Overheating when air conditioner is on
Asked by Sandy May 21, 2018 at 09:55 PM about the 2007 Honda Element
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
My daughters car only seems to
overheat during the summer time
when the air conditioner is turned
on. I have checked all the fluids,
fuses, hoses, and connections
and can find nothing out of wack.
4 Answers
brotherben answered 6 years ago
The thermostat is the cheapest start in diagnosing the problem. But I think it might be the water pump. When you turn on the AC, the compressor adds more drag in the drive belt that controls the water pump.
firebird338 answered 6 years ago
Is the radiator fan or fans coming on when A.C is turned on ? Also you may want the try cleaning out the radiator and condenser coil maybe be clogged with dirt and bugs causing little to no air flow across them. Just use a garden hose and nozzle to clean.
There is a kit to check with dye you could use food coloring but it's best to get the kit. To see why it's over heating. Thermostat could be, but it could anything else.
I had both my fans replaced and got the coolant added/corrected and it still does this. I'm of the belief that this is a design flaw. Would like to find out it's not though...because I'm dieing in this heat. Now if the car overheats you can turn the heater on full blast to cool it down, but that's awful. Also, if you see you are about to be dead stopped in traffic, turn off the ac before you slow down/ stop and it shouldn't overheat (or as quickly anyways).
