"Pete M" wrote in message
...
wrote:
First hot day of the year and surprise surprise, the aircon
doesn't
work. Anybody here worked on one of these? It's a 98 S plate
with
the 1.8 engine.

I've traced it as far as the compressor solenoid / clutch /
whatever
isn't getting any power when the A/C is turned on. The light
comes on
on the dash, but the wire going to the compressor is dead
(checked
with a test lamp and voltmeter). All the other heater
functions work
OK, and the fuses (there seem to be three associated with it)
are all
intact.

If I run a wire directly from the compressor to the battery I
can hear
a 'clunk', the idle drops a bit, and it starts to blow cold -
so it
looks like wiring / relay / control PCB fault. Any pointers
for
getting at the heater controls, preferably without pulling the
entire
dash out?

Even after running it for 5 mins with the wire to the battery
it was a
bit feeble - so it'll probably need a re-gas as well sometime
soon.
Anybody tried the £30 kits you can get from Halfords etc? Or
would I
be better off going to an aircon specialist to get this bit
done?

Take it to an AC specialist. It probably only needs recharging,
but as it's only £40 odd quid for a vac / dye / gas then you
may as well let someone who knows what they're doing sort it.

Seconded.
All auto a/c systems leak. Could take years but eventually when
the gas pressure drops below a certain point it trips out to
protect the compressor.
Unless you're very unlucky, a professional evacuation and refill
with gas and oil, will restore it to full working order.
Mike.