2018 FR3 30DS Ford Chassis AC Issue

[cavie]

Originally Posted by OldGunny

I had about 8 months of fighting with the RV dealership, Ford, and FR to get the AC dash blower motor replaced.



Most of the issue was with the dealer's service department, because it was under warranty.

Dash AC is a Ford warranty item. Shouldn't but it is. FR bought the chassis. They should own it. That ain't gonna happen.

[FrankMor]

Originally Posted by cavie

Dash AC is a Ford warranty item. Shouldn't but it is. FR bought the chassis. They should own it. That ain't gonna happen.

On a Class A, like the FR3s we are talking about, only the parts supplied by Ford are covered by Ford; compressor, condenser and receiver/dryer. The rest is aftermarket supplied by FR. It is amazing how hard most RV dealers fight for Ford to cover all of it.

Frank

[cavie]

Originally Posted by FrankMor

On a Class A, like the FR3s we are talking about, only the parts supplied by Ford are covered by Ford; compressor, condenser and receiver/dryer. The rest is aftermarket supplied by FR. It is amazing how hard most RV dealers fight for Ford to cover all of it.

Frank

My bad. Wasn't payin' tention'. just got off a Dynamax post.

[FrankMor]

I've done that too.

Frank

[FarFromLiberal]

Thanks BatesMotel2, I just double-checked to make sure I could hear the compressor turning on. It does, but unlike what I'm used to hearing in private passenger vehicles and trucks it sounds like it only runs for about 3 seconds and then shuts down for about 10 seconds before turning back on for another 3 seconds. Seems like a very short active loop. It will be among the many questions I have for the service manager next week! Good luck with your appointment!

[vjstangelo]

I had a problem with my Evans Tempcon unit as well. Go to their website as they have excellent troubleshooting guides online. Mine turned out to be a loose wire, but tracking it down was a bear. I posted my issue at rv dot net under Class A along with solution.

As others said, Ford supplies about 50% of the hardware and Evans the rest. Then the RV manufacturer shoehorns it into the built chassis. Probably an authorized rv shop with a good AC tech can repair it. Many don’t bother and run the genset and House AC when traveling.

[BatesMotel2]

Good tips, mine is now at the dealer, fingers crossed!

[FarFromLiberal]

Just got an update from the shop on mine. After much back and forth between them and both Ford & TempCon a lady named Shelley at TempCon finally walked them through several bypasses within the system. One produced the cold air we were looking for and I’m told it was determined to be a faulty water valve within the TempCon system. My dealer actually took it to a nearby shop that does their alignment and A/C work. They’re waiting for the replacement part now, and just had another new FR3 bring their unit in with the same problem. If you’re shop hasn’t figured the problem out yet maybe this info will help! Apparently Shelley at TempCon is who they need to speak with.

[BatesMotel2]

Thanks FarFromLiberal, I will pass it on, hope to get an update on ours tomorrow!

[FarFromLiberal]

BatesMotel I’ve got an update you may want to contact your dealer about before you pick yours up. Whatever replacement valve Evans sent my dealer fixed the A/C problem- but only while the unit is idling! Tech took it for a test run of around 5 miles and the air temp being put out increased from 51 degrees to 78 degrees. So 2 weeks later it’s back to the square one with Evans trying to chase down the problem. Sounds like may be multiple issues. Make sure they test drive yours before you pick it up!

[BatesMotel2]

Thanks FarFromLiberal, I will pass it on!

[ostmd]

I just had to charge mine. Must be leaking freeon slowly. This is my 4th year camping with it.

[BatesMotel2]

Glad to hear your's is working! I have had a few vehicles where the freon leaked over time and we could not find the minor leak. My shop recharged one the last time with freon that has a sealer in it for minor leaks, and I have not had to charge it again for 5 years! I wish our FR3 only needed freon, should have a diagnosis this week, fingers crossed!

[Knoxie89]

Originally Posted by leisurelarry

All the time on my 2014 30DS. Never had any issues with it over the last 4 years.

