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[dandor]

Hi guys, ive had my omega now for about 6 months. since owning the car my aircon has never worked. Today however I decided to get it regassed. As soon as I left I tried it and as to be expected it didnt work. The guy at halfords assured me it wasnt leaking. When I switch my aircon on my compressor now kicks in and both my coolingfans start up. But Defo no cold air. Can anybody shed any light on it? Or is there something im missing? The car is a facelift 2.2 petrol cd auto. To turn aircon im rotating both temp dials to lo, selecting just face vents and making sure eco is off ie not lit up, is this right? Thanks in advance for comments. This one really got me confused

[TheBoy]

So the retard at Halfords (presumably Autocentres, as the stores wouldn't have a machine) gas it but didn't check it worked?

It was done on a proper machine, not from cans?

[dandor]

Well he had a can, but attached to the can he had a trigger with a guage on it. He checked for leaks first by putting his guage on the system first. He said there was a little pressure in the system. He said if there was a leak it would be completely empty by now. When he recharged the system the guage went to the blue zone and he said the system wouldnt take any more. Before when I switched the aircon on nothing happened but now the system seems to spring to life.ie the compressor kicks in and both cooling come on. You can also feel I slight strain on the engine. But no cold air, just feels like it did before.

[amba]

If you paid them for the (service provided  ) take it back and tell them to fix it at their costs as you paid for something they havent provided...working air conditioning.

Once its working my best advise is never ever take it to them again

[dandor]

Well to be honest I told him I wasnt paying him because it didnt work so there was no charge. But I did get the feeling he didnt have much of a clue. I will definitely never go there again though. Is it possible to over fill the system?

[amba]

The system has a measured quantity of refrigerant and small amount of oil.

If the system is too low on refrigerant the compressor will not cut in,but not sure if you can overfill tbh,but expect it is possible as the system works on pressure so must require a small amount of clear space to allow for expansion .Other may advise better but suggest you get the system correctly checked by somebody qualified in A/C .

[dandor]

I think your right, its definitely looking that way. From switching the aircon on, how long does it take to start blowing at its coldest? Also might sound daft but am I switching it on right?

[dandor]

Also, there is a strange but not alarming noise coming from behind the glove box when I switch it on. The best way to describe it is like a secondry fan that fluctuates its speed slightly. Could this have anything to do with it? Like I say the aircon has never worked so I dont know what is normal on the omega.

[amba]

Cant answer question regarding operation as our car models are different and I am unsure of how the buttons etc work on your car.

My climate will produce chilled air almost as soon as it is engaged but it will chill further with recirculation mode engaged although Omegas dont have the greatest system so be realistic about how chilled a hot car in full sun will get to 

[dandor]

Ok, well im going to keep it switched on for now and see if anything changes. Might be a case of giving it time as it has gone so long not working.

[Andy H]

A professional would have used a vacuum pump to extract any old gas and weighed the quantity recovered.

The new gas would have been weighed as it was added. The required weight is usually written on a sticker on the panel above the radiator. As mentioned above some new compressor oil would also have been added.

Once there was a decent quantity of gas in the system it would be run and the high and low pressures checked to confirm a job well done.

It doesn't sound as though any of the above was done with your system. I imagine that just enough gas was added to trigger the pressure switch but not enough to get any worthwhile cooling.

[dandor]

Im bloody glad I didnt pay for it. Sounds to me like the lad at halfords did not have a clue. He didnt do any of that above, he literally connected his can, saw a little pressure on his guage and squeezed the trigger untill his guage was in the blue. Also he topped it up with the engine and aircon running. I dont know if thats the way to do it. It just angers me because you put your trust in them to fix your car and your paying them for it. I only went in to halfords for a new tool bag for work.lol. Ended up with a new can of worms. Dont get me wrong I love my omega to bits, but it really kicks my ass sometimes.lol.

[Bigron]

I will have scorn heaped upon my head for this suggestion, but try Kwik-Fit? They do a deal where you only pay if it works to full standaard and if it subsequently leaks, you or they fix it and get another free recharge.

Ron.

[dandor]

Sounds like a good idea that Ron, next day off ill pop down and see if they can sort it. However be prepared for the abuse from your last comment.lol. A few years ago I took my car to kwik fit for the brakes doing (new pads) they managed to pop the cylinder out of the calliper and basically told me I was to bus it home and my car would be ready in the morning. Safe to say I wasnt happy.

[Steve B]

Cant answer question regarding operation as our car models are different and I am unsure of how the buttons etc work on your car.

My climate will produce chilled air almost as soon as it is engaged but it will chill further with recirculation mode engaged although Omegas dont have the greatest system so be realistic about how chilled a hot car in full sun will get to