air conditioner fan intermittent failure
09-30-2014, 10:05 PM
#11
on another A/C note...I have a 2014 SQ5 and I've always felt the A/C blower was weak. --just not a lot of pressure even with the fan at full speed. It takes a long time to cool the car down when the temp is above 90 outside. (I rent cars a lot for work, and they always seem to blow air more forcefully out the vents than my SQ5) So I recently took my car to the dealership and they said everything is performing as it should. SO no improvement... and...since then, every time I turn on the AC... I hear now a faint, high pitched whistling sound that increases with the fan speed. Any ideas?
06-15-2015, 05:05 AM
#12
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My 2013 Q5 showed the exact same symptoms that the OP had. After 5 hours in hot weather, the AC output flow drops to about a 3. Setting the blower mower higher with the manual settings doesn't help, other than to cause more fan noise behind the glove box. It goes into the dealer tomorrow. Just as a few of you pointed out, just turning the car off for 10 minutes or so cleared up the problem. Briefly turning it off was no help. It could be freezing up, that makes sense, but there wasn't any fog coming out of the vents before or after.
06-15-2015, 10:34 AM
#13
AudiWorld Super User
"and also found the AC system "overfilled". "
Well, yes, an overfill would lead to icing, but was that still the original two year old factory fill? Or was it repaired for some reason since original?
Audi screwed up so many 2013 factory fills that they have a campaign to correct them?
Reminds me of Hamlet, and allegations of odd smells in Denmark.
Well, yes, an overfill would lead to icing, but was that still the original two year old factory fill? Or was it repaired for some reason since original?
Audi screwed up so many 2013 factory fills that they have a campaign to correct them?
Reminds me of Hamlet, and allegations of odd smells in Denmark.
06-20-2015, 06:55 PM
#14
AudiWorld Member
Thread Starter
My 2013 Q5 showed the exact same symptoms that the OP had. After 5 hours in hot weather, the AC output flow drops to about a 3. Setting the blower mower higher with the manual settings doesn't help, other than to cause more fan noise behind the glove box. It goes into the dealer tomorrow. Just as a few of you pointed out, just turning the car off for 10 minutes or so cleared up the problem. Briefly turning it off was no help. It could be freezing up, that makes sense, but there wasn't any fog coming out of the vents before or after.
When this happens, turn the A/C off by pressing the A/C button. Then manually set your fan to a higher speed. Than press the A/C button. It should now work like normal.
I don't remember if the Auto mode will work correctly after this, but eventually the problem came back while driving; maybe 30 minutes to an hour. Just repeat process above.
It may not even work at all. But it did for me through trial and error.
11-24-2018, 01:45 PM
#16
AudiWorld Senior Member
Based on the description it sure sounds like the evaporator coil is "freezing." More important to me is where the heck do you live to be experiencing this stuff in November ? Around here , Quebec, Ac problems are but a distant memory !
11-24-2018, 04:42 PM
#18
AudiWorld Senior Member
Andies my condolences for your having to live in such a beautiful place with fabulous climate.I like hot and humid.You must have some wonderful roads to drive if you head north.Could you actually travel by road to Vietnam ?
11-28-2018, 12:09 PM
#19
AudiWorld Super User
I had also posted about what sounds like the same problem in another older thread. In very hot humid conditions (100F and 100% humidity) the AC evaporator fins apparently ice up quite solidly, resulting in weak warm air. And they can take quite a while to melt clear, even if the heat is running.
My dealer gave me a routine drug test to make sure I wasn't just imaging this, ran some diagnostics, finally called AoA because they'd heard of this before. It turns out AoA also knew about the problem, mainly in the far south/east US. Their fix at the time was to physically replace the AC control computer, with a custom new part that is programmed to maintain a higher fan speed to blow moisture clear so the evaporator will not ice up. Apparently that custom fix was only available to customers who had the specific problem.
If the car is under warranty, let them know that Audi of America has confirmed a problem AND solution, so your Audi division should be able to give you the same fix. If you are not under warranty...I think it was Bob P. who suggested just keeping the AC system set to "recycled" so it uses the drier air in the cabin, as well as keeping the fan set up higher, to try keeping that moisture off the evaporator fins. A workable kludge, if you can't get Audi to give you the fix.
My dealer gave me a routine drug test to make sure I wasn't just imaging this, ran some diagnostics, finally called AoA because they'd heard of this before. It turns out AoA also knew about the problem, mainly in the far south/east US. Their fix at the time was to physically replace the AC control computer, with a custom new part that is programmed to maintain a higher fan speed to blow moisture clear so the evaporator will not ice up. Apparently that custom fix was only available to customers who had the specific problem.
If the car is under warranty, let them know that Audi of America has confirmed a problem AND solution, so your Audi division should be able to give you the same fix. If you are not under warranty...I think it was Bob P. who suggested just keeping the AC system set to "recycled" so it uses the drier air in the cabin, as well as keeping the fan set up higher, to try keeping that moisture off the evaporator fins. A workable kludge, if you can't get Audi to give you the fix.
11-30-2018, 05:35 PM
#20
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yes! Can drive all the way up if you are adventurous enough