Air conditioning barely working

[HPsauce]

You just don't notice until the weather gets hot!
I suspect that at the very least it needs a re-gas, the last time it had that was at A8parts several years ago during an annual meet! It took quite a while...

But what specific guidance do I need in terms of where to get this done and what they need to know?

[Ronin]

There is just one fill port thats accesible and everything can be done through it. Most cars have 2 and most mechanics have only seen cars with 2.

[HPsauce]

That sounds very familiar, thanks.

[HPsauce]

Next question from the untrained - where is the fill port and what needs to be removed to get at it?

Edit: Looking around I found something that "might" be it under the scuttle panel between the air intake box and ECU box.
Looks really awkward to get at though, or is there a trick to it?

Is this it, the out of focus knurled grey knob visible just above the screw, lowish centre right?

AirconPort.jpeg

[MikkiJayne]

Thats the low side port and is unusable, partly because its impossible to reach and mostly because its a unique fitting which no one has in the UK. Fill from the high side on the condenser only. I just posted a bit more about this in Lancia2000's thread

[HPsauce]

Thanks MJ, where is that exactly, or would a garage know where to look?
And what if anything needs removing to comfortably get at it?

[MikkiJayne]

The high side port is on the condenser in front of the radiator, left side looking at it. You don't need to remove anything other than the cap

[HPsauce]

Sorry, being an unobservant dimwit, looking inside the engine bay!
This is it very obviously:

AirConHigh.jpeg

[HPsauce]

Just wondering, is their anything I can check using VCDS to diagnose/confirm what is going on?

Just had a quick rummage and there's loads of stuff about flaps, vents and temperature sensors, all of which seems to be okay (not that I'm an expert) and there are no fault codes. BUT there doesn't seem to be any monitoring of the cooling system, or am I missing something?

[MikkiJayne]

The engine cooling on the D2 is simply switches and relays. Nothing to report any fault codes unfortunately. The AC pressure switch is also just that, not a pressure sensor, so the hvac unit has no idea how much gas is in the system. As long as its more than none, it'll run.

Simple test - is the compressor turning on with the AC? You can see the hub spinning if it is, try econ mode so you can see what it's like when its not spinning. If it is turning on, are the pipes up behind the coolant expansion tank cold and covered in condensation? If its low on gas, those will just be a bit less than ambient.