HVAC customer satisfaction program - end April 30, 2016

[manualsparkls 6]

It was just confirmed that my spark qualifies for this program. I have an appointment tomorrow morning for a rattle under my vehicle and the smell of fuel in my oil. I will be mentioning this program to and let you all know what happens.

Excellent. I hope they figure out the rattle so I can have my service people look for the same thing.

[Greg_E 211]

The person who called me said it was only until the end of this month, but since none of my other problems were known, maybe she just didn't read everything and skipped the year. Still nothing from the dealer today, guess I have to call again tomorrow but pretty sure I'm going to some dealers on Saturday to see what I might be able to do. Need to check inventory and see if there is anything I want.

Still hard to believe that they wouldn't even let me schedule a time without talking to the service manager. Makes me think I'm 5 years old and about to get told that I can't even go back to that dealer.

Edited April 17, 2014 by Greg_E

[austex04 48]

Mine also falls under the program. I'm going to schedule this service at one of the dealers in the south Puget sound area that has the best reviews. Hopefully the service departments are not nearly as bad around here as the ones were in Texas.

[Dori 13]

I advise you not to take it to the dealer in Sumner. Not sure where IN WA you are staying.

[WaltK 305]

Ok, I took the car in 7:30 am, and picked it up at 1:00 pm. The invoice states that the complaint is: a/c is intermittantly blowing cold/warm air. The cause is listed as: Campaign Recall 13434. The work done is listed as: Install low pressure s/w kit and wiring. 1 harness complete. 1 filter. On the drive home she was blowing icicles, but it is only 52 deg. outdoors. I wish I could give more info, but I really wont know until we warm up by at least 20 deg. In any case this is my second attempt, the first was the bcm update, and cam replacement. I tried to get a little more info regarding the parts installed, but the service writer had no idea, and the tech was off to lunch. When I began griping about the 4/30 deadline, the writer told me that he thought it was running until 4/30 of 2015. That's something you guys might want to look into, I can't swear to it, just passing on his observations.

[austex04 48]

Mine is scheduled to go in Monday, so I shall see what comes of it. They transfered me over to a service advisor, who was aware of this. He said they'll have to see what needs to be done, and order the parts if needed. Not taking it to Sumner, going to give the dealer in Puyallop a try. Thanks for the warning Dori, nice to know another member is in my area.

Edited April 19, 2014 by austex04

[Greg_E 211]

If this is a recall, why haven't any of us received a letter in the mail?

[Gossamer 50]

It was verified that my car is included in this program, and I called the stealership, and made an appointment for Monday.

Since it is already in the mid 80s down here, I should be able to see if this is finally a true fix.

According to the service advisor, this program (he called it another "open recall") is good until 2016.

[WaltK 305]

Good question, it is called a "soft recall", has nothing to do with the NHTSA, the service writer didn't know either. I was surprised when I seen the word "recall" on the invoice. This is not the first time I couldn't get any straight answers. I think technically it is called a campaign, it is more like, don't tell anyone, maybe no one will show, but they can say "we tried". It will be awhile before I even know if it did any good.

[bluer101 241]

Walt, I hope it works out. I will wait until others have gone next week. I'm going to inquire about it too since mine qualifies.

[bluer101 241]

Ok, I took the car in 7:30 am, and picked it up at 1:00 pm. The invoice states that the complaint is: a/c is intermittantly blowing cold/warm air. The cause is listed as: Campaign Recall 13434. The work done is listed as: Install low pressure s/w kit and wiring. 1 harness complete. 1 filter. On the drive home she was blowing icicles, but it is only 52 deg. outdoors. I wish I could give more info, but I really wont know until we warm up by at least 20 deg. In any case this is my second attempt, the first was the bcm update, and cam replacement. I tried to get a little more info regarding the parts installed, but the service writer had no idea, and the tech was off to lunch. When I began griping about the 4/30 deadline, the writer told me that he thought it was running until 4/30 of 2015. That's something you guys might want to look into, I can't swear to it, just passing on his observations.

The low pressure switch has got me thinking. If the old switch had a higher cut off then this would be why it kicks off too soon. So what happens is as the refrigerant is being compressed the pressures on the low side drop and the high side gain. So if it's not dropping low enough the refrigerant only gets so cold as it passes on to the evap. So by the time the low side climbs and the high side dips some of the refrigerant is not cold enough to keep it cold through the whole cycle.

Yes, all AC' s cycle as a natural process but the spark cycles way to much. I'm just throwing out some info, maybe right or wrong. I have limited experience when I was in autobody.

[Dori 13]

Took it in this morning and they looked at it. The are ordering a pressure switch and a wiring harness for the A/C. The parts are going to take approxiamtely 2 weeks to arrive. We will see if these new parts work..

[WaltK 305]

Walt, I hope it works out. I will wait until others have gone next week. I'm going to inquire about it too since mine qualifies.

Possibly this is the "FIX" we were waiting for last summer, I'd like to put this issue to sleep, and carry on with my life..

