ZL1 and A/C
 

Posted this in our club's forum also ...

Just traded my '13 2SS 1LE for a '13 ZL1. Maybe it's just me, but it didn't take long for the SS to start blowing cold air once the car was started, even in this hot AZ heat.

The ZL1 on the other hand seems to take an eternity before it starts blowing cold at all. The settings are identical when being used in both cars - a/c on max setting (yes, the little snowflake always gets pressed too) and air on recirculating. Anybody else notice this?

thats funny...my ZL1 is like a freezer when I want it to be...my wife always complains that she's frozen to death...lol

Mine was made in canada as well...not that would make a difference...so was my 2SS...but I've noticed for some reason the ZL1 seems colder...I have it on the first click in 30 degree Celsius.... :)

Oh I wish. When it finally decides to start blowing cool air at all, it's not cold - cold, beginning to think something's wrong here. The air in the SS just seemed to function faster and actually a little colder too, but the main problem is how long until it even starts blowing cool/cold air.

Mine starts blowing cold air in seconds. People always comment how they're impressed how fast it got cold. If its taking for ages you should take it in.

Yeah, something's wrong here. It's going in this coming Wed. so I think I'll just leave it off and have the tech get in the car with me and show him how long it takes. Of course, we all know at THAT particular point it will perform flawlessly and blow chilly cold!

Sigh...

Yeah something needs to be looked at. Mine is a ice box in seconds

You are not alone. Mine will get cold but it takes awhile.I have noticed it taking longer than my truck and it is black! I just thought that was the way it is supposed to be but maybe not.

Initially on start up if I've left the air on high and cold as it will go, edit, yes snow flake,( no refresh button is what I meant) because I don't usually use that, it takes maybe 5-15 seconds before butt cold air comes out on mine(never actually timed it), this is in Alabama, it's almost as hot as Arizona, but we have humidity that will kill you(and of course the guys in Florida always say it's worse there, but let me tell you, once you get to a certain humidity it's just miserable and an extra 3% doesn't make you feel any worse, I know, I'm back and forth between Bama and Florida).

That being stated, I've had three incidences where upon start up the fan blew, but the compressor didn't come on, I believe it is related to my phone charger that is plugged in next to the cluster gauges. Because, the first time I ripped out the charger and it started working. The last time I turned the car off and turned it back on and it started working.

I leave my air on max upon exiting plus I use the dash sunshade. Start the car a few minutes before getting in and it's cold in there.

There is another thread where there is information on ZL1's being overcharged from the factory. Once a few ounces of 134 are removed, the systems performed much better. (Especially here in AZ). Take your car into the dealer and have them check.

John

Here is the thread : http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=233355

No Arizona heat here but not too far behind. It was 111 the other day. Had to turn it down. Too cold. The best AC I've ever had in a car. Just hope it lasts.

Thanks for all the inputs! Interesting!

Took it to the dealer this morning. Unfortunately, the dealership doesn't have certified a/c crews on during the weekend. The guys that do handle the a/c's aren't trouble shooters though, so I opted out and will go in this Wed. I'm taking the entire day off and will "hawk" the work being done.

As I see I'm not the only one in this situation, I'm going to throw some of the things posted here at the tech. Overcharging can definitely cause problems. I've also heard of bad Body Control Modules, leaks in system, high pressure switch failures, etc. to me, the '13 SS definitely felt colder and blew that air within seconds after start up. I noticed that upon shutting it off (the a/c) and then a few minutes later starting it up again, it didn't take long. However, having the car sitting out in the sun it took about a good minute before it started blowing cool air.

similar issues here. except today my car sat in the heat from 8am to 2pm and it only took less than ten minutes for it to cool down.

Mines an icebox now! Real quick! Had a small problem but handled it very easy!

I don’t know if your problem is the same as mine, but anyway. I had to bring the car in for warranty work because I had no AC. I found out later that it probably wasn’t charged when it came from the factory.

Tech did a check and said there was no refrigerant in the system; you may have the same problem as me. Take it into the dealer.

Just an interesting note the ZL1 has a different AC condenser than the SS. The ZL1 has adapters on the inlet and outlet to fit the same fittings as the SS and mounts for the WTA Heat exchanger. No idea about capacity just that it’s completely different. I don’t have the documentation but by my memory the ZL1 has less Freon capacity than a SS on the under hood sticker.

Mine is the coldest AC I've ever had in any car!

put a thermometer in the vent and check the temp.

Basically from what I read from AZ ZL1 owners, you can turn the system off then back on and it will start blowing cold again. In short you need to have about 2 oz of freon removed for the problem not to occur again.

