a/c not working F430 2007

The same exact thing happened to my 2006 F430 2 weeks ago and has not worked since.

 

it could be the ecu for the A/C. That's what happened to mine.

 

Mine suffered from the same problem(also an 07). Ferrari took care of it under warranty. I never asked why the AC stopped working in the first place.

 

Maybe you just need to recharge the AC with refrigerant

 

not trying to sound like ****** but...stop trying to play mechanic and take it to a dealer

 

I don't believe he was playing mechanic. He was trying to figure out if the solution could have been something small. Would you take your car to the mechanic if you knew the problem and could potentially fix it yourself? Now that he's done what he can maybe its on its way to the dealer.

 

Sorta sounding like ******. DIY is why some of us use the FChat forum! I like the DIY posts and "try" to avoid the "...which wheels look best..." and "...are ferrari owners snobs..." posts.

-Some people love to work on cars. I do everything possible in my garage, it helps keep me sane and bond with my mini-me garage helpers. Thus I might have asked the same question.

-My closest dealer is 80 miles, the closest dealer I have a good working relationship with is 100miles. So driving 80-100 miles in 96deg F temp may not be a good option (with no AC). Also F dealers dont hand out loaners, so I would need to drag a second vehicle to get me back home, or maybe charter a plane (dont hate). Can someone tell me why Kia, Scion, Mazda, Toyota, Ford, etc, etc have loaners, but F does not. I dont need a F loaner, but getting a ride 80 miles, twice, is a PIA. BTW I live in a medium sized city with every other dealer except F. I keep hoping they will open one here.

 

+10000, very well said Trent

 

exactly what I was going to say

 

All Air Con systems need regulary to be recharged with refrigerant. It is normal that after some time, the pressure isn't high enough anymore. Any shop can do this very easily.

 

Thats where I stand. I will try to reason the the problem(s) myself from my what I know (which is not much) then read forums talk to friends then if I think i can handle the task, I will do it-------with a smile on my face. However, I know when a task is out of my realm and "then" I will take it to the dealer for repairs, but even then--------i will research the problem well enough to not get screwed by a hung-over mechanic that stayed out all night working on my 430 ( I mean not working on my 430).

It does not take long when reading this form about who "really knows what they are talking about" This forum has great chatters and is a great place to read on a daily basis.

just my two cents

 

The ac in the f430 is a confusing unit and has a mind of its own. Try it again with the fan in auto or "aut," temp at coldest setting and ac button on/ not pressed inward. My ac seems to only work when in auto.

 

1. Any AC shop can check your R134 (refrigerant) pressure, just get it exposed for them (under panel, under front hood - check owners manual). If you are out of R134, you could have a leak, this might be a serious issue. Have them put some Dye in the system so you can locate the leak.

2. If you verify you are not low or out of refrigerant, and you have checked fuses/relays, then maybe its the AC ECU as DiscoI said. If you know someone willing to swap out the AC ECU for a few min to test this theory you will be able to answer the question. The AC ECU is not Cheap $1597 #4 in : http://www.ricambiamerica.com/parts_catalogs.php?M=FE&P=&V=diag&I=112093

3. Could be low or high pressure switches.#14 in attached link (Pressostat LOL), only see one switch, maybe its a low and high switch in one unit, does not make sense to me since you should measure the low and high pressure at different points in the system.
http://www.ricambiamerica.com/parts_catalogs.php?M=FE&P=&V=diag&I=112094

4. Could be a failed air temp sensor #10 in : http://www.ricambiamerica.com/parts_catalogs.php?M=FE&P=&V=diag&I=112093

 

I guess all owners have different mindsets...I have owned over 8 different ferraris and the service manager at my dealer is pretty much "family". I dont work on my cars because m not a mechanic. If somethings wrong, i pay to get it fixed the right way. I dont know where you take you car to think that you might get stiffed by a hung over mechanic lol

 

Nice reply Trent!

If you are stuck mate, take to an a/c specialist to diagnose.

 

If it's a Spider, don't worry about it

 

Let me begin with a a typical "tech question" on the general forum: "Do you guys think my red sports seats will look better than black daytonas?"

Back to the issue.. my 360 felt a tad warm when I put the AC on the other day.. so I went to my local walmart and bought one of those AC charging kits with the cylinder of R134a, and the charger that has a trigger and pressure meter on it. Total cost: $28.54 with tax.

I put on some protective eyewear. I then pulled the trigger and let some 134a into the hose to displace any air in the fillling gizmo. I then attached the blue quick disconnect hose to the left nipple in the AC system behind the panel in the front compartment of the car (the one in front of the windshield).. and I noted the pressure on the gauge (80-90 psi or so.. ).
Then I started the car with the hose connected. The pressure varied between 18 to 30 PSI or so.. This is the normal operating pressure of the AC system on the low pressure end (2 bar or so @14 psi per bar= @28 psi give or take). It's the left quick disconnect nipple, differ in size so you can't connect in error.

In my case the pressures were fine so I didn't add any R134a, there could be some moisture in the system that is diminishing performance, so a suck out and refill MIGHT work better by your mechanic.. This told me the pressures are about correct, that the Compressor is working OK and any other issues are possibly the thermistors in the AC unit or the ECU itself.

The ones that tell you "Take it to the Dealer" or "Take it to your mechanic" are always the first ones that gripe how Ferrari's are so expensive.. how they had $5000/year ownership costs... etc, etc. Don't get me wrong.. my mechanic Karl walks on water. I'm able to fix the little things myself.. because it's fun.

 

3: Good idea Trent.. can check the big switch if open or closed with multimeter. Of open then switch reads pressure too low. Prevents the system from running on pressure too low.
4: Another possibility. When one fails the system thinks that the inner coil has iced over (no air flowing through the coil) and it then turns on the heat to defrost it, and/or disables the AC compressor.

Can you hear the AC compressor kicking on with the "STOP" button NOT pushed in?

 

This is a bit of a generalization...

While those that take on some of the repair tasks generally can save themselves $$, I have also seen situations where a DIYer got in over his head and ended up spending significantly more than he should have.

 

I just dont like Daytona seats. For your weak AC Issue, red seats will be cooler than black because black absorbs all light (electromagetic radiation) in the visible spectrum. As the electromagetic radiation interacts with the black leather at the molecular and atomic levels its energy is converted to other forms; mainly heat. Red should reflect ~20% of the radiation. White should reflect most of the visible spectrum and would thus be your best seat color choice for keeping your F cool.

 

Nice. I like to apply some ArmorAll to my seats to reflect additonal UV wavelength. I find I get a 3% effect.. discounting the greenhouse effect of the glass.