I have a 1996 Nissan Maxima. Up until this year, the heat in the car worked great, but the AC hasn't worked for 2-3 years. Last week, the heat stopped working for the most part. Air still blows, but unless I am accelerating, its not warm. When I am accelerating the heat seems to work alittle, but as soon as the RPMs come down, the air is cool again. As for the AC, it just never gets cold at all.

Any ideas on where I should start? This car is my "first car", I love the damn thing but its not worth much. Anything that needs to be fixed, I would like to do myself. Thanks in advance.

Justin

1/9/2007 8:43:53 AM

could be any number of problems

1/9/2007 8:59:34 AM

I realize that it could be a number of problems, but I was looking for a good/cheap place to start.

1/9/2007 9:07:16 AM

how about paying someone to diagnose it for you then youll know what to fix / replace yourself


youre not gonna get out "cheap" when dealing with heater cores and AC compressors unless you can diagnose your own problems

1/9/2007 9:19:10 AM

ac is probably compressor related, air still blows right?

heat is probably a water thing.... but ^ is correct, ac compressors and the cores aren't cheap really...

1/9/2007 9:22:40 AM

quickest way to diagnose your ac is cut it on and look at the compressor, if the middle isn't turning, i would say the pressure is too low, you have a leak somewhere and it is low on freon, with the heat, it sounds like you have air trapped in the cooling system, do he heater hoses get hot when its running?

1/9/2007 9:44:39 AM

The air still blows just fine. The AC hasn't worked for a few years, but I don't care much about the AC. I would just like the heat to work again. I usually use this car as a winter car.

I do have a compressor question, I had thought about buying a used compressor, but was told that if I bought a used compressor and it had been sitting on a shelf for a while, there could be problems. "They" (a friend of a friend) said that the compressors have oil in the that keep the seals lubed, but if they sit on a shelf, they have a high probability of drying out, cracking and being useless again. Is this true?

1/9/2007 9:47:05 AM

^^I am not sure if they get hot. I will check this afternoon.

1/9/2007 9:47:59 AM

The hoses get warm when the car runs, but not "hot".

1/9/2007 2:08:35 PM

bttt

1/10/2007 4:12:38 PM

Is yer damn radiator full? Are you sure of it? You know yer car ain't gonna heat for shit if there's no water getting to the heater core. And yes, that'll happen if your cooling system is only half full or less. And you ain't doing your engine any favors if that's the case. Check that shit.

Next in line...does your engine ever get warm? What's the temp. gauge say? If it never gets off the cold mark, you need to do (a) the above and make sure the damn thing has enough coolant/water mix (50/50 in case you don't know) and (b) replace your fucking thermostat.

The AC is probably a case of no goddamn refrigerant, which is common on older R134 cars. The shit leaks faster than hell if the system has a leak or a seeping Schrader valve.

1/10/2007 6:10:53 PM

1/10/2007 9:53:17 PM