One of the most inconvenient problems with a vehicle is when the air conditioner is not blowing cold air. If your car or truck isn’t keeping you cool, we’ve outlined some of the most common reasons why this could be happening.
Keep in mind that the air conditioner and heater are essentially different systems. The only thing that the A/C has in common with the heater is that they both use the climate controls and the blower motor.
It is entirely possible for your vehicle’s heater to work just fine even when the air conditioner is not blowing cold at all. That’s why troubleshooting the air conditioner is totally different than troubleshooting the heater.
Air Conditioning Not Blowing Cold Causes
Lack of Refrigerant
Your vehicle’s air conditioner will not work if the refrigerant has disappeared due to a leak. In fact, most won’t even cycle on without the right amount of refrigerant pressure. This is far and away the most common reason that air conditioning fails.
It can be tempting to just get more coolant and get back on the road, but unless you find where the leak is coming from it’ll eventually happen again.
Bad Condenser
If your condenser has taken damage or been clogged up, the coolant can’t properly do it’s job.
Clutch Cycling Switch
A/C systems use an electromagnetic clutch to activate the compressor. When this switch fails your air conditioning is dead in the water.
Blower Motor
If there isn’t any air blowing from your car or truck, the blower motor (or perhaps the resistor) is at fault. They are not that expensive and are easy to replace (most of the time).
Blend Door
The blend door controls how much heated or cooled air enters the cabin. If it gets jammed or locks up, your air conditioning system can’t respond to your temperature change request.
These are a few of the most common issues that could cause your vehicle to not blow cold enough. There are other issues that can cause this as well.
Conclusion: A/C Not Blowing Cold
Most of the time, when your vehicle’s air isn’t blowing cold enough, it is going to be a lack of refrigerant causing the problem. We recommend having a professional recharge your A/C if it does end up being a coolant issue. If you put too much coolant into the system, you can really do some damage.
If there is anything you would like to add, please leave a comment below. Good luck!