[WaltK 305]

Took it in this morning and they looked at it. The are ordering a pressure switch and a wiring harness for the A/C. The parts are going to take approxiamtely 2 weeks to arrive. We will see if these new parts work..

It seems the switch and the harness, will be the parts replaced on all the vehicles involved in this "recall". Hopefully, they caught something..

[bluer101 241]

Possibly this is the "FIX" we were waiting for last summer, I'd like to put this issue to sleep, and carry on with my life..

This was from that fix last year:

"If pressures at idle and slightly above (Increased by 200 RPM) are the within 10 PSI (69 kPa) of each other, do not attempt any repairs or replace any parts at this time. GM Engineering is working on a repair to address this condition."

This I believe goes with what I think in my post above. No matter what right now with or without increased idle it cannot pull the pressure down on low and increase on high side enough to maintain a cold enough cycle.

Let's keep our fingers crossed.

I found this online in lamine terms.

"Your cars air compressor pressure switch, is responsible for giving and cutting off power to the air compressor of the air conditioning system. When the pressure goes below 25 psi, the pressure switch cuts the power going to the compressor, making it shut off momentarily. This is important, in order to prevent the system from freezing up, due to extreme cold. When your air compressor pressure switch is faulty, the symptoms are usually freezing up of the air conditioning system, due to the compressor not turning off. The pressure switch then needs to be replaced."

Now if the low pressure switch has the wrong specs the compressor turns on and off too much, idk, lol.

Let's just hope, I'm waiting to hear from all of you with appointments.

The other thing we should document is if anyone has had prior fixes done before this. This could change the outcome too.

Edited April 19, 2014 by bluer101

[Hobo1 8]

I suppose it wouldn't hurt to my have VIN checked to see if mine is affected. Only used my A/C like 2-3 times last year, I think it worked fine.

[jibb3r 29]

I suppose it wouldn't hurt to my have VIN checked to see if mine is affected. Only used my A/C like 2-3 times last year, I think it worked fine.

My VIN falls into the group that needs help, but I had no issues with my A/C. I'm waiting for more responses, myself. Plus, I still have a few months for "A/C" weather.

[austex04 48]

Mine also needed the pressure switch, wiring harness, and line filter. Dealer ordered the parts, about a week to arrive, then install. Hopefully this is the fix we've waited for from GM. Good to get it done before the summer rush, and more ticked off Spark owners show up that have not had the fix done. Thank you Erica @customer care for helping us work with GM on working out the bugs on these cars.

Edited April 22, 2014 by austex04

[WaltK 305]

This may have been expected, as my dealership had everything in stock. Just waiting for a warm day to try it out.

[Hobo1 8]

Mine is affected too! Dang it! Hopefully this won't be a huge issue to deal with

[bluer101 241]

This may have been expected, as my dealership had everything in stock. Just waiting for a warm day to try it out.

Can you feel the air slightly cold cool in idle? Also can you tell us which sensor, wire, and filter location?

I believe the low pressure switch is down by the compressor. If the wire harness is the one attached then its part if the main harness back to the fuse panel under the hood. Did they have to evac and recharge? Sorry for the questions but trying to figure out.

[WaltK 305]

She's blowing ice cold at idle, but, it is only 60 deg. here. The low pressure switch is on the compressor, with the attached harness being zip tied to the main harness, and running back along the passenger side, and disappearing into the firewall. I can't eyeball the filter. As far as evacuating the system, there is nothing mentioned on the invoice regarding whether it was done or not. I also noticed for the first time, the high pitched whistle you mentioned,lasting about 20-30 seconds about 10 minutes after shutoff. I generally just pull into the driveway and walk away, today I had to return to the car, to get a package, and I heard it. No prob with the questions...

[bluer101 241]

Sorry about the whistle. I have now seen 4 Sparks around here with the issue. Maybe it's normal. The wire harness is new zip tied along the passenger side going into the firewall? That's crazy. The factory one goes from the compressor area back up top of the passenger side engine then wraps behind the top engine and over to the fuse box. Along the way it keeps getting bigger due to more electrical items it's connected too.

So your saying a new separate harness?

[WaltK 305]

The whistle doesn't concern me, just thought I'd mention it. It doesn't look new, but what I have is a harness on the passenger side that runs along the fender well, and as you say gets thicker as it picks up more connections, and disappears into the firewall through a large rubber grommet, roughly behind the glove compartment. Zip tied to this harness, is a single wire encased in a black vinyl spiral casing, that is connected to the switch, and follows the main harness all the way into the firewall. I have a similar large harness on the drivers side also that starts down around the headlight runs up to the fuse box with more connections, and disappears into the firewall through another large rubber grommet, roughly behind the steering wheel. So it appears that these are two separate and distinct harnesses. It is heavily overcast here today, and I tried for a picture, but I don't have any decent photo equipment, I can't get anything with definition.

[bluer101 241]

Ok, I will look on mine. Thanks.