96GranSport Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 Wasn't sure where to put this questions so I just figured I'd give it a try here. Since this is my first post, I hope you are all gentle with me. My problem is that the A/C on my 96 Regal GS isn't working and I'm not sure why. When I turn it on, nothing happens. If I turn the fans on high, I can hear them blowing but no A/C. I checked all the fuses under the hood but they are all good. I'm not exactly sure when this problem started since I hadn't used my A/C for a while. The only thing that I've had done to my car was have my speakers and amp installed about 8 months ago and, honestly, that's the only thing that I could think of that might have caused the A/C to stop running. Are there any other fuses under the dash that might have been blown? Or some wiring that might have gotten disconnected that could be the culprit? Any help would be greatly appreciated. P.S. I can still see the lights on the control unit so it must be getting some power. Also my heater is not working....just the fans. Thanx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supreme Cutlass Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 I take it you mean that the compressor isn't engaging, but you have air blowing, correct? can you still switch where the air goes? Have you checked the fuses in the interior? My guess would be the switch in the dash. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kalgorn Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 Do your HVAC controls work in general? Can you change between defroster, floor, vent, etc? If you can't change it and all the buttons set it to defrost, it's possibly a vacuum line. It's the same problem I was having on my car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonyman87 Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 sounds like my AC. still no worky. people say you have to jump the preasure switch to get the compressor to kick on to fill the system.. only problem is my preasure switch has 3 connections and not 2 like everyone says damn the odd-ball year Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoStudd Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 Do your HVAC controls work in general? Can you change between defroster, floor, vent, etc?The Buick HVAC control units are notorious for going "wacky" and not allowing you to select the mode. If this is true for your car, fret not 'cause there's a simple fix to this problem. Simply remove the control unit from the dash, open the case, locate the large IC chip and resolder it's pins. Oh, and welcome to the forums! There aren't too many Regal owners that hang out here (and the ones that do all have 88-93's.) Myself included, there are maybe 3 people here with 95-96's, and one of 'em is banned for a year ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
96GranSport Posted October 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 17, 2005 Thanx to everyone who replied. Just to give you a little more information, the compressor isn't engaging NOR am I getting any air blowing at all. Hot or cold. Nothing..zip. As I said, if I just turn on the fan, it blows but other than that none of the controls seem to be working. The green lights light up when you press each button but I'm not even hearing a click to tell me that there is power going someplace. I honestly don't think that it is a problem with the controller or the compressor, though I could be wrong. What I was thinking was that, when I had my stereo installed, they either blew a fuse someplace or there is a short. Since I did check under the hood, I guess I should check under the dash next. Just wasn't sure where the fuses for the controller would be. And thanx for the welcome Disco. Even though there may only be a few of us Regal owners here, that's better than what I've got now. Hard to find answers for my questions without having to go to the dealership...and a lot of times even they can't help me without me having to pay for a checkup. I'm not a mechanical genius but I do enjoy working on my own car instead of having someone else doing it for me. Glad to be here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoStudd Posted October 17, 2005 Report Share Posted October 17, 2005 If your gut tells you it's a fuse, check every one of 'em . Okay, one more question: Does the "mode" seem to be stuck on "Defrost" no matter which position you set it to? If this is the case, you have a vacuum problem. Even though the control panel is electronic, the mode selector is still vacuum actuated. Look under the hood for a vacuum line that runs behind the battery down to the fender area. Near the strut tower, there should be a 3-way check valve inline with the vac line. One side runs to the intake manifold, one to the vacuum canister/ball (up under the fender) and the other goes to the HVAC actuator. Actually, there's a diagram floating around here somewhere (IIRC it was either Kalgorn or Prospeeder who posted it) showing where everything is located. I found a new 3-way check valve at Checker under the "HELP" brand if it helps any. As far as the compressor not engaging, it's possible you could be low on refrigerant. The accumulator and low-side fitting are buried under the air filter box. You can always quickly depress the Schrader valve on the low-side fitting to see if any refrigerant sprays out... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
