Ac light blinks three times when pressed? And it seems the compressor is always engaged?

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iboughtatahoe23

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2014 Tahoe lt 177k miles.
Light blinks three times and won’t turn the ac on. I noticed the compressor or something sounds like the is going bad? Or is dirty? I hear a brushing noise from it when I start it up. I’ll drop videos
 

mikez71

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Possibly pressure is too low, could be evap temp, but if it never kicked on, evap shouldn't be too cold. A good scanner would help..
They do wear out. Once had one where the clutch was too worn, gap was too big. Magnet not strong enough to engage.
Mine is quite weak in the summer and a little noisy, think I will need a new one myself next year..

Reminds me of the time boss' friend brought their 2000 kia in to the hotrod shop. We were used to AC pressure switches being the main cause of a compressor not turning on. Turns out it was all computer controlled, and if the A/C fan didn't work, it wouldn't kick on.
I hate computer control for simple things. Never did get to tell him..

Starting to think nobody should work on anything new-ish without a scanner.. #1 diagnostic tool along with a meter..
 
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iboughtatahoe23

iboughtatahoe23

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Possibly pressure is too low, could be evap temp, but if it never kicked on, evap shouldn't be too cold. A good scanner would help..
They do wear out. Once had one where the clutch was too worn, gap was too big. Magnet not strong enough to engage.
Mine is quite weak in the summer and a little noisy, think I will need a new one myself next year..

Reminds me of the time boss' friend brought their 2000 kia in to the hotrod shop. We were used to AC pressure switches being the main cause of a compressor not turning on. Turns out it was all computer controlled, and if the A/C fan didn't work, it wouldn't kick on.
I hate computer control for simple things. Never did get to tell him..

Starting to think nobody should work on anything new-ish without a scanner.. #1 diagnostic tool along with a meter..
My mistake. The compressor isn’t Always on. It doesn’t seem to kick on actually. And yea the ac light just blinks at me. Can’t tell if it’s the smaller belt making the noise or the compressor.


Would low pressure be due to ambient temps? Or how does that work. Pinhole leak?
 

mikez71

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yup, leaked and low pressure. Here's some other things to try...


reset procedure
ambient temp <35 degF ? (Never heard of it until now)
A/C fan not working
 
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