A/C Evaporator Factory Defect

youra6 said:

Not sure if you know, but Colorado has been exceptionally warm this winter. Its been in the 60s more than a few times and has hit 70 degrees a couple of times.

Tomorrow is supposed to be 65C in Denver. And no haven't taken into the dealer. The AC blew cold this morning but it was also 30 degrees. I'm going to wait tomorrow when it gets in the mid 60s again and see if works.

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I was just wondering about the A/C operation in Feb/Mar in CO...

I’d definitley take it to your Dealer or if you are not satisfied with their work and there’s another Ford Dealer within range, take it there to get it diagnosed. It could be as simple as the factory not putting enough Freon in it.

POJ 1 said:

Had my compressor replaced this week after the evaporator was replaced last week
Speaking to an aircon engineer today he said he would suspect the refrigerant leaking is the basic cause .
Looking at getting a Ford NZ extended warranty now
here's hoping!

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This is a nightmare. About the evaporator, I'm on my third (Part W) in 10,000 miles and now the dealer confirmed that the compressor is busted, probably because of a leaking evap core, again. These outsourced Ford a/c parts are defective but I have growing concerns that the design of the GT350 itself (engine vibration or high temp) may be contributing to evap core failures. Owners in warmer climate states (and PR) are noticing this more because we use the a/c more frequently. I'm predicting that hundreds of these new S550 model cars will have their a/c fail after the warranty expires and I'm taking action before it does. One Ford dealer in PR confirmed to me that it has a dozen of the S550 Mustangs in the shop awaiting evap assembly replacements. Ford has not and probably won't issue a recall because it's not a safety issue. There is no class action as of yet for what is a widespread defect in probably hundreds of cars. This is a major issue and a headache to me and I'm going to have Ford buy the car back before my warranty expires. Any other owner taking similar action should pm me or shoot me an e-mail to share info at [email protected]

rfcs550 said:

This is a nightmare. About the evaporator, I'm on my third (Part W) in 10,000 miles and now the dealer confirmed that the compressor is busted, probably because of a leaking evap core, again. These outsourced Ford a/c parts are defective but I have growing concerns that the design of the GT350 itself (engine vibration or high temp) may be contributing to evap core failures. Owners in warmer climate states (and PR) are noticing this more because we use the a/c more frequently. I'm predicting that hundreds of these new S550 model cars will have their a/c fail after the warranty expires and I'm taking action before it does. One Ford dealer in PR confirmed to me that it has a dozen of the S550 Mustangs in the shop awaiting evap assembly replacements. Ford has not and probably won't issue a recall because it's not a safety issue. There is no class action as of yet for what is a widespread defect in probably hundreds of cars. This is a major issue and a headache to me and I'm going to have Ford buy the car back before my warranty expires. Any other owner taking similar action should pm me or shoot me an e-mail to share info at [email protected]

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I swear, summer thru winter my AC runs almost nonstop. Even in the wintertime, defrosters in the morning = AC on. When I get out of work in the afternoon with 60 degree temps in the winter, the AC comes on. Hell, even when I think the car should be pumping in cool outside air into the cabin I look down and the AC is on.

Don't get me wrong, the car should be able to handle it. There is obviously a defect or design issue. I'm definitely picking up the extended warranty as I am past 25k miles with the compressor having already failed. I fully expect a class action suite to occur once these cars start reaching 60k miles in states with cooler weather.

At least we don't have that head gasket issue that plagues the RS. But Jesus Ford, get your shit together. The AC has been around for like 70 years now.

I have been in the refrigeration line of work for close to 30 years. typically issues like this are due to manufacturers trying to build parts as cheaply as possible. for a while there was a huge issue with Bohn evap coils in walkin coolers and freezers leaking in the middle of the coils where there were no weld joints, this turned out to be from the vendor sourcing the cheapest copper tubing they could find which happened to be from China and was thinner wall than what was normally used. Trane had issues with condenser coils leaking and it turned out to be they were using as little silver solder as possible on joints and the constant expansion and contraction caused by the temps swings would weaken the joints and they would leak. Ford designed and engineered the A/C system and then sends it out for Bids to vendors. the cheapest one gets the job. this could be a combination of poor design and a cheaply made part.

if the techs aren't using a micron gauge to verify a system is tight they are just guessing.

Bald Menace said:

I have been in the refrigeration line of work for close to 30 years. typically issues like this are due to manufacturers trying to build parts as cheaply as possible. for a while there was a huge issue with Bohn evap coils in walkin coolers and freezers leaking in the middle of the coils where there were no weld joints, this turned out to be from the vendor sourcing the cheapest copper tubing they could find which happened to be from China and was thinner wall than what was normally used. Trane had issues with condenser coils leaking and it turned out to be they were using as little silver solder as possible on joints and the constant expansion and contraction caused by the temps swings would weaken the joints and they would leak. Ford designed and engineered the A/C system and then sends it out for Bids to vendors. the cheapest one gets the job. this could be a combination of poor design and a cheaply made part.

if the techs aren't using a micron gauge to verify a system is tight they are just guessing.

