[Surefire02]

Chaps
I've had my air con regassed twice in two and a half years. The dealer insists they can't find a leak so I have had to pay stupid money for this special gas both times. Just checked the air con again today and guess what? Yes it ain't working again, that's less than a year since the last regass. I'm pretty p****ed. Does anyone know how I could get this fixed cos clearly Kia haven't a clue. By the way I make sure the engine is run every couple of weeks to circulate the lubrication within the air con circuit. So its not through ill use.

Thanks chaps.

 

[mcsport]

Welcome to the Forum,

A Car AC Specialist is probably better suited to diagnose and solve your problem.
Kwik Fit and the like do AC regas quite cheaply. They don't tend to do diagnostics or repairs other then a very basic vacuum test to check for 'big' leaks.

 

[iuygoig]

First off I would go to the dealer and discuss the story - not good to be told there is no leak when you know there is. It is also normal practice to add a dye whe re-gassing and this shows up stains around the site of a leak - was this not done?

If no lucj then find an indy aircon specialist near to you. Do not use any of the national chains which also do tyres/batteries/exhausts/MoTs or anything other than aircon. The very basic regas involves checking for leaks by waiting to see if it holds a vacuum (the vacuum is anyway necessary to remove all traces of the old refrigerant and oil and any moisture in there). If it holds for 10 minutes then it is deemed good. Trouble is that some leaks only show under pressure - I know this from from personal (not KIA) experience. You need to find someone who will perform a pressure test not a vacuum test.

 

[iooi]

Chaps
I've had my air con regassed twice in two and a half years. The dealer insists they can't find a leak so I have had to pay stupid money for this special gas both times. Just checked the air con again today and guess what? Yes it ain't working again, that's less than a year since the last regass. I'm pretty p****ed. Does anyone know how I could get this fixed cos clearly Kia haven't a clue. By the way I make sure the engine is run every couple of weeks to circulate the lubrication within the air con circuit. So its not through ill use.

Thanks chaps.

Do you run A/C on all the time, or only use it from time to time?

Doh..

Personally Run it all the time, it makes no difference and keeps system in good order.

 

[iuygoig]

Chaps
I've had my air con regassed twice in two and a half years. The dealer insists they can't find a leak so I have had to pay stupid money for this special gas both times. Just checked the air con again today and guess what? Yes it ain't working again, that's less than a year since the last regass. I'm pretty p****ed. Does anyone know how I could get this fixed cos clearly Kia haven't a clue. By the way I make sure the engine is run every couple of weeks to circulate the lubrication within the air con circuit. So its not through ill use.

Thanks chaps.

Will do nothing unless the aircon is on.

 

[Surefire02]

Apparently they put the dye in the first time but found no leaks when I took it back the second time. I think I will go with your advice and try to find a proper AC specialist in my area and have a chat with them. Still makes me cross why Kia can't fix it though.

Thanks for the advice chaps

 

[Surefire02]

Will do nothing unless the aircon is on.

Sorry should have mentioned that I turn the ac on whilst running

 

[mcsport]

Do not use any of the national chains which also do tyres/batteries/exhausts/MoTs or anything other than aircon.

My suggestion of using Kwik Fit, etc was a Yearly £50? Re-Gas might be cheaper than chasing the Leak.
I believe some AC Specialists use a sniffer.
Given that the Gas is escaping at such a slow rate, it may be difficult to detect.
I have had UV Dye used on a Nissan some Years ago. The AC worked for a Week or Two after Re-Gas. The Specialist was then able to see the Hole in the Condenser.

 

[Jack Daniels]

Check the 2 filling connections, these have a schrader type valve, it could be possible to leak there without spilling dye. Use leak finder fluid there to observe for bubbles.

A long duration press test is required. Since its only 20 bar or so it is not easy to get a stable test in a workshop where the doors are being opened and closed, varying the temperature.

Spray leak finder yourself, at all the joints you can access, you may just spot a bubble.
The joints on the condenser often leak first as this functions somewhat like a sacrificial anode in the wet on the front of the car.

 

[Magnet Man]

Chaps
I've had my air con regassed twice in two and a half years. The dealer insists they can't find a leak so I have had to pay stupid money for this special gas both times. Just checked the air con again today and guess what? Yes it ain't working again, that's less than a year since the last regass. I'm pretty p****ed. Does anyone know how I could get this fixed cos clearly Kia haven't a clue. By the way I make sure the engine is run every couple of weeks to circulate the lubrication within the air con circuit. So its not through ill use.

Thanks chaps.

I owned a 2014 from new and after 12 months the air con lost its efficiency, so I had it re gassed just before the air con warranty expired. However the KIA dealer could not find any leaks and they put a leak dye in case the refrigerant leaks out again. . Then about 18 months afterwards the air con lost its efficiency again. I had read about this happening to someone else who had a fix. So went to the KIA agent armed with my new knowledge. This time I also asked that if they cannot find a leak to look under the rear luggage side trim, where the fluid pipe from the rear seats air con evaporator connects. The garage said they did a full test and con not find a leak, but when they removed the rear seat trim to get at the rear evaporator they found the leak at the pipe connection. As this was a leaking pipe connection, the repair was covered by warranty. As this part of the system is not visible unless you remove the rear side trim at the rear evaporator, next to third row of seats. Then all was fine for many years afterwards.

 

[iooi]

Check the 2 filling connections, these have a schrader type valve, it could be possible to leak there without spilling dye. Use leak finder fluid there to observe for bubbles.

Washing up liquid in some water is a good cheap choice

 

[Oldtugger]

My 2014 KX2 has just been in for its annual service . The week before we had those two really hot days and the aircon didn’t work, so I asked my dealer to check it during the service. They did - condenser failed, new condenser and re gas required @ £500.
The good news is it’s still got one month of its warranty so done today f.o.c.
I really can’t fault the Kia warranty, earlier this year the yaw sensor failed and that was done under warranty too.
But the clutch.................................