Same here, my only issue with it was that dust/debris from construction clogge the a/c drainage and it was leaking on passenger footwell. Otherwise it's nice and cold.

If you hang a blanket/curtain from the bunk and, you don't have to run the generator and main a/c.

[BatesMotel2]

I just got off the phone with our Camping World Dealer and was informed Evans TempCon and CW has resolved the AC issue on our 30DS by re-servicing, calibrating and testing all components to include a performance test between two 2018 FR3's with the same results which fall within the Evans TempCon published service manual specs. Planning on picking it up tomorrow after another test of course.

Thanks to "Vjstangelo" for pointing me to the Evans TempCon website where I was able to find and download their HVAC Service manual for all RV's. I have attached the manual below, good info. Forest River will point you to page 63 which shows what the perimeters are for ambient vs. AC air temperatures.

[FarFromLiberal]

Glad to hear they've got your's fixed up for you Dave, and thanks for sharing the Evans manual- I'm going to check those temp. guides and see if mine falls within the acceptable range. Right now it's blowing cold enough at idle and cools down quickly when I'm sitting at a stoplight or something, but on an 80-degree or more day while I'm under way it still doesn't feel anywhere near as cool as it should. Next stop, as soon as I get the full report from my dealer on what they did with Evans, will be a local Ford truck shop to see if it's anything on that side of the equation.

[Hogq]

I’m hoping this is helpful, in general, to chassis air issues. It isn’t necessarily specific to a particular problem, just hoping this is helpful. My coach is a 2015 FR3 which is to say it sits on a 2014 F53 chassis. It has the Evans dash air unit. My first journey out, the dash air quit. I checked pressures and the high side was very high (over 300), and the low side was very low (like 10).
The expansion valve was bad, and had been superseded with a new part number. The filter-dryer was plugged, and the silica in it had expanded and ruptured, and had been circulated everywhere in the system. The new replacement valve was less than $40. Lots of effort to flush the system, but i did that, replaced the dryer and o rings, checked for leaks, pulled a vacuum, and replaced the charge using a scale to get the precise amount. I also put in electric cooling fans blowing through the radiator bulkhead opening (just under the oil and Trans coolers, which exposes the condenser to air from the front. Now going on two years later, the DW complains of the dash air being too cold, it does sting if it blows directly on your hands like around the steering wheel, last week I drove from Ft Smith AR to Leavenworth KS, and it was hot outside, near 100 or over, we didn’t need the roof air, once the coach cooled down initially. However, it cannot do some things, like cool the coach, if the motorhome gets completely heat soaked. On a 90+ degree day it will blow air in the 40 degree range, IF the return air is in between say 70-78 degrees. The dash air just hasn’t the capacity to shed heat from a hot-soaked coach. Also, my advice, modern A/C systems don’t respond well to blindly “blowing in some Freon” as was customary in the 60’s and 70’s. R134A works well with a lot of condenser, fan cooling the condenser, and with an exact charge of refrigerant. Otherwise pressures become too high to work efficiently. Also too much oil really downgrades the cooling capacity (a measured charge for oil is better as well). And in regard to leaks, when the system leaks down, even slowly, moisture can enter the system (that is what destroyed my dryer). Also when refrigerant leaks, it sometimes leaks some blended components more quickly than others, which means that some of the refrigerant is gone, and the remaining refrigerant isn’t really really refrigerant anymore because some of the constituent gases are no longer present in the blend (assuming it is a blend), gases have differing vapor pressures. I don’t recommend adding refrigerant without gauges (high side), the old saying “some is good, more is better, too much is just enough” does not work with R134A systems :-) good luck and good rv-ing.

[lacoles]

we have 2014 FR3 30DS and the AC is blowing warm air. Just had the Freon replaced and the temperature still is at 70 degrees. What is everyone getting on their cold air from the dash?

[Hogq]

At the ac outlets you should see about a 20 degree drop from the temp near the floor in front of the passenger seat. This is measured with fan on high, ac set to max. If it is humid (like Louisiana or Arkansas) you may see only 18 dev drop.

[lacoles]

Thanks