Hyundai Creta 1.4 CRDi A/C Compressor Failure at 91K Kms

[alanpeter2710]

Hello fellow petrol heads

On the 3rd of October 2021, while driving back to Bangalore from Tumkur on my 2016 Creta, I noticed a sudden change in cabin temperature. The air conditioning had suddenly cut off and wasn’t cooling at all anymore. With the many weather changes in Bangalore since the last few weeks and the many dug up roads, driving without A/C is almost an impossible task (at least for me). After reaching Bangalore rather uncomfortably (without a/c of course), I drove up to Trident Hyundai at Kalyan Nagar which has been my long term HASS. The service advisor there inspected the car well and told me the compressor wasn’t turning on. To my bad luck, the extended warranty of my car had expired so replacing the compressor assembly would be a complete shell out from my pocket. The service advisor told me the part was not available in stock and also advised me to try aftermarket options which could be cheaper. I took his advice and drove to Aditya Car A/C in Koramangala which has been my long term A/C repair store for my Santro. Their prices were always on the higher side but the workmanship has been excellent and even after 15 years, the Santro’s A/C cools better than expected.

Upon arrival, the proprietor Mr. Pradeep and his team inspected the car well and told me that the compressor was jammed and had failed from regular wear and tear and had mentioned that there was no leakage of refrigerant. He also disassembled the bumper to check the condenser and said that the condenser was blocked with a lot of dirt and grime which ultimately led to the compressor failing. He advised me to replace the compressor and condenser, flush out the entire system of all the grime and refill gas for the system. He quoted ₹33k but with a bit of bargaining, settled it at ₹31k. The quoted price was definitely higher by at least ₹3k than most places but knowing the workmanship of his staff, I decided to get it fixed with him itself. He promised a warranty on the compressor and sourced the original Hyundai Hanon compressor. He completed the job in about an hour and while his staff were working on the car, he mentioned to me that the AC compressor failing after 4 years wasn’t an uncommon sight and that he had replaced the compressor for an elite i20 the same morning as I got my car fixed. Apparently, that car was also a 2016 model and had the same 1.4 CRDi Diesel engine as my car. This brings me to ask a few questions to fellow forum members and I would really appreciate it if someone could shed light on this matter

1. Have any other Hyundai owners faced the issue of AC compressors failing this early?
2. Is this a common issue with all HMIL models made in 2016, or just exclusive to the 1.4 CRDi engine?
3. Would this repair on my car have been significantly cheaper anywhere else?

Enclosed a copy of the invoice

 

[allhyundaicars]

Charges seems 3-4k extra just like you said but it's better to spend if you know the guy is good. compressor costs around 18-20k.and condenser would be another 5k.
But I don't know if the condenser itself wasn't leaking then why change it ?
Did he open the dashboard and clean the evaporator coil ?

 

[alanpeter2710]

Charges seems 3-4k extra just like you said but it's better to spend if you know the guy is good. compressor costs around 18-20k.and condenser would be another 5k.
But I don't know if the condenser itself wasn't leaking then why change it ?
Did he open the dashboard and clean the evaporator coil ?

Yes the evaporator coil was cleaned. He charged me for it as well. The condenser was leaking according to him. I really don’t have any knowledge of how the air conditioning system works so I took his word for it. He did a temperature test using his thermometer and it showed 6.7 degrees C on it post all the cleaning and replacement work

 

[allhyundaicars]

Then I guess you should not worry of any ac expenses for atleast another 5 years.
The life depends on various factors and you never know when the part may fail. But yes my friends old gen i20 too had this issue which was common. But my verna's compressor is still going strong after 9 years.

 

[VISHNUCARCRAZY]

Hyundai's A/c always suffers from issues, it depends on how the ride is maintained (especially if the filters are cleaned from time to time, and preventing dust from entering through vents). I remember Hyundai changing the A/c Cabin Filter design, in one model, from mesh type to fabric type. As the mesh type requires cleaning every 2 weeks just like domestic a/c. But even fabric type, requires cleaning/replacement every 2500kms-5000kms based on my experience with swift.(I clean with compressed air every 2000-3000kms, during Free service camps/ manually), replaced at PMS(Periodic Maintenance Service).

