Air conditioning Hack

[theblet]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MA9DQBE

This is what I put in my truck first summer I had it. No issues with it to date. I don't completely close it off, about 3/4 of the way. Don't need to use it until we get into the brunt of the summer like now. I usually leave the temp set where I want it and use the auto feature. What I'm finding this year is it does just fine when you first start it in the mornings but after it warms up to operating temp, it doesn't cool so well. If I turn the AC on and skip the auto it cools just fine. I cycled the mode selection thru all the positions from defrost to floor mode a few times to move the door around within the linkage seems to work OK. Makes me wonder if the AC clutch is not engaging as well as it should when running down the road in the auto mode. Not sure what to think.

Did you have the TSB done on your truck?

 

[jkm312]

Did you have the TSB done on your truck?

No. Not something I want to do as long as I can find a way to avoid it. I'm out of the original bumper tp bumper warranty. Even if I was still in the warranty I still would avoid it if possible.

 

[Scram1500]

Ball valve arrived with the threaded barbs. I had read about the threads possibly bottoming out on the assembled side due to the one piece construction. A dry fit with some blue marking dye confirmed this.

The other side did not leave any bottoming out marks

I took off about 1/8 of an inch and that was enough for clearance. Final assembly will involve teflon tape designed for stainless to prevent galling.

 

[Ram4Lou]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MA9DQBE

This is what I put in my truck first summer I had it. No issues with it to date. I don't completely close it off, about 3/4 of the way. Don't need to use it until we get into the brunt of the summer like now. I usually leave the temp set where I want it and use the auto feature. What I'm finding this year is it does just fine when you first start it in the mornings but after it warms up to operating temp, it doesn't cool so well. If I turn the AC on and skip the auto it cools just fine. I cycled the mode selection thru all the positions from defrost to floor mode a few times to move the door around within the linkage seems to work OK. Makes me wonder if the AC clutch is not engaging as well as it should when running down the road in the auto mode. Not sure what to think.

My theory on the issue you mention above is that since you leave the valve open a little, the heater core temperature eventually heats up due to coolant flowing through it. Once the core is heated, that heat is saturating your plenum and also some of that heat is getting by the internal blend door. If you close the valve all the way, there is no coolant circulating to the core, which eliminates any heat migration into the ac ducting. I know some people like to keep a little coolant flowing through the core for fear of stagnancy, however so many auto manufacturers (including Ram up to 2018) use a valve to either close off or bypass the coolant flow to the core without any issues. Give it a try (if you haven't already) with the valve completely closed.

 

[Scram1500]

Well after having to seal the threads twice and tighten the nut on the valve stem (also realigined the packing under the handle), there aren't anymore leaks. The constant tension clamps seem a little big so I doubled them up for now. Looks better than brass, time will tell about it's function. Also need a better handle than "ball valves"

 

[theblet]

Well after having to seal the threads twice and tighten the nut on the valve stem (also realigined the packing under the handle), there aren't anymore leaks. The constant tension clamps seem a little big so I doubled them up for now. Looks better than brass, time will tell about it's function. Also need a better handle than "ball valves"
View attachment 163647

Glad you got it done. I didn’t have nearly as much trouble with the pex valve.

 

[yellowboy]

Pretty sad we had to do this, when you sell it you have to tell the person " when it gets hot (or cold) you have to get out of truck - open hood...................." ---- why it's my first and VERY LAST ram.

Wonder if the Model T had a similar set up ?

 

[theblet]

Pretty sad we had to do this, when you sell it you have to tell the person " when it gets hot (or cold) you have to get out of truck - open hood...................." ---- why it's my first and VERY LAST ram.

Wonder if the Model T had a similar set up ?

You don’t need it with the redesigned housing and blend door. There’s a TSB for 19 to 20 rams, 2022+ has it already.

