AC Issue

erok · 09-21-2003, 01:09 AM

My friend's Saturn is not draining AC condensation properly. Today, I blew out the drain valve with a compressor (set at 150lbs), so I thought that would most likely solve the problem.

We then started the car and let it run for awhile After 20 minutes, there was a small amount of fluid exiting the drain valve, but water also continued to drain into the car.

I started taking the ducting apart under the center console, and realized that I would most likely have to take the dash out to get to the air box.

Before I start that project, has anyone out there dealt with similiar issues? This thing was draining so much fluid into the car that all of the carpets must be pulled, cleaned and dried. I would like to avoid taking it to the dealer, but if there is no semi easy fix we may not have a choice. I do not know if I want to spend a wekend tearing a car apart because of a plugged drainage hole.

Any comments would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Eric

**Ssicarman** · 09-21-2003, 05:06 AM

Welcome to the board.

Blowing into the drain hose will only move the blockage for a while. Try removing the drain hose from the fire wall and use some thing to pull what is blocking it out. Another way might be to pull out the blower motor and try and get anything out from there. In both cases a wet dry shop vac would do the job.

erok · 09-21-2003, 06:00 AM

I agree, the compressed air trick is a temporary fix, at the very most. Maybe I am missing something. When I looked for the drain hose, all I found was a hole in the firewall that was damp. When I moved to the inside of the car and started disassembling the ducting under the heater box, I was stopped by what I think was the heater core, and just above that seemed to be the drainage area going through the firewall. I could not get access to the drain hole because it was covered by the front of the heater box, with the core in it. Hmmm... Time to take things apart?

At that point it seemed to make sense to take the dashboard out of the car to get to the air box, and that is when my neighbor tossed in the towel (maybe it's the disassembled car and motorcycles in my garage, I do not know).

But if it's a hose I'm looking for, I may have been monkeying around in the wrong area. I will take a better look tomorrow, and make him buy a Saturn shop manual.

I appreciate the information!