Hi, I have a 2010 Honda Civic. Since the beginning of the summer I've been having issues with the air conditioning system. When I start the car and turn on the A/C, it works normally, but after a few minutes it starts blowing warm air. If I don't turn it on at first and turn it on only later, it will blow warm air right away. Therefore, it seems like it's related to the temperature of the A/C components rather than the amount of time it stays on. If I turn off the A/C for a long time and it's not too hot outside, I can sometimes reactivate it for a few minutes. On cooler days, I can usually make the A/C last much longer before it fails.

I checked the freon level and it's full. I swapped the A/C clutch relay and the A/C condenser relay, but I didn't notice any difference. If I open the hood and look at the A/C system after it starts failing, I see that the A/C fan works, but the clutch is not activated. Based on information from this forum and other websites, this would point to 1) a faulty clutch (if the gap has increased over time because of rust and dirt) or 2) a faulty coil. Based on the fact that the A/C never has issues to turn on at first, can I rule out a problem with the coil? I am planning to remove the front right tire and get access to the clutch, then start the car until the problem shows up. Then, I will try to gently knock on the clutch to see if it gets activated. If so, I will remove the clutch, clean it from any rust and dirt, perhaps remove the shim and try it again. If that doesn't work of if the improvement is not that great, I'd go with a new clutch assembly.

I'd like to make sure there is a good chance that this is indeed the issue before working on this, so any comment from experienced people would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

The a/c system has two pressure settings a high and a low. There are pressure switches on the high side and low side. If the pressure get to high or too low the switches will open and shut off compressor clutch this is so you do not burn up compressor. You need to check the pressure with a/c running and see if it holds steady or it jumps up and or down. You could have too much or not enough freon in system. Also if you had a leak in system and tried to recharge system there might be air in system causing pressure to go up or down then you will need to pull a vacuum on unit and recharge.