 

[yellowboy]

You don’t need it with the redesigned housing and blend door. There’s a TSB for 19 to 20 rams, 2022+ has it already.

yes I am now over a year out of my warranty, found out about it a little too late

 

[Scram1500]

If I trade it in, the valve is coming off as well as the catch can. No need to saddle the next owner with things like that.

 

[Dyeelitt]

My air conditioning started to lose performance. I received a UConnect update, as we were driving, the AC got very warm, stopped blowing and then started cooling but didn’t seem to be as cool as before nor the volume of air as strong. I also noticed when I set the AC to AUTO, the fan speed highest setting is 5 or 6. I can change it to 7 but then the AUTO is disabled. I took it to the dealer in Reno and they said there is nothing wrong. I have another appointment for SoCal when I get back this week. The recirculating door also doesn’t always actuate. I pulled the cabin filter and blew it out, it was a bit dirty and the truck is 9 months old and 10,000 miles. I ordered a new Bosch filter which is supposed to arrive today and I’ll replace it for our drive back to SoCal. The temperature out of the center vents was around 50 degrees in recirculating mode. The cabin still takes an extremely long time to cool down. I’m reluctant to perform the hack as the truck is 10 months old and I have an extended warranty also.

 

[Harmonj1]

Today I was able to get 36-38 degrees blowing out of both the drivers side and the passenger side ac vents. Previously I was getting 44 out of the passenger side and 50-52 out of the driver side. I installed a water shut off valve in the heater hose going from water pump to the heater core. It's the outbound side of the pump says "out"right on the hose. This stops any hot water from getting into the air conditioning system at all. You will have no heat when the valve is closed, for the heater you will have no way to control the air conditioning temperature it will be as cold as it can be. This was only a test for me if you decide to do this it will be at your own risk. In essence this proves there's definitely a blend door issue inside the dash letting hot water into the HVAC system when we are telling it not toView attachment 25616View attachment 25617View attachment 25618View attachment 25619View attachment 25616View attachment 25616View attachment 25617View attachment 25618View attachment 25619View attachment 25616View attachment 25619

Thanks for the info man! I got the Muzzys kit and the instructions said to install on the In hose. I did the install per the instructions then saw your post. Should I switch to the out hose?

 

[Harmonj1]

Hey folks, I got the Muzzys ac valve kit and the instructions said to install in the “in” hose. I did as the instructions said, then saw this post. Should I move the shut off valve to the out hose?

 

[6of36]

Hey folks, I got the Muzzys ac valve kit and the instructions said to install in the “in” hose. I did as the instructions said, then saw this post. Should I move the shut off valve to the out hose?

It shouldn't really matter. Either hose stops the flow. It may radiate 1 degree different on the coolant temperature in the heater core.

 

[theblet]

yes I am now over a year out of my warranty, found out about it a little too late

@RamCares can you get these folks a good will TSB for the hvac redesign? This is an issue that is FCA’s fault, and they’re fault alone for creating a sub par product. The customer should not have to pay a cent.

 

[Scion]

Hey folks, I got the Muzzys ac valve kit and the instructions said to install in the “in” hose. I did as the instructions said, then saw this post. Should I move the shut off valve to the out hose?

The instructions on Muzzy's Amazon listing clearly show installing it on the "ENG OUT" hose, which is at the water pump closer to the front of the engine bay.

 

[Scram1500]

Engine out is what you want or the heater core will be pressurized. It's probably not much more than normal operation and wouldn't be an issue, but why take a chance.

 

[Scram1500]

Is anybody able to help point out the correct line for the 3.6L engine?

You'll most likely need to install a T with the valve so coolant can still flow to wherever it goes on the 3.6

 

[6of36]

The whole system is under the same pressure. The water pump only makes flow, within the pressurized system. The pressure is produced by the heat, not the water pump.

 

[RamCares]

yes I am now over a year out of my warranty, found out about it a little too late

Hello there,

If you decide to go the dealership route to have this addressed and need any additional support, please reach out to our team via private message. We're happy to connect you to a specialist at that time.

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