Air conditioner -> Refrigerant pressure too high

Hello everyone,
We're experiencing an issue with my wife's Fabia 3: the air conditioning system fails when the outside temperature is high (30 degrees Celsius or more).

The climate control unit will then store the following error code:

Sure, here is the translation of the text from German to English:

"1 error found:"
262913 - Refrigerant pressure too high.
B10AC F0 [012] - Unknown error description.
Sporadically - confirmed - checked since last deletion.
Environmental conditions:
Error status: 00000001
Error priority: 2
Error frequency: 7
Lost Count: 151
Mileage: 45506 km
Date: 2020.07.30
Time: 14:03:05
Outside temperature: 31.5 °C
Motor speed: 1776 RPM.
Compressor current: Actual value: 0.360 A.
Temperature after evaporator: 10.9 °C
Refrigerant pressure: 32.2 bar.
System runtime: 222 seconds.
System runtime, terminal 15 active: 223 seconds.


Once the pressure drops again, the air conditioning system will start working again, and the error doesn't necessarily need to be explicitly cleared.

The initial thought was that there was too much refrigerant in the system. According to various tables online, there should be 500g +/- 25g. We emptied the system today, and it contained exactly 525g. They've now gone back to filling them with "only" 500g.

The second idea is a pressure sensor that occasionally malfunctions – is that realistic?

Today, on my way to the workshop, I briefly checked the system, and the refrigerant pressure was consistently between 10 and 16 bar. The temperature after the evaporator should be between 2 and 4 degrees Celsius, all while the outside temperature is approximately 24-26 degrees Celsius.
When connected to the air conditioning unit, it displayed the same pressure readings as the tester indicated.

My wife is understandably extremely frustrated with the situation, especially at this time of year, when the air conditioning should be working properly, especially for the sake of our two-year-old daughter.

I hope someone here can help me and/or give me a tip on what else I could check.

Best regards, Jochen.

Hello,

Is the radiator fan running? Always? So, even if the system shuts down?

Hello!

It's been 10 years since I took a technical training course on air conditioning systems.
I don't have much practical experience myself.

What I still remember about it:

The pressure at steady state depends only on the temperature and the vapor pressure of the refrigerant.
As long as there is still some liquid refrigerant in the system, the system pressure remains the same, regardless of whether the system is fully charged or almost empty.

I can only advise you now.
to try and locate the air conditioner's dryer.
The part is located on the front passenger side, underneath the headlight.
This is a small aluminum container, about as thick as a Red Bull can, but half as tall.
is firmly embedded in the climate system.

If the air conditioner is running, please feel the dryer with your hand.

It should have a consistent temperature.
If one side is hot and the other side is cold, it should be replaced.

Background:
Moisture diffuses into the system through the rubber hoses of the air conditioning unit.
and the dryer contains granules that absorb moisture.
Eventually, it becomes saturated and actually gets clogged.
Perhaps that is the cause of the high pressure?

I'm not sure.
But that's the simplest thing you can do yourself, and it doesn't cost any money.

Scout5e wrote:

Hello everyone, We're experiencing an issue with my wife's Fabia 3: the air conditioning system fails when the outside temperature is high (30 degrees Celsius or more).

What is the temperature below 30°C? If the air conditioner is running, please check if the pipe before the expansion valve is frosted. Then the valve is likely defective, and the sensor may detect the increasing pressure and shut down.

Hello.
"Our FABIA NJ has recently started experiencing the exact same issue with the system:"


Sure, here is the translation of the text from German to English:

"1 error found:"
262913 - Refrigerant pressure too high.
B10AC F0 [012] - Unknown error description.
Sporadically - confirmed - checked since last deletion.
Environmental conditions:
Error status: 00000001
Error priority: 2
Error frequency: 4
Lost Count: 171
Mileage: 53,351 km
Date: 2020.08.13
Time: 10:29:20

Outside temperature: 34.0 °C
Motor speed: 2607.25 RPM.
Compressor current: Actual value: 0.340 A.
Temperature after evaporator: 20.8 °C
Refrigerant pressure: 32.2 bar.
System runtime: 11 seconds.
System runtime, terminal 15 active: 253 seconds.

I have the light sensor and the outdoor temperature sensor.
expanded and checked - both OK.

When the pressure drops again, the system works perfectly.

It would be interesting to know what caused the issue further up at Scout5e...

It would be interesting to know what happened during the...

The radiator fan only runs when the AC is turned on, but it doesn't cool down the car at all.

Okay, I'm ready. Please provide the German text you want me to translate.