Clarity A/C problem (and warranty extension on pg 10)

B

Benoit Paquette

New Member
Hi,

Anybody had problems with the ventilation and A/C not working on hot days? When it's around 84 F outside, the ventilation is not working at all and then it starts working after 5-10min but still no A/C. It took 15min to actually get the A/C working. The temperature on the dashboard seems to always be wrong by 8-10F compare to the outside temperature. Next Monday, the dealer will take a look. Not sure I made the right move to buy this car.
 
Benoit Paquette said:
Hi,

Anybody had problems with the ventilation and A/C not working on hot days? When it's around 84 F outside, the ventilation is not working at all and then it starts working after 5-10min but still no A/C. It took 15min to actually get the A/C working. The temperature on the dashboard seems to always be wrong by 8-10F compare to the outside temperature. Next Monday, the dealer will take a look. Not sure I made the right move to buy this car.
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Does it work in manual mode? Try this if you haven't:

- Use fan speed buttons to get the Auto light to turn off and to select a desired fan speed
- Turn the driver's temperature knob until Lo is displayed
- Press Sync on the passenger's temperature knob if not already synced (Lo on both sides)
- Press the Climate button
- On the screen, set AC to on, and air to coming out of the upper vents

That will rule out fan or AC compressor issues vs a problem with the internal or external temperature sensors or the Auto fan control (and if it works, make you cool until addressed :-)
 
Hopefully @JCA 's advice will help. If not, the dealer should be able to trouble shoot. The A/C on mine will pretty much run you out of the car if you turn it on maximum, so they should be able to get your's working to your satisfaction. Don't give up on the car yet.
 
I picked up our Clarity today after the dealer replaced the undamaged, but leaky, air-conditioner condenser. When the hot weather hit a week ago, we had NO air-conditioning--that made one of our two gas-guzzling Insights the car of choice. The dealer ran a dye test and it showed the leak in the condenser. It took 3 days to get a replacement condenser from California to Michigan--it arrived just as the weather cooled down. Now our Clarity is great again.
 
Benoit Paquette said:
Hi,

Anybody had problems with the ventilation and A/C not working on hot days? When it's around 84 F outside, the ventilation is not working at all and then it starts working after 5-10min but still no A/C. It took 15min to actually get the A/C working. The temperature on the dashboard seems to always be wrong by 8-10F compare to the outside temperature. Next Monday, the dealer will take a look. Not sure I made the right move to buy this car.
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I would give the heating and cooling system in my Clarity a 10 out of 10. Your dealer should be able to correct the problem.
 
insightman said:
I picked up our Clarity today after the dealer replaced the undamaged, but leaky, air-conditioner condenser. When the hot weather hit a week ago, we had NO air-conditioning--that made one of our two gas-guzzling Insights the car of choice. The dealer ran a dye test and it showed the leak in the condenser. It took 3 days to get a replacement condenser from California to Michigan--it arrived just as the weather cooled down. Now our Clarity is great again.
Click to expand...
We had the same problem. The dealer claimed that the condenser was damaged so I asked to see it. I didn't see any damage but they charged me almost $1500 anyway for the repair/diagnostic because they said this is not covered by warranty. Was yours covered by warranty?
 
Groves Cooke said:
I would give the heating and cooling system in my Clarity a 10 out of 10. Your dealer should be able to correct the problem.
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When the A/C finally starts working after 15min driving, it's working really well. That's why I suspect a sensor or electronic defect. Does the temperature indicated in your dashboard is accurate? Mine is always 8-10F higher
 
Benoit Paquette said:
When the A/C finally starts working after 15min driving, it's working really well. That's why I suspect a sensor or electronic defect. Does the temperature indicated in your dashboard is accurate? Mine is always 8-10F higher
Click to expand...

If you mean the outside temperature that shows on the instrument panel, mine is sometimes several degrees higher than what the weather report is saying, especially after being parked -- most likely because the air temp under the car with heat rising off the pavement really is that hot. I believe there's a way to adjust that, but I don't think it's really related to your AC issues, which should be using an inside temperature (that we don't get to see).

Can you confirm what mode you're using (is the Auto light on the driver's knob on, what do you have the temperature set to, etc)? There certainly could be a real AC system or sensor problem, which is why I'm suggesting you try using "manual" mode to turn on the AC on the climate scren to determine which.
 
JCA said:
If you mean the outside temperature that shows on the instrument panel, mine is sometimes several degrees higher than what the weather report is saying, especially after being parked -- most likely because the air temp under the car with heat rising off the pavement really is that hot. I believe there's a way to adjust that, but I don't think it's really related to your AC issues, which should be using an inside temperature (that we don't get to see).

