PICS of A/C fix do it!

[BadCarma]

Greetings, sometime ago my A/C died and as I was only driving it mostly at night I had a I will get to it additude.well I got to it! blows ice cold and everything works as it should: heres the break down to point out some issues and things to do. the problem was with the head unit that I think is 6-700 from Acura.

pic of unit with all bad componants repaired including trace's sitting next to a stock unit not worked yet.the caps are blue and the 'same' value' as the ones replaced...thats important.the refurbed board is on the left

 

[BadCarma]

when I was removing the AC head unit I noticed the upper tabs to screw down were cracked(someone had been there before it seems, I used super glue on a pin tip to fix that, also the lower right screw was stripped and required some deal of work to remove(was ready to drill the head off. if you incounter this push gently on the back of the head unit and keep working it until it comes out
heres a pick noting the damage and repair.

 

[BadCarma]

After you have the unit out the face plate will still be attached.remove the two small screws on each side of the unit right behind where the faceplate attaches, then remove the single screw at the backside (not bottom) holding the board inplace, then gently pull the front of the head unit apart to remove protector tab. you want to do all this as you are replacing the bad board BUT after this is done it is an easy matter to slide the board forward in the housing and THEN remove the connectors that attach it to the face plate(gentle is the key to all of this)

 

[BadCarma]

you want to be gentle when removing the connectors and tug them straight up as much as possible,even so this is what happened to me, this is not a big deal if it is not bent real bad,take some flat face needle nose and slowly work a connector like this back into shape

 

[BadCarma]

take care to not disturb the lay of the wire harness or remove connectors by tugging on the wires, inspect the wires for wear,bad connections so forth

 

[BadCarma]

Ok, NOW is the time to give the complete unit head and face plate the once over, gently tuck the wire harness in so it wont snag
heres the unit with faceplate harness reattached. remember previous pic, attach harness then slide the board into its protective case, screw that goes into the rear and screws the go on the side should be done now.

 

[BadCarma]

head unit and face plate re-assembled and ready for testing!

 

[BadCarma]

before replacing center console test the board, first test the AC modes

 

[BadCarma]

check all other functions including speed, heat, vents, so on.
SUCCESS IT WORKS ON ALL MODES AND BLOWS COLD (and saved about 600 bucks!! very happy guy goes inside for a beer.
hope this was of help to someone, repair the board yourself or have someone do it for you,if you follow these tips you have a much less chance of damaging the board or face plate and having to start over. lastly do not over torque screws.

Best Regards David
ps dont attempt the board repair without experience, it costs about 75-100 to have the board repaired and that includes all the caps not just the few that went bad insuring the others wont and traces and anything else thats wrong with it and you will save 600 at least even having someone else do the board(600 for board+labor...think about it.you will safe a ton of money to spend on other 'cool' stuff or mods for example 'nitrous'

 

[Ojas]

David, thanks for the very imformative post. The pictures are helpful. Do you have the capacitance (uF) and voltage rating for the capacitors you replaced handy? If so, would you mind posting?

I know I can get them off the board, but I was thinking about ordering these components first, then performing the repair (to minimize downtime and save myself from removing the unit twice).

 

[madfast]

wow very informative and a great DIY. it should be moved to DIY. GREAT! thanks for sharing

 

[madfast]

can all these parts be found at the local Radio shack?

 

[Ojas]

According to this thread from the old forum software, you can probably find the same Farad values at the Radio Shack, but at a lower voltage rating. That's why I thought it would be best to order these first.

 

[smoore]

i did the same thing but paid $85- at a shop in Miami, Fl.
(i guess i'm lazy )

 

[dawggpie]

neat stuff.
one thing, what do u mean by fixing the traces? Also, what year AC controls tend to go bad?

 

[matteni]

Great post! Worthy of the FAQs IMO!!!

By the way - I did many searches and couldn't find this post so the real reason I am posting is to add some key words so others may find this. IMO - this will happen to every one of our climate control units eventually.

