Thread: PUMA air-con issues

Hmm, your post reminded me that I also get a large puddle appear on the garage floor after a drive…

I'm pretty sure the puddle is normal when using the aircon, all of my cars have done that, something to do with the condensor/evaporator or something. Although the Puma looks like a labrador has taken a leak, compared to the wife's honda which only looks like a chihuahua whizz.

What I was getting at, on just a short drive the drain is dripping each time, noticeable as soon as you stop when the air has been on. But today, maybe because it was frozen over it didn't start to run for about 15 mins, I'm assuming, after it started to thaw out (I'm only guessing here).

I had bought 1 of those cheap little cylinder temperature gauges (just for this purpose) that you clip onto your vents off ebay, so happens it arrived after lunch today. This afternoon I clipped it to the fixed vent near the clock and went for a 15 or so minute drive, roughly. The temp got down to 6.6 and on returning home it had already risen to 9.0. I was only putting around in a 50 kph area checking on the bushfire just north of here.

I will go for a decent drive during the week and see just what the extreme differences in output temperature are.

Mick

Well, I ran my little 'experiment' today. Taking into account the 'instrument' I used is just a $5 clip on digital vent thermometer from ebay, so it won't be the most accurate I know, but to give an idea of extreme difference in air-conditioning temperature output I think its enough for the purpose.

My vehicle is a MY12 90 Puma with the standard rubber floor and seatbox mats, no other insulation (yet). I clipped the 'instrument' onto the fixed vent on the drivers side of the clock. The air-conditioning was switched on with no fan assistance added, set on recirculate and the vent dial was set to just the upper vents only for this 'experiment'.

During the test the ambient air temp was between 23 and 24.5 deg c. When I started at 10.55am, the temp in the car was 21.9c. I then drove along the highway (100 kph area) where the aircon temp dropped to the lowest of 0.4c at 11.13am, from here it began to slowly rise to 8.3c at 11.25am when I reached by destination 33 kms from where I started.

At 12.56pm I resumed my test the aircon temp showing 8.1c after driving a short time. Once again I was travelling at 100 kph. At 1.14pm the aircon reached its lowest temp of 0.7c.

I travelled about 60 kms this leg and at 1.34pm the aircon temp had risen to 9.2c. I then drove around a 50 kph area until 1.39pm and the temp had risen to 11.1c. I returned to driving at 100 kph and travelled home (about 26 kms) and upon arriving at 2.06pm the aircon temp had risen to 14.1c.

Once parked in the garage the overflow/dripping from the aircon unit didn't start for about 10 to 15 minutes.

While driving you can definitely feel the heat coming from the seatbox/tunnel area after a while, I think I can actually feel the heat permeating up through the seat cushion ..... No doubt this does add to the cabin temperature but I would have thought an efficient air-conditioning system would overcome this. Bearing in mind the outside temp was only 23 to 24.5c as well in my recent vehicles in this type of temperature I would actually be warming the aircon temp up a little.

I also noted that the aircon compressor in the engine bay, the pipe that comes from the back of it there is a blue cap on a fill/empty valve. Between here and the silver insulation when the aircon is on for a short time this pipe is cold to touch, at the end of my 'experiment' today this portion of pipe was hot to touch, the other side of the insulation just prior to entering the bulkhead the pipe was cold but not ICE cold.

Well no doubt all of this means jack...t but I said I would post my results.

I WILL in the near future insulate the vehicle and hope for better results from this meagre aircon.

Sorry for the long winded post

Mick

Presume you will also return it to LR for diagnosis and fix?

Lettuce know what they say/do...

Yes I think I will be but it won't be in the near future though, plus its a 3 hour drive each way, just to make it all the more of a pain in the a

I will be insulating the whole thing as well, it can't hurt! I may get it done before I get back to Mr L.R.

It would be good to hear from some of the first posters of this thread from back early 2011 such as Mickygee, Nugge T, Gidget etc to see if there aircon issues were fixed, and if so, what was the cause and the miracle 'fix'.

Mick.

I've had mine into Land Rover today for air con that wasn't working quite right.. cold for about 20 minutes then only slightly cool air after that.. They were great though and have booked it in for a new de-icing sensor which is supposed to fix the problem..

I hope I don't have the same problems with them removing the dash as the others here have mentioned!

Originally Posted by Sue

cold for about 20 minutes then only slightly cool air after that.. They were great though and have booked it in for a new de-icing sensor which is supposed to fix the problem..

Sue, let me know if this fixes the problem - your symptoms same as mine

My understanding is that LR eventually came up with a new sensor. I had not had a repeat of that problem since it was installed.

Last week the A/C stopped. Turned out to be a leaking "O" ring which is not surprising given some of the country and corrugations I have been on in recent times. "O" ring replaced and system topped up and all good again.