96GranSport Posted October 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 17, 2005 If your gut tells you it's a fuse, check every one of 'em . Okay, one more question: Does the "mode" seem to be stuck on "Defrost" no matter which position you set it to? If this is the case, you have a vacuum problem. Even though the control panel is electronic, the mode selector is still vacuum actuated. Look under the hood for a vacuum line that runs behind the battery down to the fender area. Near the strut tower, there should be a 3-way check valve inline with the vac line. One side runs to the intake manifold, one to the vacuum canister/ball (up under the fender) and the other goes to the HVAC actuator. Actually, there's a diagram floating around here somewhere (IIRC it was either Kalgorn or Prospeeder who posted it) showing where everything is located. I found a new 3-way check valve at Checker under the "HELP" brand if it helps any. As far as the compressor not engaging, it's possible you could be low on refrigerant. The accumulator and low-side fitting are buried under the air filter box. You can always quickly depress the Schrader valve on the low-side fitting to see if any refrigerant sprays out... To be honest, I'm not sure that it stays "stuck" on anything. All the controls seem to work and light up when pressed. Just that NOTHING happens. It's as if the car was off and I was trying to push the buttons. As for the refrigerant, I'm pretty sure that it's low. I had planned on recharging my system anyway because it wasn't blowing as cold as it had in the past. I'll be getting her out of the shop in the next few days (Damn tranny went out on me and had to have it replaced. First major trouble in 5 years) and I'll be checking those fuses under the dash. Just out of curiousity, are most of the fuses on the driver's side or are there any under the passenger side of the dash? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoStudd Posted October 17, 2005 Report Share Posted October 17, 2005 None of them are "under the dash" per se. There's one fusebox on the passenger side dash, accessible when the passenger door is open, then there's the 2 under hood (one on each side of the engine bay) and that's it. It's possible that when you had your stereo installed, one of the wiring harnesses to the HVAC control could've been knocked loose, seeing as it's right above the stereo. I still say you should take the control unit out and give it the once over. It won't hurt any to re-solder the main IC chip, either. That way you can at least rule out the control unit as being the culprit... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
96GranSport Posted October 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 18, 2005 None of them are "under the dash" per se. There's one fusebox on the passenger side dash, accessible when the passenger door is open, then there's the 2 under hood (one on each side of the engine bay) and that's it. It's possible that when you had your stereo installed, one of the wiring harnesses to the HVAC control could've been knocked loose, seeing as it's right above the stereo. I still say you should take the control unit out and give it the once over. It won't hurt any to re-solder the main IC chip, either. That way you can at least rule out the control unit as being the culprit... Guess that's what I'll be doing tomorrow. Thanx for the advise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
96GranSport Posted November 3, 2005 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 Well hell, I just came in from checking all the fuses on the passenger side of the dash and they're all good. :bawl: I was hoping that I would find a blown one and things would be easy. Guess not. So it looks like the next step is to check the wiring of the HVAC control. My gut tells me that Disco is right and something got knocked loose during the install of my stereo. My question is "What's the easiest way to get at it"? Should I just remove the center console and try from that way or will I have to take the damn dash apart? Any help with this will be greatly appreciated since I plan on tackling this problem this weekend. Thanx. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digitaloutsider Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 My friend's GTP does this strange thing. The blower fan comes on, you can hear it. You can move the speed switch and it'll go through all it's speeds, but no air will come out of any of the vents. Does this sound like your problem? The only difference is, with Allen's car, it doesn't do it all the time. Only every so often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
96GranSport Posted November 3, 2005 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 My friend's GTP does this strange thing. The blower fan comes on, you can hear it. You can move the speed switch and it'll go through all it's speeds, but no air will come out of any of the vents. Does this sound like your problem? The only difference is, with Allen's car, it doesn't do it all the time. Only every so often. Yep, that's about right. The blower fan works and I can adjust the speed switch. I do get air coming out of the vents, although not much unless it's on high, but if I try to turn on the A/C or heater...nothing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoStudd Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 No need to remove the console. Only the driver's side under-dash filler panel (held in by 4 screws.) After that, tilt the column all the way down, put it in low, and pry the dash bezel out. It's a little tricky trying to get it up and around the steering wheel, so it may help to loosen the 2 bolts holding the the column to the dash so you can drop it down an inch or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
96GranSport Posted November 3, 2005 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 Thanx, looks like I'll be doing that this weekend. Hopefully it will turn out to be something simple. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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