2016 CX-5 Sport uneven AC cooling from vents

[txt990]

My 2016 CX-5 sport with 103k has been having unven AC cooling from thr vents. The driver side vent next to door doesn't seem to get that cold. The vent on the right of the steering wheel is cold but not very cold. The next vent is very cold..

Just started noticing this recently after the my AC blower would stop blowing air sometimes but then work again. I ordered the AC blower and have to replace it soon.

I had changed the cabin filter a few days back with a Purolator carbon activated one. What causes the uneven AC cooling from vents?

 

[RedBaron]

I had the same symptom with my CX-50. In my case it was a freon leak. Once it was fixed and recharged, all was even cooling again.

 

[Jmaz]

My 2016 CX-5 sport with 103k has been having unven AC cooling from thr vents. The driver side vent next to door doesn't seem to get that cold. The vent on the right of the steering wheel is cold but not very cold. The next vent is very cold..

Just started noticing this recently after the my AC blower would stop blowing air sometimes but then work again. I ordered the AC blower and have to replace it soon.

I had changed the cabin filter a few days back with a Purolator carbon activated one. What causes the uneven AC cooling from vents?

I'm not sure how correct this is but I remember reading somewhere that low "Freon" refrigerant can cause this. Reason was that the refrigerant entered the evaporator (under the dashboard) from the passenger side and there wasn't enough to allow for full expansion across the whole evaporator so only the first part of the evaporator (passenger side) got cooled.
I've also found that the carbon/charcoal filters really restricted airflow.

 

[RedBaron]

Beat ya!

 

[Jmaz]

Beat ya!

Yea, but I explained WHY.

 

[txt990]

I'm not sure how correct this is but I remember reading somewhere that low "Freon" refrigerant can cause this. Reason was that the refrigerant entered the evaporator (under the dashboard) from the passenger side and there wasn't enough to allow for full expansion across the whole evaporator so only the first part of the evaporator (passenger side) got cooled.
I've also found that the carbon/charcoal filters really restricted airflow.

The charcoal one definetly restrict airflow. I had tried a charcoal filter a few years back also and noticed the performance of the AC was restricted a bit. But back then I never noticed an uneven airflow from the vents. The flow was all equal.

Maybe I can get a normal cabin filter and see if there is any difference.

 

[cz5gt]

I doubt there would be much diff.Go check your refrigerant level.

 

[Whomand]

My 2016 CX-5 sport with 103k has been having unven AC cooling from thr vents. The driver side vent next to door doesn't seem to get that cold. The vent on the right of the steering wheel is cold but not very cold. The next vent is very cold..

Just started noticing this recently after the my AC blower would stop blowing air sometimes but then work again. I ordered the AC blower and have to replace it soon.

I had changed the cabin filter a few days back with a Purolator carbon activated one. What causes the uneven AC cooling from vents?
p/s: After completing a block cycle in block blast, leaving open space in the middle and along the edges improves control.

The problem might be due to airflow issues with the new air filter or a malfunctioning blower fan. After replacing the blower fan, see if the situation improves; if not, check the air intake vents.

 

[GFrosty]

My 2016 CX-5 sport with 103k has been having unven AC cooling from thr vents. The driver side vent next to door doesn't seem to get that cold. The vent on the right of the steering wheel is cold but not very cold. The next vent is very cold..

Just started noticing this recently after the my AC blower would stop blowing air sometimes but then work again. I ordered the AC blower and have to replace it soon.

Some thoughts ...

If intermittent blowing, it is likely the blower motor assembly is on the way "out". Had to replace mine a couple months ago. Had been mildly "clacking" for a several years, but then finally ceased working.

A few months ago, I also had the refrigerant level checked. Was low. Had it recharged and the pressurization/seals checked. But in the case of weak refrigerant levels I would expect the overall temperature of the cooling to be roughly uniform across all vents, just warmer than it should be.

If the blowing works well but you find that one or more of the vents doesn't blow (or doesn't blow as well), another possibility might be the "flapper" assembly that determines which vent the air gets sent to.

 

[RedBaron]

The problem might be due to airflow issues with the new air filter or a malfunctioning blower fan. After replacing the blower fan, see if the situation improves; if not, check the air intake vents.

Thanks for trying, but this would not cause the symptoms reported. Plus, replacing the blower would be a last case scenario.

If intermittent blowing, it is likely the blower motor assembly is on the way "out". Had to replace mine a couple months ago. Had been mildly "clacking" for a several years, but then finally ceased working.

