Does putting the roof down disable the aircon?

[davidr]

Does anyone know if putting the roof down on a convertible disables the aircon. My car is a 1996 Celebration.

[ptjs1]

davidr,

It doesn't disable it, but if you're driving at reasonable speed, I find that it's not really noticeable.

After recently having had an aircon service, I've realised that not running the aircon fairly frequently is a false economy as the seals tend to dry out, the gas escapes over time and the subsequent aircon service costs more than the increased fuel costs! I now leave mine on all the time.

Paul

[PaulE]

There seems to be more discussion about the aircon on the XJS than any other topic, no doubt because it is the source of more annoyance than the rest of the car systems put together.
After scrupulous investigation using nitrogen and replacement of defective components, my 1994 car still loses it's gas after 3 years. I too leave the aircon on all the time as it controls humidity in the car in warmer weather, and the point about keeping seals in good shape is a valid one. I run it up every week in winter when not in use for the same reason. But why I wonder do the same aircon systems in other cars just get on with the job year after year without the problems, and without also any water on the sensitive feet of female passengers . Nothing worse for the 'Mr Cool' image .
I recently had the gas checked on my old SAAB 9.5 Aero HOT just for interest as it was 10 years old and it was 5% down. Some difference. As these annoying symptoms are so common, it would be good if some clever engineer could come up with a few permanent fixes to bring our cars up to standards normal in other brands.
Any takers?

[steve_m]

Easy: get rid of the mess of pipework and compressor under the bonnet and stick one of these on the back seat!
http://www.batterysavers.com/person-aircondi.htm

[davidr]

I had the system re-gassed and all is now well again. I also managed to prove to myself that the aircon does work with the roof down.
On the subject of apparent frailty of Jaguar aircon systems, I have a 2001 Land Rover Discovery that I've had for years. It has a much more complex system than the Jag (ie dual zone controls, a separate evaporator for the rear etc) and a much greater volume of air to cool and yet it still works faultlessly and I've never touched it - not even put any gas in it!

[PaulE]

That's what I mean - if SAAB and Landrover can make it work, why not Jaguar. There must be a reason: stranger still as the same components are used on numerous other vehicles. When I replaced the compressor (Sanden) I found it was manufactured in three countries and used on an enormous range of things such as earthmovers and combines as well as road vehicles.

[davidr]

When we refilled the aircon we put some yellow dye in as well so we could see any leaks. The pipe that goes from the receiver/drier to the expansion valve started to go yellow! A week or so later we took the gas out again (only half left!) and took the pipe out. It is a combination of alloy pipe and rubber hose with crimped connectors.
The alloy pipe had started to corrode and had several pin holes in it.
The part is no longer available from Jaguar.
Perhaps this gives us a clue why the aircon in Jags is so fragile - poor standard of components and discontinued spares!
Thankfully I can get the pipe repaired!

[PaulE]

Look at the ad on p77 of this month's mag - Specialist Auto Services - who say they are remanufacturing no longer available aircon pipes 'to aircraft standards'. Now that's the sort of thing we need to be hearing.