Can you confirm what mode you're using (is the Auto light on the driver's knob on, what do you have the temperature set to, etc)? There certainly could be a real AC system or sensor problem, which is why I'm suggesting you try using "manual" mode to turn on the AC on the climate scren to determine which.
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Yes the temperature on the instrument panel is way off. But your explanation really makes sense. As I drive, the temperature slowly reverse toward the actual outside temperature.

Yes I'm using the manual mode not the AUTO one. There's no ventilation whatsoever. That why I suspect the internal temperature sensor or computer problem.
 
JCA said:
If you mean the outside temperature that shows on the instrument panel, mine is sometimes several degrees higher than what the weather report is saying, especially after being parked -- most likely because the air temp under the car with heat rising off the pavement really is that hot.
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It serves as a nice reminder of how hot cars get when parked in the sun, though, and to not lock up a pet or kid in said car. I came out from work a couple days ago, and when I turned the car on it was showing 130°. Especially since that outside temperature sensor actually has at least a little bit of airflow compared to the inside of the car which is a sealed greenhouse.
 
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JCA said:
which should be using an inside temperature (that we don't get to see)
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There is a way to see inside temperature although it's not very convenient and also cannot be used when driving. It's by turning on climate using the app. The app will then show the inside temperature. However it doesn't update, the only way to get a current temperature is to turn climate off with the app then turn it back on again. Although inconvenient it may be a way for them to check the theory that the internal temperature is wrong, although there are multiple temperature sensors and the app may not be using the same one that the AC system does.
 
So Calif hot weather here for the past weeks have been over 100 degrees.
A/C works wonderfully!

Just remember to turn it off before you park it about 10 minutes away because if you don't that funky, sour smell of mildew will grow in your vents...
 
4sallypat said:
So Calif hot weather here for the past weeks have been over 100 degrees.
A/C works wonderfully!

Just remember to turn it off before you park it about 10 minutes away because if you don't that funky, sour smell of mildew will grow in your vents...
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If you are going to do that you should (and will want to) run the fan at full speed without AC but that requires jumping through several hoops to do so, probably more than should be done while driving. Which is too bad because I used to do exactly what you do in my previous car but not ten minutes away :eek: more like the last mile or so, although that's not nearly as effective as starting ten minutes out. Turning AC off one mile out the cabin would just start getting hot by the time I arrived, due to speeds I wouldn't be able to roll the windows down until the last quarter mile anyway so I just left them up as the fan did about the same thing.
 
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2002 said:
If you are going to do that you should (and will want to) run the fan at full speed without AC but that requires jumping through several hoops to do so, probably more than should be done while driving. Which is too bad because I used to do exactly what you do in my previous car but not ten minutes away :eek: more like the last mile or so, although that's not nearly as effective as starting ten minutes out. Turning AC off one mile out the cabin would just start getting hot by the time I arrived, due to speeds I wouldn't be able to roll the windows down until the last quarter mile anyway so I just left them up as the fan did about the same thing.
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1 mile out? My family would complain even if its 1 min out ... LOL
 
PHEV Newbie said:
We had the same problem. The dealer claimed that the condenser was damaged so I asked to see it. I didn't see any damage but they charged me almost $1500 anyway for the repair/diagnostic because they said this is not covered by warranty. Was yours covered by warranty?
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Our repair was 100% covered by warranty--and we got a free car wash, too. It's outrageous the dealer would charge you for replacing a clearly undamaged part that's absolutely covered under the warranty. I would have demanded to have the broken condenser examined by another shop and complained to Honda (not that I'm confident Honda would do anything).
 
insightman said:
Our repair was 100% covered by warranty--and we got a free car wash, too. It's outrageous the dealer would charge you for replacing a clearly undamaged part that's absolutely covered under the warranty. I would have demanded to have the broken condenser examined by another shop and complained to Honda (not that I'm confident Honda would do anything).
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Thanks for your answer. I'll take it to an A/C specialist to inspect it (they left the old part in my trunk as per my request) and see what they say (I know this will cost some $ but it'll be worth it). I suspect I need independent evidence before any action is taken by my dealer. It is ridiculous that they don't consider this a warranty fix since they will be paid by Honda. They might make a bit more from me but that shouldn't be worth losing a lifelong customer by the dealer and the Honda brand.
 
PHEV Newbie said:
We had the same problem. The dealer claimed that the condenser was damaged so I asked to see it. I didn't see any damage but they charged me almost $1500 anyway for the repair/diagnostic because they said this is not covered by warranty. Was yours covered by warranty?
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I see that insightman said his was covered under warranty. You might want to go to the Honda site, contact customer service and see about filing a warranty claim. They should reimburse you the same as the would for a repair done at a non-dealer shop.
 
As I read this thread I was thinking a blockage in the air intake is also a possibility. Never know what critters may have been up to at your home or on the dealer's lot before it was sold to you.
 
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