My ac had been working fine considering I had a leaking radiator. I had the radiator replaced about two weeks ago and lately its cooling efficiency is less then before.

In the morning or after work when the car has been sitting for at least 8 hours the ac seems to work fine. It's after I've driven to a location then go to another place that I notice the ac not properly cooling. If the car is run with few stops, the cooling improves but in stop an go traffic it is not cool.

The T-stat is honda and only a few years old. The ac was repair about 2 years ago and the radiator is new (aftermarket Advance Auto). Both fans come on with the ac on and the car does not overheat. The coolng system has been bled. Is this model car (V6) suppose to have the fan stay on when the ignition is turned off?

I'll be calling the mechanic next week but I wanted to know if there is anything I could look at.

Thanks

 

Try testing the pressure on the high and low side of the ac system.

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I have an update.

About a week or so ago my check engine light came on. At about the same time I noticed my engine was pinging when cold end even sometimes when warm. I also experienced one misfire the other day as well as the issue with the a/c. Worst of all was the deterioration of my fuel economy within the last three days.

I finally got my car to the auto zone to have it checked out. It came back showing a bad EGR valve. It made sense as the symptoms i was experiencing was that of a bad EGR valve including the engine running hotter. The tech reset the error code and the cel went off.

I came across a thread from this site showing a youtube video showing someone checking the EGR valve by pressing down on the vacuum plunger while placing their finger over the vacuum outlet. When the plunger is released while still plugging the vacuum outlet the plugger remains in place, mostly. When the finger is removed the plugger goes back to its original position. This shows a good valve.

I checked my EGR with this method and it checked out fine. However, the valve was fairly clogged. I cleaned it and as well as soaking it in cleaner for a while. Afterwards the car started fine with no pinging and a smother idle. I'll check over the next few days to see how all works including the a/c.


Thanks for the info on the a/c. I thought in my model 1997 v6 that the fan remained on after the car is off.

 

For your 97, the fan can remain on for a while after the car is shut off.

Here is a description of how the circuit works on the 97 Accord:

Radiator Fan
Voltage is provided at all times to the radiator fan relay and the radiator fan control module. For the module, voltage is also provided in ON (II) or START (III). The module provides power to the radiator fan relay when the ignition switch is in ON (II) or START (III) and for 2 minutes after the ignition is switched off. The radiator fan relay is energized whenever the GRN wire is grounded. The GRN wire can be grounded by the engine coolant temperature switch A (L4), the engine coolant temperature switch (V6), the A/C switch and fan switch, the powertrain or engine control module (PCM or ECM), or the radiator fan control module.

Condenser Fan
With ignition switch in ON (II) or START (II), and for 2 minutes after the ignition is switched off, the radiator fan control module also provides power to the condenser fan relay coil. The condenser fan runs under the same conditions as the radiator fan. The module can ground the relay coils only when the engine coolant temperature switch is closed. The condenser fan can run after the ignition is switched OFF, until the engine coolant temperature switches open, or the module removes power.


The engine coolant temperature switch closes above 93 degrees C (199 degrees F).

 

Correct by your moderator RedBull 1

 

Thank you for the update.

Can you specify what you mean by "the fan can remain on"? Does this mean the fan will stay on awhile under harsh driving conditions or also under normal citing driving conditions?

I notice my fans do not stay on when the car is off after driving. This may explain the a/c cooling issue. If it's the latter can you point where to check first?

Thanks for everyone's time.

 

When you're experiencing low AC performance check whether compressor is engaging and cooling fans coming on w/ compressor.

If no compressor action, no cooling can occur.

If compressor is engaging, but cooling fans are not, then AC performance will be reduced at low forward speeds. However at anything 30mph up, the AC should work fine.

good luck

 

Q: Your thread title was "-is the fan suppose to remain on after car is off?" and your question included: "Is this model car (V6) suppose to have the fan stay on when the ignition is turned off?"

A1: My answer was "For your 97, the fan can remain on for a while after the car is shut off."

With the ignition shut off, the radiator fan control module provides power for two minutes. After the ignition is off and if the coolant temperature is above 199 degrees F, then the cooling fans will run until the temperature is below 199 degrees F or power is removed by the control module (2 minutes). -- This is if the coolant temperature switch, module, fans, relays, are working properly.


A2: When the car is running (not shut off), if the coolant temperature is above 199 degrees F, the coolant temperature switch is suppose to close, which should turn on the cooling fans if the coolant temp. switch, control module, relays, and fans are working properly. Turning on the A/C should turn on the cooling fans too, as you already noticed.

 

Thank you for everyone's comments and assistance.

Before I replace my leaking radiator I thought my a/c issues were caused by the bad radiator. After it was replaced I noticed my a/c has a control to draw air from inside the cab or from the outside. I had always had it set to the inside air.

So you can imagine living in Fl how hot it can get. I switched the control to draw air from the out side when the car had been sitting in the hot sun all as when leaving work. There was a noticeable difference. After wards I switch it back to draw air from inside the cab. The cooling has improved, but that sun cooks everything in the car even with a sunshield and a sunroof doesn't help.

Getting back to the ERG valve for a moment. The cel came back on a few days after if was cleared and I cleaned the ERG valve. I took the car back to AZ and the tech told me it was the ERG sensor or the valve. Well the sensor in part of the EGR valve. Even though the valve holds a vacuum apparently the sensor on the valve is bad.

The readout they gave my showed: error P0401

Probable cause:
aa1 - Faulty ERG valve
aa2 - Blocked EGR passages in engine


I want to resolve this issue first with the ERG valve incase it may be affecting the a/c cooling by taxing the cooling system.

Thanks again.

 

Create a new thread regarding the EGR error code, you can copy and paste the part regarding the EGR. That way we can keep the issues separate and easier to follow and try to resolve. I will include the easy EGR port cleaning instructions for your 97 V6 in the new thread.