I recently (Feb. 07) purchased an 06 xlt that was used but only had 4k miles on it. The pickup now has about 7700 miles on it and the a/c does not seem to be as cold as it should be. It seems to take quite a while before it blows out even cool air and then it never gets as cold as I think it should.

My last pickup was a 91 F150 and it was ice cold. Even in the dead of summer in Tucson, AZ I could have the blower on its lowest setting and be chilled. With my new pickup I have to keep the blower set on #3 to even be comfortable.

At first I thought that it was just me being too picky but I rode in my brothers 98 F150 this weekend and his is the same as my old 91. The a/c is ice cold almost immediately and once the cab is cooled off (also pretty quick) having the blower set at its lowest keeps it very comfortable.

Has anyone else had these same issues? It seems like the pickup is too new to need the a/c serviced. Is there anything that I should check before I take it to the shop? Thanks in advance to anyone who can help.

 

I have the same complaint/observation with my 05. takes a while to get cool air and even then, I have it on high and as cold as it can go and I never have to turn it down. It just never gets cold.

 

Stick a meat thermometer in one of the vents & check the temp.What you feel vs what the system outputs is not a good check. Do you have the system on recirculating cabin air or are you cooling outside air ?

 

I personally don't feel any difference between outside air or when the recirculating button is pressed. In my past cars, recirculating was essentially "max a/c" and you feel/hear the difference.

 

I have tried both and found the same thing.

I will try the meat thermometer idea and try to test it over time to see how long it takes to cool off and what temp it gets to once it cools. Any ideas of what the temp should be?

 

My '07 XLT SCab is the same way, it just does not seem to be near as cold as my wifes Camry, or my old Nissan PU...I will have to test my dad's '05 XLT when we go home in July...

 

They a sell AC thermometer at all the part stores,just like the shops use.Some of threads on here say the AC on some the new pickups is not up to the cold air they had on the older pickups.My 03 cools great,but that's my truck,some others may be not that cold.

 

If you can maintain a 20 degree temperature differential between outside & inside temps you are doing good. Here in the sunny south(HOT & HUMID) my Screw maintains the 20 degree differential.That's with stock window tinting too.

 

I have the same problem on my 05. The dealer says it's cooling normal. My question is "Normal compared to what?"

 

If you will do a search, you will find that this was a common complaint beginning with the 04s. Dealers have just said that is normal. Some got a little improvement by taking it in and getting a little more freon added to the system, but the fact is, these systems do not get as cold as the older systems and they take longer to cool off. Add that to a Screw interior and it is not too comfortable in the summer.

 

That is what I was afraid of. I have always thought of Fords having ice cold a/c but it sounds like times have changed a little.

I have had a meat thermometer stuck in my vent for the last couple of days and with it on 'Max A/C' after about 8 minutes the air coming out of the vent seems to be consitently 49-51 degrees. (This is just the vent air, the cab was obviously warmer) I tried it on my wifes 01 corolla and it was about 45 degrees but only took 5 minutes to get there. Not much difference but still a little. Anybody else tested theirs to see what temps they are getting in their vent.

Thanks to everbody for their responses.

 

Mine on a high 80 degree day will get around 52-55 when I'm driving. This is with the thermometer flush with the vent and on MAX A/C. I have not checked it at sitting but I know lately that I cannot turn the A/C off of high unless I'm going at least 30mph. If I'm on the highway it finally starts to cool ok but still not what I want. I plan on taking it in sometime and hopefully the dealer will fix it.

It's nothing like my old Ranger that could freeze you out in under 5 minutes sitting in the middle of a parking lot on a day in the high 90's.

 

Yeah Ford just didnt give this thing enough vents. Here in the Tx summer going well over 100 degrees this truck is nothing more than a moving oven. At times its actually more comftorable with the wondows down..

 

Remember,this system was designed for a regular cab truck! Anything else is more of a load. E-fans will help(more airflow) across the condensor.

 

06 scab
Mine goes from ice cold to barely cool.
I'm hoping its just freon......Texas summer requires a good A/C.
I'll try the meat thermometer to see just what kind of swing in temp I'm getting.