Ok found the answer to my own question:

The larger diameter fitting is the low pressure (closer to radiator) and the smaller diameter is the high pressure (closer to driver). You want to add R134a to the larger diameter (the recharge kits won't fit on the smaller diameter anyway). R134a never goes bad and is stable, however if you've got a leak and air or other contaminants have entered the system then you can't just vent the old stuff out, it needs to be vacuumed out.

For me, I feel like the a/c isn't blowing as cold as it should and think that topping it off with some more coolant my do the trick since it's an '04 and I'm sure some has trickled out over time (or maybe not and I'm just wasting my time and money).

In any case, here's a good site for how to refill:
http://www.id-usa.com/how_to_recharging.asp

 

I think there are a variety of problems being discussed here, not just one easy problem.

The A/C is not complicated - all refrigeration works the same way, the expansion of a liquid into a gas and returning to a liquid again is the simple explanation of how all refrigeration works. However, there are a multitude of subsystems that make it all work and any number of possible combinations of problems can make it not work.

It's against the law in the US to vent automotive refrigerants to the atmosphere, so my first recomendation is to take your car to a reputable shop. They have the tools and equipment to diagnose the problem and fix it right. What they'll do first is test the system for integrity - remove the refrigerant and pull a substantial vacumm and see if it holds as it should. If everything's good there they'll reintroduce the correct amount of refrigerant and lubricant to the system and put the gauges on it to see what it's doing. The low side readings are just as important as the high side, it should be within the limits specified by the mfr.

They'll then test the system from there........it's not hard, but it can be complicated depending on what's wrong.

 

How did it turn out for you?
My system is not blowing as cold as it should, so I am thinking I could try topping off my system before spending the big bucks at a shop.

 

Always enough time and money to do it over, never enough to do it right in the first place.........

You'll spend a whole lot more at the A/C shop if you do it wrong and overcharge the system. How much do you suppose it costs to replace a locked up compressor or a blown line?

If you're just a little bit low on freon, an A/C shop won't charge you that much to top it off, and at least you'll know it's not overcharged. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for DIY, but if you don't have the tools or expertise, sometimes it's just smarter to take it to the guy that does.

 

brutalsun,

My fiance owns an '02, and she had the same exact thing you described happen to her on Wednesday. We got it to the shop yesterday, and they said there was a hole in the A/C line that goes from the condenser to the evaporator. The whole line needs to be replaced, the receiver/dryer needs to be replaced, and then the A/C needs to be recharged. This shop's quote was $1500 total parts and labor. They're a bit high, so I'm getting some other quotes.

The shop said they researched this in some kind of shop "knowledge base" subscription service they get, and it's a known issue with earlier Minis because this A/C line rubs against something. The new line that they will get from the Mini dealer supposedly corrects this problem.

Is anyone else familiar with this issue? How about the $1500 price for this?

Thanks. I believe this is my first post here. I lurk every so often when issues come up with my fiance's Mini. I fixed a glove box issue based on info I found here, so I enjoy the site and appreciate everyone's insight.

JDC

 

I this thread still active?

A/C was working fine in my mini cooper 2005 up until I had the clutch replaced. After the clutch job, although it blows cool air, it is very week, specially the air blown from the vents on the driver side. Certainly not enough to cool the air in 90f temperature with a sunroof.

What could have gone wrong during the clutch replacement. According to the mechanic it was an 8-hour job and they had to disassemble and reassemble many parts to get to the clutch.

I just want to have an idea what the problem might be before I take it to the mechanic again.

Any help will be appreciated.

 

Gotta bump this thread up... I'm in Houston and I'm too big of a wuss to go without A/C again for our 100+ degree summers. My A/C was working fine 3 days ago, and now it's just blowing hot air. I checked the fuses, I pulled out the relays and stuck them back in (no idea how to tell if they are bad) and then noticed that my fan wasn't moving. I drove around my neighborhood pretty roughly (first gear going 30 to heat up my car) and the fan still didn't turn on.

I'm lost now. I've been reading about the low fan speed resistors and what not, but im not 100% on it.

 

I'm looking for feedback from anyone who had the problem of the A/C failing at the same time the low speed fan has stopped. I seen several people post with this problem but no resolution as to the final problem!!

My wife's mini had the A/C and fan stop working and she has taken my car so I can suffer until I get this resolved. I took it to an A/C shop and they said it was fully charged so I don't have a leak.

Anyone solve this????

Thanks,
Mike

 

Did you replace the fan assy?

 

I purchased a new fan assembly and plugged it into the connector on the car before I went to the effort of installing it. Neither the fan or A/C would work. The new fan worked the same as the old one, would only come on at high speed after a while.

 

I am in the exact same boat! Both my AC and Low Speed Fan are non working. Refrigerant is fine, no leaks in the AC system. AC blows warm, compressor is not kicking ON, and no fan coming on. I hooked up the new fan before installing it, same issues. I swapped around relays, and checked all fuses to no avail.

It sounds like there's a common denominator in all of this... Does anybody know what that might be that would cause the AC compressor not to kick on, along wiht the low speed fan?

I'm yanking my hair out.

 

Shorty- I am there with you it sounds like. My A/C wasn't working all that well on Sunday and I have been noticing erratic fan behavior, namely it was only running on high. Now I have no A/C... Blowing hot air.

Let's try to work on these problems and actually post how we fixed it (unlike the many others).

Houston Texas here as well... All of this happened after I took it to MINI for its last burst of warrantee work. They tried to tell me that the A/C was running weak because of a leaking thermostat- ehhh thanks for your hard work there Momentum Mini

 

I had similar symptoms which were resolved after replacing radiator fan and adding refrigerant. See this thread.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...c-problem.html

 

driving on a trip with ac on "low" temp,,and mid trip, after i noticed im sweating, realize the ac is blowing ambient air,,no cold to it at all, no change in the car, no new noise, or anything else out of ordinary,,bought the recharge kit and the only fitting fits the smaller of the two ports and reading 150psi. i gotta appt. with an ac guy tomarrow and will let all know how it turns out,,any insight would be great so i dont seem so clueless to this guy,,take care.

 

Hey waternut, this was a few days ago, any news? We're having a similar issue with our '06.

 

hey midnite,,,i never made my appt, had to work,, but will take it in this week and post the outcome,,any luck on your end???

 

Um... I'm not too sure but I think it may be solved with a new cooling fan. He was playing around with the fuses (we found one was toast) and we could hear the fan TRYING to get going. Sooo, I think we're gonna try getting a new cooling fan in there before we end up let the dealership tell us that we need to spend $1500 on an entire new cooling system.
Now keep in mind, it was probably well over 100 degrees in an open garage and with the fan not working, I'm sure just everything was hot. Which may help explain why everything's been wacky. He's been having some overheating issues too, so this would not be too surprizing. So I don't know what's going on, I just like to think I do and attempt to be helpful.

Let me know how it goes though, cause it sounds like we're in a similar boat.

 

hey everyone, just to catch up,,the tech at the shop came to the conclusion that it was the compressor, so 1800.00 later the dryer and compressor changed and got cold ac again,,luckly still under warrenty 500.00 out of my pocket,,,hope this helps,,take care

 

If it was covered, why did you have to pay the $500?

Rich

 

Just bought an 2006 Coupe S...The AC doesn't work. The actual AC light comes on, but no cold air. I don't know what the car sounds like normally, but I don't hear any weird noises. I am very mechanically inclined. Where should I start and how?
-Low Speed Fan/Resistor
-Charge AC
-Other

 

Where is the low speed fan located?

 

Right behind the radiator. It should turn on when you turn on the A/C. When it kicks into high speed, you can clearly hear it. But in low speed it is silent.

Rich

 

i had the same problem,,turned out to be the compressor,,1800.00 later new compressor / dryer and labor,,,cold ac,,hope this helps

 

If the refrigerant pressure is low the light in the dash will not come on.

Guess it's my turn to chime in with my issues as well...

*A/C started blowing ambient air as I'm driving arround town, light in dash stays on as if all is well.

*After jacking up the car and removing the plastic shielding from underneath I started her up and took a look: low speed fan comes on when A/C is turned on, but compressor clutch is not kicking in.

*with engine off reached down and verified compressor itself spins, it is not siezed.

*checked all fuses w/ a meter and verified all related relays by switching them w/ a known good one of the same type.

So, Unless someone sees something I missed, I either have a bad wire going to the compressor or a bad clutch on the compressor. I couldn't get to the plug to meter the wire going into the compressor so I guess I'm stuck spending the cash on a new compressor. ( $472.95 at Pelicanparts.com http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/...2D%30%38%29%20 )

 

My '02 had this at the start of the summer. Whenever I'd turn on the A/C, it'd make whining noises, and just blow outside temperature air around. Went to the dealer, they put in a new compressor and a few other things... ran about $1400 CDN. Well worth it though, driving on the highway in a hot, sweaty car, well, blows :P