Hmm. Wondered about that.

I have bookmarked this page and will bring it in Wed. To dealer. Funny, but today with all the thunder boomers around it was quite overcast. Had to turn the fan on about 3 or 4 setting as it was really chilly in the ZL. I don't think this is a freon issue myself, but will see Wed. At times it almost seems as if I actually have the heater running, it's that hot. Then you can feel it start getting cool after a while. It's as if the blower is sucking in outside air and the compressor hasn't kicked in at all, even though the button shows it set to recirculating.

Oh well Reggie and others, will post back here with results Wed. evening.

From another thread, this to me makes some kind of sense;



06-26-2012, 10:29 PM #23
RoketRdr




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Keep in mind that your condenser is sandwiched between the heat exchanger and radiator. So if you were at normal operating temp and turned the car off on a hot day you now have a hot radiator and hot heat exchanger pouring heat into the cooler condenser. Heat equals pressure so when you turn the car off the condenser starts heating up quickly and building pressure in the A/C lines. The pressure switch in the A/C system see's the high pressure so it wont turn the compressor on until it falls to a safe level. Once you start driving and moving air across the stack, or the fans run for a few minutes, it cools the condenser down and drops the pressure to a safe level and allows the compressor to kick back on.

:threadjacked: Sorry but this is still kinda on topic. I have NO problems with my AC, but when I have it set to vent(yes with recirc on,....or off)) it blows warm air. Its not hot air but it sure seems warmer than the air outside.:noidea: Sorry for the hi-jack.

Same Thing

My ZL1 customer says when he turns off compressor and just has fan on with outside air it is heated even when its set to full cold. It sounds like there is a software or servo problem with these cars.

Guys, what mrmertz posted is the reason you are having problems. What I posted is the temporary work around and the final solution.

Our engines run at 200 degrees, combined with the summer temperatures if you turn off the compressor and just use fan its going to feel hotter than it is outside.

They are not overcharged according to their specs, they just remove 2 ounces as a temp fix. So, either their specs are wrong or I think a more long term fix would be the compressor switch. the coolant removal would be a much cheaper fix and it worked with mine.

And the final answer is...

Took the car to dealer as I said I would today. The final synopsis for my car was that there is a tech bulletin out out on it. Bulletin stated that a/c system needed to be evacuated and then recharged. The tech stated he found out also that the system was 1 pound low on freon before evac. He noted that the a/c now blows at 45 degrees and cools quickly from the vents.

Well, sounds like the end of this thread...I hope! Hope this may help someone else also! And also as always, thanks for everyone's input!!!

***PLEASE NOTE - This is what was determined for MY VEHICLE - your milage may vary!***

Ticket quote:

"CUSTOMER STATES THAT THE A/C SEEMS TO TAKE A MINUTE OR MORE TO START BLOWING COLD AIR FROM VENTS.
INSPECTED
EVACUATED AND FOUND FREON 1 LB. LOW, RECHARGED WITH 1 LB. FREON. SYSTEM WORKING AS DESIGNED."

Not trying to fire up the "BS" bus and back it over a fellow tech, but where in the heck did a pound of refrigerent go on a new car? The car only takes .54kg of 134a anyhow. Last I checked that is only about 1.2 pounds... (Granted what is usually called a pound is really a can which is only 12 ounces).

With that much gone, the system should have not worked at all. Just my $0.02

Glad it is fixed. Keep an eye on it though as loosing that much 134a is a concern.

John

Agreed. I think he was tryin' to make himself look good on top of the service bulletin! Whatever happened, I do notice it cools down quicker way faster than it used to.

My Mom actually had a mouse climb up inside her Xterra somehow and build a nest in the ductwork. Strange things can happen. I say get it checked, and have them check the air temp at the vent.



Edit: I started to say it was probably just low on refrigerant. I clicked post instead then saw you had the problem resolved. Glad that took care of it.

I wouldn't say this is a hijack, but I posted about the heat over a year ago even when it's on cool vent during the summer. I always have my vent on regardless of the outside temp and I had to turn the AC on to get cool air on a mild night. Several people posted that the SSs do this too. This car produces a lot of heat. You can see the heat waves coming off the hood insert even during the day.

Just picked up mine this past weekend and it's one of the first things I actually noticed and made a comment to my wife about. Very cold.

I live in the Orlando, FL area where it's pretty freaking hot and humid for over six months out of the year. my Z's A/C does a pretty good job at keeping me cold and comfy.

I'm constantly surprised at how much I have to turn the temperature up. Freezes me out -near Memphis

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