See above. Not the same symptoms.

A few months ago, I also had the refrigerant level checked. Was low. Had it recharged and the pressurization/seals checked. But in the case of weak refrigerant levels I would expect the overall temperature of the cooling to be roughly uniform across all vents, just warmer than it should be.

You might expect that (I would've too), but not actually how it works given my own experience (see prev reply).

 

[GFrosty]

You might expect that (I would've too), but not actually how it works given my own experience (see prev reply).

In your own example, perhaps not.

Yet my own vehicle did indeed happen to have roughly uniform temp out of the various vents, at least until the weakness of the soon-to-fail blower resulted temp being weakly felt the farthest from the blower and more-strongly closer to the blower. Easily mistaken as a temp difference, when actually what occurred (in my own example) was weakness of airflow. But refrigerant recharge cured all of it. (Until the blower actually completely stopped working some weeks later.) Was simply pointing out an instance of what low refrigerant caused, in one vehicle.

Wasn't claiming that in the OP's vehicle that this, necessarily, was causing (even contributing to) the specific few conditions being experienced. Simply offered it up as an aid to the troubleshooting. Others' experiences with this or that part weakness or failure can have value, in that way.

 

[txt990]

In your own example, perhaps not.

Yet my own vehicle did indeed happen to have roughly uniform temp out of the various vents, at least until the weakness of the soon-to-fail blower resulted temp being weakly felt the farthest from the blower and more-strongly closer to the blower. Easily mistaken as a temp difference, when actually what occurred (in my own example) was weakness of airflow. But refrigerant recharge cured all of it. (Until the blower actually completely stopped working some weeks later.) Was simply pointing out an instance of what low refrigerant caused, in one vehicle.

Wasn't claiming that in the OP's vehicle that this, necessarily, was causing (even contributing to) the specific few conditions being experienced. Simply offered it up as an aid to the troubleshooting. Others' experiences with this or that part weakness or failure can have value, in that way.

So, my blower is also having problems as it sometimes will not blow and other time it does. I bought a blower on Amazon, and plan to replace it soon. Just need to get some time to replace it.

 

[txt990]

So, I finally replaced my AC blower on the 2016 CX-5 with one from Amazon.. The blower works but, still experiencing warmer air through the left and right driver side vents. The other two vents blow cold air. So, maybe it the freon?

Need to take it to the shop to check it out..

 

[txt990]

I have an old can of AC Pro R134a with guage that still has some left. Had previously used it a few years ago with my 2010 Corolla. Can I use this to try to recharge the AC system on my Mazda cx-5?

 

[zx10guy]

I have an old can of AC Pro R134a with guage that still has some left. Had previously used it a few years ago with my 2010 Corolla. Can I use this to try to recharge the AC system on my Mazda cx-5?

I think it should be fine. Don't remember when the cutover happened to the current R1234YF happened. There will be a label in the engine bay stating what refrigerant is being used in your A/C system and should also say how many lbs of refrigerant it holds.

 

[txt990]

I think it should be fine. Don't remember when the cutover happened to the current R1234YF happened. There will be a label in the engine bay stating what refrigerant is being used in your A/C system and should also say how many lbs of refrigerant it holds.

I saw the label earlier at it mentions HFC134A which is the same as R134A from what it says online.

 

[zx10guy]

You're good to go then.

I personally like to put a set of gauges on the A/C system to see what the low and high pressure sides are reading. I also prefer to pull the system down to full vacuum with a vacuum pump before recharging the system.

 

[txt990]

You're good to go then.

I personally like to put a set of gauges on the A/C system to see what the low and high pressure sides are reading. I also prefer to pull the system down to full vacuum with a vacuum pump before recharging the system.

So, I don't have the set of guages that would measure both. When I had connected the AC Pro can and guage this morning to measure the pressure from the low side port, the needle would be on the lowest position and never move above. Is this ok just to get a reading of the pressure?

 

[zx10guy]

Yes. It's not ideal but for a quick charge to see if it resolves your problem, it should be ok. The correct way is to pull any refrigerant out of the system and have it weighed. Then replacing the exact amount into the system called for by the manufacturer.

 

[cadcamjim]

I think it should be fine. Don't remember when the cutover happened to the current R1234YF happened. There will be a label in the engine bay stating what refrigerant is being used in your A/C system and should also say how many lbs of refrigerant it holds.

My 2021 CX-5 has R-134a. I believe 2022's have R1234YF (at least in the US) as required by law.