Thanks for all the input on this problem.

Dr. Drivability, doing exactly what you asked about is what my A/C guy suggested (he said with 94.5% certainty) would be the fix for this issue as he had a relative's Honda doing the same thing and an evacuate and recharge cleared it right up. They did weigh the refrigerant and add some to it, but they didn't totally evacuate the system. The service manager got a bit testy when I suggested that my expert told me that was the fix. My guy says that the problem is really with corrupted lubricant from the manufacturing process.

I'm still trying to figure out how to show beyond a shadow of doubt that there is a problem as BOTH (not accurate but what it says) of my service tickets state that the dealership was unable to duplicate the problem. Anyhow, yesterday I was running around with an instant read meat thermometer in the vents. It was in the low 90's with high humidity, which doesn't make the car do its worst; it has to be a little hotter. Anyhow, with the thermostat on "LO" (from what I read essentially 60 degree setting) and the fan on "HIGH" the temp was reading 40 degrees coming out of the vents. That's great from what I gather, and it was frosty cool, and a couple of times the car got all humid and smelled funny and the temp ran up to 60 degrees on the air from the vents. I find it hard to believe a 20 degree temp. variation is within specs. I think I have captured the gremlin. I suspect that it gets even higher when the A/C is working harder, because the compressor will stay off much longer than it did yesterday.

The lemon laws give a couple of years in Texas where we bought the car and three years here in Louisiana where we are domiciled. I haven't contacted a lawyer yet, but I've certainly thought about it.

I'm not quite to the point of trading it in yet, but I have been known to bite the bullet and do that when the aggravation gets enough. We traded in a Toyota Forerunner after nine months when we found out it was uncontrollable in the rain and it was a death trap in a wreck. That was years and years ago.

I'm hoping that Honda will still stand behind their product. I think contacting customer service may be the next step.

Thanks for the feedback. I'm learning waaaay more about auto A/C than I ever wanted to know. My Edsel didn't have A/C.

 

You're not clear. Who is "they"? And how could it be weighed when the system was not fully evacuated. And then adding some on top could cause just as many problems as a low charge can cause.

 

The "they" in question is the dealership. I was told the refrigerant was a little low from the factory, and that they got some "minor" codes saying the coils were freezing as a result, so they took out the refrigerant, weighed it, added to it to put it up to specs and put it back in.

The dealership paperwork says "could not duplicate concern at time performed evac and recharge"

Would an "evac and recharge" suck out all the lubricating oil too?

I've decided that it is about time to call Honda and ask if it really needs to throw a code before the dealership will get paid for warranty work. I got a code reader and downloaded Torque Lite onto my phone, and sure enough it has thrown no codes and there aren't any historical codes either.

Thanks for these really good questions!!

 

It may pull a very slight amount of oil out, but not enough to make a difference. Never heard of a minor code??? Lol, frigging dealerships. You won't get any A/C or "B" type codes from that Torque app. -ON- another note, you can pull codes manually from the control panel, google or youtube the procedure to do so, then report back with the codes you got, if any.

 

Just got off the phone with Natasha at "Customer Service" at American Honda. She had a case number open but is closing it because the Service Manager was the only one who saw the problem and not the technician who would be fixing the problem. She says that they must have it occur more consistently before they can proceed. So, American Honda acknowledges a problem is there because the service manager saw it, but they are not even willing to talk to their in-house engineers to see if anyone has ever heard of this issue because it "isn't consistent" and the service tech didn't see it, only the service manager. The service tech. doesn't have anything to bring to the table... I have to say I'm EXTREMELY disappointed with Honda at this minute. I guess I need to call a lawyer and work on the Lemon Law. Honda doesn't stand behind their products. She wouldn't even agree to let anyone talk to their engineers. UNBELIEVABLE.

 

Sucks that Honda is not more responsive, I was talking with a guy here on the forum several years ago about a transmission leak from the case (porous metal). Car only had 50k on it, he called up Honda and they got him a new transmission...Anyway, I'm wondering if the evaporator temp sensor is acting up, your symptoms sound consistent with a failing or intermittent sensor. Find a shop with a HDS compatible scan tool that can monitor the A/C PIDs for the various sensors. Have them do another evacuate/recharge and fully disclose all that has happened previously. You may have to let them keep the car and test drive it with the scan tool hooked up. If it goes wonky when they are driving it they will be able to see what sensor is acting up...This is all a BIG maybe and of course money and time out of your pocket.

 

Wow, that is surprising, never expected that. Yes, perhaps a lawyer is the next step. Wishing you the very best in your endeavor

 

This is the kind of information I was hoping to get out of the Honda "Customer Service" or at least get the local people access to. I really appreciate this information. I just have to believe with all the zillions of Honda Accords on the road, that Honda has seen this problem before. I'm not sure what your background is, Jeff, but you obviously have some experience with all this. I did read online that the "low end limit" or whatever it is called would possibly cause problems like this with a manual A/C, and the website pretty much said if it is an automatic unit...good luck.

I hope I'm not boring everyone with all this; this forum has been very helpful. I know this isn't like a transmission falling out, but here in the deep South having a functional A/C is pretty much a necessity by now. We've gotten soft...I can't imagine driving this thing back to Central Texas where we bought it when it is in full malfunction mode.

Thanks to everyone for their input and I'll keep you posted.

 

First paragraph of last post was supposed to be a quote from Dr. Drivability. I screwed that up.

 

I may not have gotten the A/C issues "fixed" but I do now have them "resolved." Toyotathon is in full swing here, and I went down and traded the Accord in on a 2017 Camry. Because of the combination of the great resale value of the Honda and an insanely good deal on the Toyota, I got a model year newer car with hopefully functional A/C for $1600 and change. The Accord was definitely more fun to drive, faster, and outhandles the Toyota. I think the Toyota front end is hideous, and the Accord is generally better looking. The overall build quality seems higher on the Toyota, and I got an electric driver's seat and a split fold down rear seat on the base LE. It does have the dreaded hubcaps, but I'll have to get over that. I have lots experience with the Toyota dealer's service department here, and they have been pretty good over the years, so we'll see how that goes. I'm sure the Camry will have its issues, but hopefully the A/C will work. It is amazing how being uncomfortable changes your priorities; I didn't even look at the Camry because of the front end, and now I own one because of the A/C issue. I'm really curious to know what the "permanent wave smell" was as that was a continual problem for the almost three thousand miles I drove the Accord. The last time my wife and I jumped up on the Interstate bypass for a few blocks we had to roll our windows down the smell was so strong. I'm disappointed that I had such a poor experience with the Accord as my past experiences with two Civics were generally positive. I think the Accord is a terrific design apparently plagued by poor execution. The Honda customer service in my experience was worse than totally worthless. Thanks for all the help and suggestions here on the board as to how to get this problem fixed. Unfortunately for them and thankfully for me, now someone else will have to figure this out. I did tell the Camry salespeople that the A/C was an issue, and they didn't seem to be too concerned, I suppose because it is still under factory warranty for two more years plus. Thanks again and enjoy your Accords; if you got a fully functional one, you have a good car.