AC weirdness

[Oldmactech]

Drove my 01 wife’s 325i wagon today and can’t figure this one out. AC only blows cold air out of the drivers side vents, passenger side is ambient air. This one has single controls so there is no left/right settings.

How can this be? Must be a door stuck open? Or closed?

Or these vacuum operated? Never given much thought.


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[X3456]

BMWs way of informing you..your getting low on refrigerant and it's time to recharge...when did you last address the a/c.

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[dhurley34]

The answer above is correct. The way the AC system is routed, it flows cold air to the drivers side first then the passenger side. When low on refrigerant, the driver side gets cold, but the passenger doesnt due to thermal loss.

[X3456]

Quick questions: what are the common areas of leakage on an a/c bmw system? and
the compressor only kicks on when the acceptable amount of refrigerant is in the system...what's the lowest acceptable amount?

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[Oldmactech]

I’m sure y’all know more than me but I always thought that AC was either all the way on or off. If it acts off of pressure there is either enough or not enough to get it to function. Of course a condition of sometimes enough pressure, sometimes not can exist. I’m leaning more toward a failed vaccum switch or something that doesn’t open a door allowing cool air in the one side. But don’t have a grasp of how that stuff functions.


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[dhurley34]

Trust me. Your issue will be resolved by a recharge. There is no other culprit.

[Oldmactech]

Ok, def worth a try.


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[MarcoZandrini]

You need to take the car to an ac pro shop. The system needs to be:
- evacuated to remove/recover all R134a refrigerant
- tested for leaks via a 30 minute vacuum test
- refilled with the proper amount of refrigerant and compressor oil.

The shop needs to put a UV dye in the refrigerant so that the source of the leak can be identified the next time it leaks. Also, avoid those diy AC fix in a can. Why? Modern automotive ac systems require that they be filled to very specific level. Over- and under-filling can result in a poorly operating ac system.