Has anyone ever fixed a 306's air conditioning?

[JTaylor2005]

Hi all,

For this summer I am thinking of taking on the daunting task of repairing a 306 hdi air conditioning system. I want my car COOOLLLLDD haha. I have heard they are a right pain in the A** so I am just wondering if anyone has ever actually managed to get one working reliably using new better quality parts and a re-gas?

What do you guys all think?

Thanks, Jack

[Niall]

Yep. 2 years ago, day before FCS. Replaced one of the front pipes with a brand new genuine item and took it to kwikfit for a regas. Was ice cold which was lovely considering it was almost 30 degrees outside














Did it work the next day when i had to drive 2 hours to fcs in said 30 degree weather? Did it f*ck.

[Iceman299]

Yep. 2 years ago, day before FCS. Replaced one of the front pipes with a brand new genuine item and took it to kwikfit for a regas. Was ice cold which was lovely considering it was almost 30 degrees outside














Did it work the next day when i had to drive 2 hours to fcs in said 30 degree weather? Did it f*ck.

What happened?

[JTaylor2005]

Haha brilliant lol. I actually want to get to the bottom of what causes them to stop working tbf haha

[Niall]

Yep. 2 years ago, day before FCS. Replaced one of the front pipes with a brand new genuine item and took it to kwikfit for a regas. Was ice cold which was lovely considering it was almost 30 degrees outside














Did it work the next day when i had to drive 2 hours to fcs in said 30 degree weather? Did it f*ck.

What happened?

Dont know. Ripped it out shortly after in favour of boost. I would imagine there was either another leak somewhere on a pipe or the seals had just dried up seeing as it had been empty for so long

Issue is, to repair it and keep it reliable, you need to replace the front pipes (the known original issue causing them all the fail), most seals and the receiver drier. It all adds up!

[adam b]

No. The end.

[cully]

my estate had working air con when i sold it
i had it repaired under warentee when i bought it new front condenser and lower front pipe and a regas fixed it apparently
must admit it was nice and cold

[Iceman299]

My 306 has always had working a/c. 
One i had for a few weeks last year had new pipes etc repaired by the previous owner

[JTaylor2005]

It does seem to sound like it's just a condenser and a set of front pipes so don't see why I wouldn't be able to do it tbf haha

[highwayman306]

Condenser is situated right at the front of the car and gets peppered with stones from the road. Bad design really so it wouldn't be long before its fubard again I might ditch my ac and save some weight/fuel...as it uses fuel when it is working anyway and weighs a fair amount which adds to consumption when not in use/working...all in all:

expensive to repair and replace and uses more fuel...

[Jonny81191]

It does seem to sound like it's just a condenser and a set of front pipes so don't see why I wouldn't be able to do it tbf haha

You'll need a receiver drier and I'd imagine the seals will need replacing too.

Are you actually taking on what's been said? As Niall has already explained the above to you.. Tell you what, just change the condenser and front pipes then you can come back and be really surprised when it doesn't work/leaks R134a refrigerant everywhere, which BTW will give you serious frost burn if it gets on your skin.

[tigerstyle]

I got mine working with just a condenser, drier, and new seals, no front pipes needed, still works 12+months later.
All cheap enough through eBay.
Definitely worth fixing!

[Toms306]

Got mine working 5 years ago with just a regas.... Back then the phrase 'it only needs a regas' wasn't always bullshit... Worked for the remainder of my ownership as well (nearly a year!).

However these days I wouldn't expect it to be that easy lol.

[JTaylor2005]

See it does seem to be hit and miss really. Some people can get it to work some not. Just really like my cold cars so maybe worth having a look into in the future. Maybe improve on it by putting stuff in the way of the rad so it doesn't get mashed again etc.

[Toms306]

Blocking the rad would reduce the cooling, defeating the object. It's not too bad a location on 306s, the fan infront does shield it a bit. On the Focus the AC rad is right at the front, fan at the back so gets battered by stones and shit.

[Paul_13]

I had working AC before some **** crashed into the front of it
loved it having a cold car

[Ican]

I fixed mine link to thread. http://306oc.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?...#pid304190

Just to add its still working today without needing a regas so the repair was a good one.

[MisterGTR]

I fixed mine. New front pipes, condenser, receiver/drier. But then the spring clip under the fuel pipe was broken, so used some cable ties and clips to hold together. Was working fine last time I saw my car. Sent it to get some interior refinished and for various reasons I've not seen it for a few months!

[RetroPug]

Was just about to say MisterGTR had fixed his but he's here already!

[Mark]

I fixed mine by putting a new condenser on when I first got the car 4 years ago and it's still cold.

[JTaylor2005]

Okie dokie so it is possible. It may be worth just trying a regas first then and seeing how that goes. I have been told its probably not going to last long and by the sounds of it that's very true haha. You never know I might get lucky and it may last the summer. If not then I will investigate I suppose. Start with a leak test. Where does them? Just find a nearby garage that can do them do you reckon?

Also thats a great write up mark thanks for posting that.

[Seb_Ryan]

Any place that does a/c will do a test first

[Ican]

Save  a bit of money http://m.groupon.co.uk/deals/premium/ats...r/62021291

[Pgtips]

Save  a bit of money http://m.groupon.co.uk/deals/premium/ats...r/62021291

Wonder if they still charge if they find a leak

(Pressure check will take up to an hour; if a leak in the air conditioning system is detected, the recharge and treatment will not proceed)

[MisterGTR]

Go to kwikfit. They only charge if they can charge your AC. So first time I went after doing all the replacement work, they told me that they couldn't charge the system and actually pointed out the issue with the spring clip ie where the leak was. Which I bodged and got working.

[Will]

The A/C in my xsara works perfect, the 306 doesn't. That could be due to the missing A/C rad...
Do Peugeot still sell the parts or do I need to visit the scrappies?

[MisterGTR]

The A/C in my xsara works perfect, the 306 doesn't. That could be due to the missing A/C rad...
Do Peugeot still sell the parts or do I need to visit the scrappies?

I bought a Nissens one off eBay.

[Alan_M]

Mine has just given up after a regas a few weeks ago (whole point of the regas was to find the leak, it's really small apparently).

Got a set of new front pipes, a new dryer and new condenser ready to go on. Pretty much why my FMIC hasn't been fitted yet. Want to sort this first. Got the Dryer and Condenser off Amazon of all places, under £100 for both and they're Valeo.

[shervo]

We're did you buy new front pipes from?

[Alan_M]

Mine has just given up after a regas a few weeks ago (whole point of the regas was to find the leak, it's really small apparently).

Got a set of new front pipes, a new dryer and new condenser ready to go on. Pretty much why my FMIC hasn't been fitted yet. Want to sort this first. Got the Dryer and Condenser off Amazon of all places, under £100 for both and they're Valeo.

Just got back from the garage, and whilst there is no sign of the dye, there is a lot of dampness in the corner of the condenser. 

Next step is to replace condenser & dryer, and probably new front pipes too. The A/C was great when it worked, and sorely missed over the last few days. I plan on keeping the car for a good few years, so don't mind chucking a few quid at it to have the little luxuries working properly.

Big UP to CitroeMech in Wokingham, who re-gased the car and sent me on my way a few weeks ago, didn't charge me today for hunting down the leak.