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This is interesting info, Menace. Thanks.

Last August, my evap core went out, but rather than take it in for repairs, I recharged it with a refrigerant that also contained a sealant. The brand was STP’s AC/Pro Ultra Synthetic. I posted about this a few times in this thread and maybe another evap core thread.

My AC has blown cold since then. It’ll get down to about 42 - 43 degrees coming out the vents.

I suspect it’s just a matter of time before another leak occurs, but apparently the sealant sealed the original leak that caused the core to fail.

Anyway, I’d appreciate any thoughts that you might have about this. :cheers:

BeauxXL1200 said:

This is interesting info, Menace. Thanks.

Last August, my evap core went out, but rather than take it in for repairs, I recharged it with a refrigerant that also contained a sealant. The brand was STP’s AC/Pro Ultra Synthetic. I posted about this a few times in this thread and maybe another evap core thread.

My AC has blown cold since then. It’ll get down to about 42 - 43 degrees coming out the vents.

I suspect it’s just a matter of time before another leak occurs, but apparently the sealant sealed the original leak that caused the core to fail.

Anyway, I’d appreciate any thoughts that you might have about this. :cheers:

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in residential applications the sealants seem to have a pretty good success rate. we don't typically use them in commercial/industrial applications. the trick is to use the correct sealant that is designed for the type of refrigerant oil in the system.

BeauxXL1200 said:

Anyway, I’d appreciate any thoughts that you might have about this.

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Me too.

Particularly thoughts on if a sealer might mess up a warranty replacement.

I would prefer trying to use a sealant if mine leaks over the major surgery of replacing the unit. But not if the sealant would be used to deny a warranty repair if it didn't fix things.

https://gobdp.com/blog/healing-the-stop-leak-reputation/

it's from 2013 but if anything technology should have improved even more since then

Bald Menace said:

https://gobdp.com/blog/healing-the-stop-leak-reputation/

it's from 2013 but if anything technology should have improved even more since then

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Interesting article, Menace.

I still have the can and gauge that I bought, and it says on the can that the AC/Pro Ultra Synthetic has an “advanced” sealant, which I take to mean the new, oil based sealants that’s mentioned in the article.

In any event, it’s worked for me so far. And it gets hot as all get out here in Central Texas.

I have the extended warranty, and if the evap core eventually needs to replaced, it’ll be interesting to see if Ford and the dealership will have an issue with the fact that I used this refrigerant/sealant.

Based on the article about the new, oil based sealants, my position will be that they have no basis to claim that the AC/Pro caused any damage to the system.

Thanks again, Meance. :cheers:

Any guides on how to replace the evap yourself? From dash removal to assy replacement?

Interesting thread, I normally don't run the A/C simply due to the fact I enjoy the raw sound of the Borla's with the windows down. Curious how many 550s are in climates where the A/C is rarely flipped on or tested out.

Sheenapple said:

Any guides on how to replace the evap yourself? From dash removal to assy replacement?

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Interested as well. My warranty is up and il be doing this myself if it fails.

Cobra Jet said:

I was just wondering about the A/C operation in Feb/Mar in CO...

I’d definitley take it to your Dealer or if you are not satisfied with their work and there’s another Ford Dealer within range, take it there to get it diagnosed. It could be as simple as the factory not putting enough Freon in it.

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Could be not enough freon, but given my luck its probably the transmission or something. :lol:

Today, it was 50 degrees and I turned my AC on the coldest setting with the fan speed right in the middle. If I put my hand right next to the fan I can feel it, but the rest of my body could barely feel anything.
I would have thought in 50 degree weather and the AC on full blast, I would be freezing my ass off. But nope it felt cool but definitely wasn't cold at all.

My GT only has 500 miles on it and I suspect the issue existed even before I had bought it.

youra6 said:

Could be not enough freon, but given my luck its probably the transmission or something. :lol:

Today, it was 50 degrees and I turned my AC on the coldest setting with the fan speed right in the middle. If I put my hand right next to the fan I can feel it, but the rest of my body could barely feel anything.
I would have thought in 50 degree weather and the AC on full blast, I would be freezing my ass off. But nope it felt cool but definitely wasn't cold at all.

My GT only has 500 miles on it and I suspect the issue existed even before I had bought it.

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I keep one of these old school a/c tech thermometers clipped into one of the a/c vents. Even on hot days, the cold air coming out the vents is around 42 to 45 degrees.

That’s what it blew before the evap core went out and I ‘fixed it” by simply recharging the uit myself. (See my posts above.). Ands that it blows now. :cheers: