Weekend Shot - AC, Power Steering and Alarm-gctid815717

[FredK]

I couldn't find answers to the PS problem so here I go.

Well the holiday weekend started out great and hour and half ride to the Hyatt in Sarasota to celebrate and watch the boat races. The wife would join me later by car. I arrived at 11, set up the boat cranked up the AC and checked in. About 4 hours later the AC thermostat is erratic and now blowing warm air. Circulating pump is working. Finally get a hold of an AC mechanic by phone who says try and reset the thermostat to factory and give him a call back if that doesn't work. Call back says he'll call me in the morning; that didn't happen. I reached out to 3 total AC mechanics without success. Quick research looks like I may need a new motherboard.

Travel home for the night and back to the Hyatt to pickup the boat and return home. As I entered the Marina the PS stops, luckily I was able to steer the boat fighting it the remainder of the way in. As I am pulling in an alarm goes off and I am at idle speed with the engine sounding like it is choking. HELP.

Where do I start troubleshooting the PS issue?

And the alarm likely an air flow sensor?

Engine is a 5L MPI

Thanks.

[floatyerboat]

Two years ago I had to replace the A/C unit because of mother board issues. Whether that was the problem or not that was the reason given. I would have cost twice as much to bench test repair and reinstall vs buying a new one. Other things you could look for is a dirty filter, low supply air flow across the coil which in these two cases would most likely produce a block of ice covering the filter. Its easy to throw a cooler or a sleeping bag in front of the fresh air supply if that's how your system is designed. I've had two boats with very poor air circulation over the coil which can do a number on a compressor if not turned off in time.

Even if all this were the problem I don't think or know if your thermostat would run erratic. I don't think mine did.

Both boats I owned had A/C added later on in life. Its always hard to find a spot for the compressor and supply good make up air supply at the same time because usually every inch of space is spoken for.

Good Luck..

[FredK]

Thanks for the response. Filter is clean, unit runs blowing cold air then shuts off after 4-5 minutes and then blows warn air. The owners manual trouble shooting guide say that it is likely the motherboard with an erratic thermostat. So that is where I will start. If I need to replace the board and thermostat the cost is less than $400 much cheaper than a new unit.

8k BTU Cruisair

[Flynny94]

Not a mechanic...but here's my 2 cents.

Have you had a look down into the engine bay? Check for leaks around all of the power steering components. Check your serpentine belt and make sure that's good.

Alarms can go of and put the engine in limp mode for a number of reasons. Start simple, check all of your fluid levels. Do you know if the engine was overheating? Start it up with the engine cover open and take a look and listen for anything abnormal. Good luck!

[Pcpete]

On reading your post, my immediate thought was you lost your serpentine belt. That would address the loss of power steering and the rather short delay in the engine acting up and the alarm. The engine was likely overheating because coolant was not being circulated by the water pump, so, the alarm started yelling at you. It's likely that you didn't cause any major damage to the engine, but keep an eye on it more than usual. Have a great 4th.

[FredK]

Hey PC Pete; you were correct!

I was too tired and it was way too hot to get down into the engine room after the trip back so I saved it for yesterday when I was fresh. The smooth idler pulley spun a bearing and flew off its spindle dropping the serpentine belt to the bilge. Ordered a new one yesterday for $27.50 should be here by Friday. After install I'll check all the fluids, operating temp and oil pressure to make sure all is OK.

Now onto the AC.


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