No AC when stopped

[Coolzzy]

I'm looking at a 13 SEL with 50k miles on it. The air conditioning does not work when the car is stopped (ICE not running). I thought the AC compressor was turned by an electric motor on these cars so it should still be cooling when the motor is off. I set the temp control to LO, but all I get is hot air. When moving, the air gets ice cold and the productivity screen shows the climate control is active. Even when rolling and the ICE off, the climate control still shows active bit as soon as the vehicle stops, so does the climate control (blower keeps going though). What should I be looking at as the culprit? I drove a 15 and it did not behave this way, was there maybe a software update that resolved this on the early model year cars?

[obob]

As I see it, that is not a feature, that is a problem, something that has gone wrong.  I drive a 13 SE and it never has behaved that way.

[Coolzzy]

Any idea what could cause this behavior? To me it seems like a software issue, but how do you "reset" a hybrid when you cannot easily disconnect the battery? Should the engine fan still be running to draw air through the condenser when the AC is on, or does the electric AC pump function differently? Maybe the cooling fans are not working? The car was low on fuel, 60 miles till empty but I don't think that would make it act this way.

[ptjones]

The Fan should be working anytime the A/C is on.  Make sure Fan is running.

Paul

[jestevens]

It is true that the AC compressor is an electrically driven compressor.  The one thing to note with these cars is that you can manually turn the AC compressor off and on - does the neon green VFD display above the actual climate controls near the bottom of the center stack say "AC ON" or "AC OFF" when you are expecting the cold air?  If you press the AC button which is the furthest button on the left does it improve the situation?  There's a toggle for AC on the touch screen climate controls too.

 

Other than that maybe something is wrong with the compressor.

 

The MAX AC button on the knob and the red defrost button quickly put all the controls at maximum for either climate condition, usually you can press the "Auto" button twice to get the climate controls to reset to a thermostatically controlled situation with AC enabled.

Edited September 7, 2017 by jestevens

[Coolzzy]

AC was on as indicated on the panel. It was 90 outside and as soon as the car started moving the air got very cold but when stopped, the climate control icon on the touch screen vehicle status window turns off(that shows if the motor is running and other similiar things). When moving, even with the ICE off, the air works fine, it's just when stopped, like AR a light or with the car in park that it does not work. The blower fan stays running the whole time. I'm going by to look at it again today and will see if the radiator fans are working.

[ptjones]

Sure sounds like it isn't. :sad:  I wonder if the cord got disconnected? Maybe fuse?

 

Paul

[jestevens]

I googled around and apparently (at least on other cars) this is a symptom of condenser fan not working..  When the car is moving there is enough airflow for cooling to work, but not when stationary.

[67gtcougar]

I have the same issue on my 2013 Energi.  The compressor rarely operates when the car is stopped, but when the car is in motion it works great, even in Phoenix.  I took it to the dealer, but the tech had no idea what was causing it, but did charge me $350 for his time.  When I start the car and turn on the A/C, the compressor runs for about 1 minute, before shutting off, then will run for about 10 seconds every 2  minutes afterwards, but blows warm air. If I then drive the car, the A/C works fine, until I stop for any reason.  I replaced the evaporator temp sensor, and the cabin air filter.  I rarely use the A/C, so I'm not sure when this problem started.  I mentioned to the Ford service representative that I didn't think the condenser fan was coming on when I dropped off the car, but not sure if needed to, especially since it wasn't that warm out at the time I checked it.  Any help would be appreciated.  Thanks!

Edited October 1, 2022 by 67gtcougar
Typo

[cr08]

I'd get codes pulled to start with to see if anything is being produced to narrow down the issue. The HVAC system on this vehicle is fairly intelligent and monitors a number of data points that it could show if something is not behaving within normal parameters.

 

Personal preference is using Forscan with a decent OBD2 adapter. For AC/climate related stuff, a cheap Amazon/fleabay Bluetooth adapter will be sufficient. But this combination will also show Ford specific codes that generic code scanners may not.

 

The condenser/engine bay cooling fan should always be running to some degree with the AC compressor running since airflow is constantly needed over the condensor for it to operate correctly. That said, both the cooling fan and compressor are variable speed on the C-Max depending on AC or engine cooling load. For example if it isn't terribly hot or humid outside and the cabin temp has been reached and is just being maintained, they'll slow down quite a bit but should still be audible.

[67gtcougar]

I figured the service tech would have thought to check the codes.  He did say that the compressor was very noisy though, and it would cost $2,800 (including the diagnostic fee) to replace it.  He added  that it wouldn't fix the problem.  Thanks.

[SnowStorm]

In my opinion, the compressor always sounds noisy from outside the car.

[67gtcougar]

My AC problem (compressor not operating while car was not in motion) was resolved after a second trip to the service department.  The tech discovered that the AC fan connector wasn't snapped in all the way.  It works great now.  It was probably disconnected when the transmission was replaced.   I can definitely hear the fan running whenever the AC is on now.