Any mods?

wrenchhead427 said:
I have charged it multiple times...There are no leaks,
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Why did you recharge it if there were no leaks? What refrigerant did you use?

I have replaced the compressor, receiver drier and condenser and fan assembly.
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Why?

Where did you get these parts? New or used?

Can you outline how you did this work? Do you have a manifold gauge set? The more details, the faster the problem can be pinpointed.

the compressor cycles quite a bit but the length of the cycles varied depending on if I am idling or driving, sometimes it just starts clicking on and off rapidly. The idle doesn't seem to be coming up enough when the compressor comes on and the engine almost stalls.
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Does the condenser fan run when the A/C is on?

My friend has the same car and we had similar problems with his which leaves me wondering if the systems are just crap on these mosels or what?
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Nope
 


wrenchhead427

New Member
RonJ thanks for replying, sorry the post was all over the place but thats where my mind is at this point-

1. I just rebuilt the D16Y7. it has 9000 miles on it. Cylinders are .020 over sized. and I think my crank is .10/.10 if I remember right. Stock cam, injectors, and intake. I did put headers on it instead of the Cat Manifold. My B1S2 O2 sensor is hanging in the engine compartment because the connector pipe between the header and the rear portion of the system has the O2 bung right below the axle pointing up and the sensor hits the axle....bad design. So I have onr code for B1S2 Voltage high but otherwise it runs geat, just idles too low.

2. When I bought the car it had been wrecked and it sat in my back yard for 1-1/2 years while I saved money to replace the radiator support and rebuild the engine. The A/Csytem was open the entire time it sat. I thought I had plugged the lines but am unsure at this point. The compressor was bad also when I bought it. After i got it running I bought a remaned compressor that has been on there 3 months now and it does get cold inside, 41 degrees is the lowest temp i have regestered out of the vent with my multimeter. I have recharged it(after evacuating it, I have a RobinAir machine my neighbor gave me) because my receiver drier didnt have a sight glass and was the one that sat open forever so I was afraid that there may have been moisture in the sytem freezing the TXV causing the high and Low pressures. Mainly I just wanted to be clear the system is tight, no leaks. I have a 30 pound can of R134a that I used.

3. As previously stated the car was wrecked in the front so I replaced the condenser & fan assembly & receiver drier from Napa and the compressor had failed prior to my obtaining the car.

4. Each time I charged the system i put it on a vaccuum for 15 minutes and the charged through the low side with my manifold gauge set and my 30 pound can using the scale on my machine to weigh in the charge. By the way what do you know the correct charge to be for a 2000 DX Hatch? I have found 1.37 and 1.43 as the amounts.

5. Yes the condenser fan is running when the compressor comes on and it is pulling air through the condenser.

6. I am glad these systems are not junk because my wife loves her car and this is the only problem I'm having with it.

:?: Last night I was talking to my Dad and when I mentioned the lines being open for so long he reminded my of these little pesky mud bees we have here in SoCal and he said maybe the built a nest inside and it is causing a restriction. Also I think that the compressor that failed prior to me owning the car Siezed. I have not replaced the TXV, could it have debris in it? I hope this added info helps and I didn't ramble. thanks for the help again!!!!
 

RonJ

Banned
How well does your pump pull a deep vacuum? Why not place under a deep vacuum for longer? There may be air in the system.

Nevertheless, it's time to performance test the system using the manifold gauge set with the conditions described in the service manual, which can be downloaded at site 1 in my signature.
 


silverstreek

New Member
RonJ said:
How well does your pump pull a deep vacuum? Why not place under a deep vacuum for longer? There may be air in the system.

Nevertheless, it's time to performance test the system using the manifold gauge set with the conditions described in the service manual, which can be downloaded at site 1 in my signature.
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Ron, does the Honda Civic use an orifice tube in the lines? And if the old compressor died, shouldn't the system be flushed before new parts are added to prevent blockage and contamination of the new parts? I'm new and nor quite familiar with Honda A/C systems as of yet is why I ask?


Thanks!
 

TokyoSkies

Boost Junkie
Registered VIP
5+ Year Member
One thing I didn't see mentioned here, but may help: did you administer oil to the new compressor? I know that's a vital step.
 

wrenchhead427

New Member
I can't remember exactly what happened to the compressor, it's been too long. But I think I may pull the system down and flush the entire thing and start completely fresh so I have a reference point to start from. Also if I blow everything out and find any shrapnel in the system then something will make sense. I will cycle the oil out of the compressor too and re fill with the correct amount again.

I did add oil to the new compressor when I installed it.

My machine has a timer for 15 minutes for the Vac pump to run, that is the only reason I did 15 minutes. How long should I put it on a Vac for Ron J?
 

RonJ

Banned
wrenchhead427 said:
My machine has a timer for 15 minutes for the Vac pump to run, that is the only reason I did 15 minutes. How long should I put it on a Vac for Ron J?
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I'd let the pump run an hour. But what did the vacuum gauge read after 15 min of pumping?
 

wrenchhead427

New Member
Okay I have some time today and stripped the system and flushed everything out. Now I am reassembling and need the oil quantity for each part. I am hoping that the above post from Ron J that has some references in it are from a Civic manual because they sound about right and I am going with them if I dont hear back soon. Absolutley nothing came out of the lines so maybe I just had moisture in the system freezing and unfreezing the TXV . I am continuing........be back later today to check on post updates, Thanks!!!!
 

wrenchhead427

New Member
Okay so I flushed the system and found no debris inside. I replaced the oil in each component as noted in the above post of RonJ's. I charged the system and took it for a test drive last night and it seemed much better. Granted it was only around 90 outside so today when my wife heads to get the kids at mid day and its 100 plus outside we will see how it works. I'm thinking that maybe it was moisture in the system after all. This time I vacuumed out the system for 1 hour before charging it. We went to Macdonalds and get ice cream last night to test it and when in the drive through, the compressor turned on and off a few times with about 30 second to 1 minute intervals in between. When it kicked on the idle seemed too low as the car was shaking pretty bad. So now I need to know, is it normal for the system to turn off and on as I have explained? And what should the idle be when the compressor kicks on? How is the idle increase controlled? and last how do I do an A/C performance test? Thanks!
 
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