One part of your car that is frustrating to have break down is the air conditioner. While it is not an essential part of your vehicle, it is definitely something that makes driving in the summer more enjoyable. It helps to know some common reasons why air conditions break down in vehicles so that you can know what to look for. 

Blown Fuse or Relay That Needs Replacement

The easiest problem to fix is if you have a fuse or relay that is blown and in need of replacement. You may not think to check your fuse panel, but checking the fuse that belongs to the air conditioner can save you a lot of trouble if all you need to do is replace it with a new one. The same can be said of testing the relay for the air conditioner, which is a simple and cheap replacement. 

Low Refrigerant 

Another common problem is not having enough refrigerant in the air conditioner system. You can put in more refrigerant to see if that fixes the problem, and if the refrigerant becomes low again, then you know that you have a leak somewhere that needs to be found and repaired. Your local auto parts store should have the necessary tool to measure the refrigerant levels in the air conditioner as well as the proper refrigerant to add to your vehicle.

Bad Electrical Connection

Your vehicle's air conditioner runs partially with electricity, and if the air conditioner has a bad electrical connection, it will stop working. It's possible to test the problem with a multimeter to verify that all electrical connections are getting the proper voltage that is necessary, and if it is not, then you'll need to have the electrical connection fixed.

Broken Belt

Your air conditioner has belts that allow parts of the compressor to turn and keep it operating when in use. If the belts become damaged and break, your air conditioner will stop running completely and start producing warm air. You'll need to have the broken belts replaced to get things running again. 

Damaged AC Compressor Clutch

You likely hope that you do not have a damaged AC compressor clutch since there are many things that can go wrong with it that will require repair. For example, the compressor clutch can seize up, which will cause the air conditioner to run continuously. The compressor clutch can also break, which will not allow the air conditioner to start up at all. Go online to websites like http://www.autorepairhighdesert.com/ for more information about auto repairs.