AC Compressor Not Kicking ON

[rickgaz]

My daughter just bought a 2018 Fiesta SE and everything worked fine. I spent a couple of days cleaning the interior and buffing and waxing it and, once I was done, I took it for I ride and the air conditioner quit working. It had a P0532 code pointing to the pressure switch as the issue so we replaced that with a new one from Ford. That took care of the code but the compressor won't kick on. We tested the compressor and it seems to be fine and the electronic diagnosis tool says that the signal is being sent to the compressor but can't detect it wiring that attaches to the compressor. Any thoughts?

 

[Handy Andy]

P5032 code relates to "Circuit Low" - which means the AC unit the sensor works with, is not sending a signal - or the signal it's supposed to send - is "low" as in too low of a voltage or the wire to it is broken so it can't see any signal from that switch.

Did you have a means to check for pressure in the AC unit?

Car washes don't kill the Condensor unit that rests in front of the radiator - so it wasn't caused by a simple wash unless there's a broken line.

So that means you'll have to have the systems pressure tested - see if the system still has pressure. IT can explain the reason for the code, there is no pressure in the AC unit so to protect the assembly - it won't turn on the system.

It won't cool but you'll get heat - until it knows that there is enough pressure in refrigerant and the oil used for lubrication is enough to run the system then the compressor will kick on and you'll hear the Fan if it's warm enough outside (above 40F)

 

[rickgaz]

We checked the pressure and that's not the issue so we think it's in the wiring as well. The car no longer generates any codes. I also replaced the cabin air filter at the same time and am wondering if that could have created an issue. Obviously, I'm grasping a straws.

 

[Handy Andy]

With the Cabin air filter, the only thing that could go wrong is the disconnect of a sensor that has that Climate control blow air on it to sense temperature - if it's been disconnected or wires been pinched - it could explain what is going on.


Its in the area where you have to remove those cover screws and pull out old - insert new filter - so might not be a bad idea to look over the work.

 

[rickgaz]

Thanks very much, I'm sure that's the problem. I appreciate your help!