Why is air con not covered by service or warranty in this day and age.

niktheguru

I'm actually getting quite annoyed about this. When a car is within warranty and getting dealer services, why when the air con isn't working well is it not covered by standard warranty......the dealers just say "its not covered and it needs a regas", yet if anything else is wrong with a car it will get fixed, they replace the screenwash and engine oil, why not ensure the air con is up to scratch. It's no longer a luxury like back in the day, it's standard on the vast majority of cars these days.

Anyone agree or am I wrong?
My car is 2 years old and due for its second service, I'm sure they will say the air con needs regassing (as it doesn't get as cold as quickly anymore)

fred246

Sounds like you have a leak. Are they covered? My current car went from 2010 to 2019 without a regas and then it was almost still full. I have been looking at manufacturers 'approved used' warranties recently and there are so many exclusions it seems hardly worth having them. Everyone seems to be obsessed with warranties and think that they will protect them from any repair bills. Clutches are always expensive and never covered. The problem is the aircon machines are a little bit too expensive to buy your own. My aircon stopped recently and so I ended up taking it to an aircon specialist. He couldn't work out what was wrong so didn't charge anything unlike some garages that I read about. Luckily I fixed it myself after watching some YouTube videos. The part cost nearly £20 from eBay. After 17 years with no main dealer servicing I didn't think I could ask for a manufacturer's contribution.

photome

fred246 said:

Sounds like you have a leak. Are they covered? My current car went from 2010 to 2019 without a regas and then it was almost still full. I have been looking at manufacturers 'approved used' warranties recently and there are so many exclusions it seems hardly worth having them. Everyone seems to be obsessed with warranties and think that they will protect them from any repair bills. Clutches are always expensive and never covered. The problem is the aircon machines are a little bit too expensive to buy your own. My aircon stopped recently and so I ended up taking it to an aircon specialist. He couldn't work out what was wrong so didn't charge anything unlike some garages that I read about. Luckily I fixed it myself after watching some YouTube videos. The part cost nearly £20 from eBay. After 17 years with no main dealer servicing I didn't think I could ask for a manufacturer's contribution.

thats simply not true

we had a clutch replaced on a Kia Rio under warranty (12 plate) at about 2 years old and we were the second owners, no questions asked

as for the OP, if its a leak IMO it should be covered

fred246

photome said:

fred246 said:

Sounds like you have a leak. Are they covered? My current car went from 2010 to 2019 without a regas and then it was almost still full. I have been looking at manufacturers 'approved used' warranties recently and there are so many exclusions it seems hardly worth having them. Everyone seems to be obsessed with warranties and think that they will protect them from any repair bills. Clutches are always expensive and never covered. The problem is the aircon machines are a little bit too expensive to buy your own. My aircon stopped recently and so I ended up taking it to an aircon specialist. He couldn't work out what was wrong so didn't charge anything unlike some garages that I read about. Luckily I fixed it myself after watching some YouTube videos. The part cost nearly £20 from eBay. After 17 years with no main dealer servicing I didn't think I could ask for a manufacturer's contribution.

thats simply not true

we had a clutch replaced on a Kia Rio under warranty (12 plate) at about 2 years old and we were the second owners, no questions asked

as for the OP, if its a leak IMO it should be covered

I remember sitting in a Kia showroom looking at a Sorento and the salesman stating that clutches weren't covered in the 7 year warranty. Sounds like you were lucky.

daveyjp

If your two year old car aircon isn't getting as cold there is something wrong with it, or it is not being used correctly.

My last car was 7 years old, no issues, but I did leave the aircon on permanently, as I have always done with all my vehicles.  

The reason it isn't serviced is because it's generally not needed, its a lengthy process (it isn't like topping up screenwash) and modern aircon gas is expensive.

AdrianC

If aircon is not used frequently, then the seals dry and allow the refrigerant gas to escape. This is not a manufacturing fault, so is not a warranty claim.

There is no reason to turn it off. Leave it on.

Petriix

AdrianC said:

If aircon is not used frequently, then the seals dry and allow the refrigerant gas to escape. This is not a manufacturing fault, so is not a warranty claim.

There is no reason to turn it off. Leave it on.

The reason to turn it off is all the extra power it uses. It can reduce my range by 10 miles (or ultimately increase my charging costs by 5%) if I just leave it on permanently.

motorguy

fred246 said:

photome said:

fred246 said:

Sounds like you have a leak. Are they covered? My current car went from 2010 to 2019 without a regas and then it was almost still full. I have been looking at manufacturers 'approved used' warranties recently and there are so many exclusions it seems hardly worth having them. Everyone seems to be obsessed with warranties and think that they will protect them from any repair bills. Clutches are always expensive and never covered. The problem is the aircon machines are a little bit too expensive to buy your own. My aircon stopped recently and so I ended up taking it to an aircon specialist. He couldn't work out what was wrong so didn't charge anything unlike some garages that I read about. Luckily I fixed it myself after watching some YouTube videos. The part cost nearly £20 from eBay. After 17 years with no main dealer servicing I didn't think I could ask for a manufacturer's contribution.

thats simply not true

we had a clutch replaced on a Kia Rio under warranty (12 plate) at about 2 years old and we were the second owners, no questions asked

as for the OP, if its a leak IMO it should be covered

I remember sitting in a Kia showroom looking at a Sorento and the salesman stating that clutches weren't covered in the 7 year warranty. Sounds like you were lucky.

Clutch wear isnt.  A faulty clutch is.

A warranty covers faults, not wear and tear.

mobileron

And you get to your destination all sweaty and frustrated, what you doing with the money you save?

motorguy

niktheguru said:

I'm actually getting quite annoyed about this. When a car is within warranty and getting dealer services, why when the air con isn't working well is it not covered by standard warranty......the dealers just say "its not covered and it needs a regas", yet if anything else is wrong with a car it will get fixed, they replace the screenwash and engine oil, why not ensure the air con is up to scratch. It's no longer a luxury like back in the day, it's standard on the vast majority of cars these days.

Anyone agree or am I wrong?
My car is 2 years old and due for its second service, I'm sure they will say the air con needs regassing (as it doesn't get as cold as quickly anymore)

Aircon generally stops working for one of three reasons

• Lack of use so the seals dry and leak.  Needs to be kept on or used frequently. 
• A leak in a pipe of joint (likely caused by a stone chipping a pipe)
• The Aircon condenser is leaking (likely caused by a stone hitting it)

Theres a lot of protection in an engine bay to prevent this but sometimes tiny stones / debris get through (and travelling at maybe 70MPH).

Hence why "aircon not working" is not covered.  Theres a chance its a faulty part but they wont investigate that in the outset as 98% of the time its one of the above.

motorguy

Petriix said:

AdrianC said:

If aircon is not used frequently, then the seals dry and allow the refrigerant gas to escape. This is not a manufacturing fault, so is not a warranty claim.

There is no reason to turn it off. Leave it on.

The reason to turn it off is all the extra power it uses. It can reduce my range by 10 miles (or ultimately increase my charging costs by 5%) if I just leave it on permanently.

Then you need to decide if that saving is worth the potential to have to spend £££s down the line to get your aircon working if it fails.