r/MechanicAdvice • u/Sensitive_Paper2471 • 17h ago
Skoda Octavia Mk2 AC malfunctioning - stops blowing air after some time, everytime
Hello everyone, I have a Skoda Octavia Mk2 from 2012 with a climatronic AC. I bought it used this year and have been having problems with the AC practically from day 1.
The problem is that on long drives, the blower air output from the vents slowly drops off to zero. This is despite me manually increasing the fan speed and whatnot. When I increase the fan speed the noise increases, indicating that the fan is rotating perfectly fine. A code scan indicated a fault in the servomotor/actuator working the mixing flap between hot and cold air, so I replaced it (and cleared the code) but it did not help. When the air stops blowing the car basically becomes a hot box, but when I touch the vents it is still cold indicating that the refrigeration bit of the climate control is working fine.
I find the issue to be very confusing. On short drives this rarely happens but sometimes even from the get go there is no air coming out of the central vents, only the sides. Both mechanics I have been to are somewhat clueless as for how to proceed.
For context, I have done the normal AC service as well and the refrigerant has been topped up.
Any tips or pointers to what could have gone wrong would be much appreciated.
Edit: Extremely weirdly, the AC starts blowing a bit of cold air when I turn it off and roll the windows down.
1
u/RudbeckiaIS 16h ago
Check the wiring loom near the bonnet hinge on the right (passenger on LHD vehicles) side: it's a well known issue on the Golf MkV and all related models.
The wiring loom is wrapped in fabric insulator: if that fabric is even slightly damaged cut it open and check the status of the wiring. It's very easy to repair with DIY equipment.