Our family has two Isuzu Rodeos, a 1995 and a 1997. The AC on the 1995
works great. the 1997 stinks. On the '97 Rodeo when I'm sitting still,
it gets very hot when the are is idling. My first thought is that the
engine is getting so hot, I need to be moving to have the additional
air cooling. However, I discovered today, the AC work fine when I'm
sitting at a stop light if I just put the vehicle in neutral and give
it gas. Strangely enough though, the 1995 doesn't do that. Sitting
idle in the sun it cools so well that after 5-10 minutes you have turn
down the AC.
Any ideas why the '97 is having this problem? Is it an AC problem, AC
clutch? harmonic balancer, or just a design flaw?
many thanks for any suggestions!
David
Kaz - 22 Aug 2006 23:50 GMT
My thoughts:
1. engine could be idling too low to do anything useful with the
compressor engaged.
2. isuzus often disengage the alternator for no useful reason which
could be lowering your battery voltage to a point that will not engage
the ac clutch until the engine revs up and provides a little more voltage.
3. when idling, the alternator and general charging system is low
voltage so the clutch just cant kick on. perhaps replace alternator.
4. freon in the system could be low such that at idle the system doesnt
pressurize fast enough before the sensor turns it back off thinking it
is empty or broken.
5. ac clutch could be going bad and it now needs some hefty
current(alternator rpm) to keep it engaged.
6. trade it in on a 2008 VW diesel wagon or van that gets 40+.
> Our family has two Isuzu Rodeos, a 1995 and a 1997. The AC on the 1995
> works great. the 1997 stinks. On the '97 Rodeo when I'm sitting still,
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
> many thanks for any suggestions!
> David
oldman - 23 Aug 2006 03:58 GMT
Our 97 does the same thing. Has ever since we bought it used in 2000. It
did it before I replaced the alternator, as well as after. In my opinion,
it's just the way the thing works. When the engine idles down during a
stop, it just isn't cranking the compressor hard enough, or it could be it
cuts off if the rpms are too low. Either way, it's a flaw; an unadvertised
special option; whatever. The thing is, it's paid for and a new car
wouldn't be.
Now, can someone tell me why, on a vehicle that is supposed to be "rugged",
the electric windows seem to break so easily? And why did they use this
particular distributorless ignition style? I've had to replace 4 of those
damned ignition coils. And (pardon my rant) when they were replaced under
the extended warranty we had, the shop charged about $250 ($104 for the
part; the balance in labor) for a job that takes me and a philips
screwdriver about 5 minutes to do, once I track down which coil it is.
Sorry for the rant... but, like I say, it's paid for... lol
David - 23 Aug 2006 19:44 GMT
> Now, can someone tell me why, on a vehicle that is supposed to be "rugged",
> the electric windows seem to break so easily?
Oh my gosh!! Tell me about it! Have you figured a way to get that taken
care of yourself? Between our two Rodeos right now we have 3 windows
that don't work. I guess if it would pay to figure it out on one, then
do the others.
And who comes up with the names for these things? Why would a window
motor be called a "regulator" and not a "window motor", and my
favorite, the "harmonic balancer".
Cheers,
David
oldman - 25 Aug 2006 19:34 GMT
When the "regulator" went out on the passenger side, we took it to the
dealer, since we had purchased an extended warranty. A couple of years
later, the one on the driver's side went out. Then we were told that the
extended warranty did not cover it and that it would cost about $240 to have
it fixed. I've priced the replacement part and it's around $100, depending
where you look. It's still not fixed and it's one of the things that my
wife nags me about. At least I've got in the up position, held there with a
couple of hooks on the bottom fashioned out of some heavy wire. A real
bitch when you wanna use the turnpike, lol.
DollarBill - 25 Aug 2006 20:49 GMT
> When the "regulator" went out on the passenger side, we took it to the
> dealer, since we had purchased an extended warranty. A couple of years
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
> there with a couple of hooks on the bottom fashioned out of some heavy
> wire. A real bitch when you wanna use the turnpike, lol.
I'm assuming it's just your regulator cable that has failed.
I had a pass side go out and held it in place with a wooden ruler. It
worked great. I finally stopped procrastinating and changed the thing. The
reason for the procrastination was that I was anticipating a difficult job
despite being told it wasn't that tough. It's really not that difficult.
At least not in a 94 Rodeo/Passport. The toughest part is getting that dang
plastic off that is sealed with the butyl rubber. Try to keep that intact
as it does offer a bit of waterproofing. My motor was still working fine so
it was a case of unbolt motor and bolt back onto new regulator.
Good luck.