BTW - what does your tattoo say?

key words:

- climate control failure
- climate control replacement
- climate control on and off
- climate control intermittent
- AC failure
- no power on climate control
- climate control repair

and here are some less common search phrases:

- Acura dealer bending me over
- I am sweating my a$$ off
- I have sucker written all over me
- Best place to hit climate control with a hammer

 

[BadCarma]

Thanks Nick, hope it helped some with your A/C issues

Best Regards David

 

[ChadHouseOfPorn]

condensers missing

I am currently attempting to fix my AC controler unit from a 91 that i bought with a broken unit. I found when looking in the unit they had removed all the compasiters that were fried. I wanted to know if anyone had any idea of what the numbers are on the compasiters and where i can get these.

Thanks

 

[KGP]

BadCarma: Thanks for sharing!

Nick: Good thought as to adding the keywords!

 

[I Grok NSX]

Re: condensers missing

I am currently attempting to fix my AC controler unit from a 91 that i bought with a broken unit. I found when looking in the unit they had removed all the compasiters that were fried. I wanted to know if anyone had any idea of what the numbers are on the compasiters and where i can get these.

Thanks

Here's a list of Caps

C6 - 330uf 35v
C10 - 330uf 10v
C11 - 100uf 10v
C14 - 47uf 35v
C15 - 47uf 35v
C16 - 3.3uf 50v
C17 - .47uf 50v
C19 - 22uf 16v
C22 - 47uf 35v
C24 - 47uf 35v
C32 - 47uf 50v
C33 - 100uf 35v
C44 - 22uf 35v

So far, I've replaced C14, 15, 22, 24, 33, and 44 and problem still exists for me - fan goes to hi speed and no control of climate control. Other caps are on order. Sure hope one of them fixes the problem.

 

[NSXDDS]

climate control C11 is key

i think i figured out which capacitor is associated with the "full air only" problem.

i started to have intermittant loss of air control, but no prob on high. so i extracted the climate control. removed the cover and got to the board. looked carefully at capacitors. C11 looked very suspicious with black crud at base of capacitor. i gently removed the crud and now i have no problems.

i haven't replaced yet, but will shortly, knowing that it's definitely a capacitor issue.

So check out C11 if you have similar probs... hope this helps others, similar probs

 

[synergy004]

cool

Bad Carma,

good write up, My unit stopped working and driving in the cold at night, my windows tend to fog up on me, I would stop breathing but damn, I gotta live, so I take the torture and crack the windows for the nice frosty air to creep into my bones. I will take my unit apart and save myself some bucks, if I have the same problems as the above. My unit just plain does not work at all.

cheers
gil

 

[MJK]

To bring this post back to the top, here are the part numbers and prices for all the capacitors from the Digikey Catalog.

Replace capacitors:
C6 - 330uf 35v Digikey Part Number P5553-ND ($.70)
C10 - 330uf 10v Digikey Part Number P5519-ND ($.40)
C11 - 100uf 10v Digikey Part Number P5517-ND ($.28)
C14 - 47uf 35v Digikey Part Number P5550-ND ($.32)
C15 - 47uf 35v Digikey Part Number P5550-ND ($.32)
C16 - 3.3uf 50v Digikey Part Number P5565-ND ($.32)
C17 - .47uf 50v Digikey Part Number P5562-ND ($.32)
C19 - 22uf 16v Digikey Part Number P912-ND ($.35)
C22 - 47uf 35v Digikey Part Number P5550-ND ($.32)
C24 - 47uf 35v Digikey Part Number P5550-ND ($.32)
C32 - 47uf 50v Digikey Part Number P5570-ND ($.37)
C33 - 100uf 35v Digikey Part Number P5551-ND ($.40)
C44 - 22uf 35v Digikey Part Number P924-ND ($.45)

Total $4.87


Keep your fingers crossed.

 

[dlongo]

GREAT INFO! This should be in the FAQ!

 

[MJK]

OK, got the caps in and professionally attached to the board (on of the EEs at work did it) and the board looks great.

Unfortunately, it has the same problems as before. Fan blows on high, but on no other speed. AC compressor kicks on an off when you would expect it to (varying temps on 'full auto'). All fuses are fine. All caps were replaced by new caps of the by new ones of the same capacitance, voltage and temperature rating so I am pretty sure that is not the problem. This sounds to me like a broken trace somewhere. Any ideas on where that might be on the board? Other ideas?

I really don't want to drop $600 until there is another alternative.

Ideas? Anyone? Thanks.