Let’s take a look at the AC components that make up your vehicles AC system:

• Refrigerant – Although refrigerant isn't considered a "component" of your vehicle system, its impact on the overall performance is undeniable. At lower temperatures and pressures, it exists as a gas while becoming liquid under more extreme conditions, allowing heat removal from the air conditioning system. To maintain optimal results and keep your car cool, it must be filled to an exact amount.
  • To make it even more confusing, some vehicles require 134A refrigerant, which is less expensive than 1234YF refrigerant.
  • Other vehicles require 1234YF refrigerant which is more expensive than 134A refrigerant.
  • Look for stickers under your hood to find out which type of refrigerant you vehicle requires.
• Compressor – At the core of an AC system lies the compressor. It’s perfectly named, because it compresses the low-pressure gas into high-pressure, hot gas and pumps it to the other parts of your AC system.
• Condenser – This part is located at the front of your radiator. The AC condenser takes the heat the refrigerant absorbs from inside the car and releases it outside the car. It passes hot refrigerant gas through a series of tubes and fins, dissipating its heat and turning into a cooler, high-pressure liquid ready for circulation.
• Receiver – Before entering the evaporator, your system's receiver eliminates any remaining moisture from the refrigerant and stores it. The receiver ensures that only pure vapor is sent into the evaporator for optimal cooling performance. This is how you’re able to eliminate that sticky humidity from your car’s interior.
• Evaporator – Tucked away underneath the dashboard, you'll find a radiator-like device with fins and tubes. This is the evaporator, which cools the hot air from your car by absorbing heat through the refrigerant. The cold air then circulates back into your vehicle via vents.
• Expansion Valve – Last but certainly not least, this valve permits the high-pressure liquid refrigerant from the receiver to expand. When it expands, its pressure is reduced. It’s similar to a pressure cooker. Once your food is finished cooking, you move the lever to release the pressure and see a ton of steam shoot straight toward the ceiling. That lever is like the expansion valve.

To determine the root cause of your vehicle AC blowing warm, Christian Brothers Automotive starts with an evacuation and recharge. With this procedure, we remove the refrigerant from your vehicle and measure it. We put the vehicle AC system under a vacuum to test to see if there are any leaks. If the technician does not discover any leaks, then dye is put in the system and the customer is asked to drive the vehicle until it air conditioning begins to blow warm again, then bring it back to use to let the technician see if he can see with an ultra-violet light if the AC system and/or AC lines are leaking.

If a leak is found, by law, the automotive shop can NOT fill the AC system.

At Christian Brothers Automotive- Shawnee, we want to do the correct repair, therefore, frequently the entire AC System (all or almost all of the components are quoted to be replaced. Obviously, this is very expensive, but it is the only way to receive the Nice Difference Warranty (3 years/36,000 miles whichever runs our last). On a side note, the parts suppliers will not warranty their AC parts without doing the AC job correctly.

Due to your budget constraints, if you cannot do the entire quoted AC job, then please discuss options with one of our Service Advisors.