 

[deville_56]

1. Have any other Hyundai owners faced the issue of AC compressors failing this early?

Partly yes, partly no. My friend's i20's compressor failed in 3-4 years at around 45k km. On the other hand, another friend's i20's compressor failed recently and waiting for repair and it clocked 1.4L km in 9 years. Both 2012 models and 1.4 CRDi.

 

[alanpeter2710]

Hyundai's A/c always suffers from issues, it depends on how the ride is maintained (especially if the filters are cleaned from time to time, and preventing dust from entering through vents). I remember Hyundai changing the A/c Cabin Filter design, in one model, from mesh type to fabric type. As the mesh type requires cleaning every 2 weeks just like domestic a/c. But even fabric type, requires cleaning/replacement every 2500kms-5000kms based on my experience with swift.(I clean with compressed air every 2000-3000kms, during Free service camps/ manually), replaced at PMS(Periodic Maintenance Service).

The cabin filter has always been replaced every 5-7k kms in my car. This is why the compressor failing comes to me as a big surprise. R134a has always been checked/and or topped up if required at least once a year and even though I do drive on some dirty terrain, a pressure wash for the exterior and vacuuming and mat cleaning of the car has been done regularly. Honestly thought the compressor assembly could last at least 7-8 years without conking out like this

Partly yes, partly no. My friend's i20's compressor failed in 3-4 years at around 45k km. On the other hand, another friend's i20's compressor failed recently and waiting for repair and it clocked 1.4L km in 9 years. Both 2012 models and 1.4 CRDi.

Thanks for that, the friend who clocked 1.4 lakh km was on the luckier side. Just a few questions for you
Was your friend (who’s compressor failed at 45k) under warranty during that period? Did HMIL give an explanation to him/her as to why the compressor failure occurred? Does he/she still have the car and has the new compressor held up well?

Then I guess you should not worry of any ac expenses for atleast another 5 years.
The life depends on various factors and you never know when the part may fail. But yes my friends old gen i20 too had this issue which was common. But my verna's compressor is still going strong after 9 years.

Is your Verna a 1.6 CRDi? And is your friend’s i20 a 1.4 CRDi? Trying to figure out if this issue is common with the 1.4L engine

 

[allhyundaicars]

Mine is a petrol 1.6 and friend's i20 too was a petrol.

 

[alanpeter2710]

Mine is a petrol 1.6 and friend's i20 too was a petrol.

Thanks for letting us know. Seems like the manufacturing standards for Hyundai cars are a bit inconsistent

 

[deville_56]

Was your friend (who’s compressor failed at 45k) under warranty during that period? Did HMIL give an explanation to him/her as to why the compressor failure occurred? Does he/she still have the car and has the new compressor held up well?

It was out of warranty, no extended warranty taken. Sold the car in as is condition. Thought it was just low gas as the car was relatively new, but the buyer came back stating compressor blown. No followup after that.

 

[alanpeter2710]

It was out of warranty, no extended warranty taken. Sold the car in as is condition. Thought it was just low gas as the car was relatively new, but the buyer came back stating compressor blown. No followup after that.

Thank you so much for letting us know this. Definitely seems to be inconsistent quality control while manufacturing as some compressors last much much longer than others

 

[deville_56]

Thank you so much for letting us know this. Definitely seems to be inconsistent quality control while manufacturing as some compressors last much much longer than others

I will update the cost involved when the work is done. Currently, the car is sitting idle because of this and hopefully repaired this month itself.

 

[VISHNUCARCRAZY]

@alanpeter2710 Check the part number of the compressors, in the various models(based on years ) mentioned sir! Probably, all will be having the same specification/model compressor. I think most of the cases, brands like Hyundai, Ford and all use compressors which cools cabin effectively, but durability is less- Just a wild guess, it can be even due to the usage conditions our cars are put in. We use in stop and go setups also, where these compressors won't be long lived during such usages.
My friend, in his Fiesta, always uses fan in level1, but still the cabin cools so chilled, if the Temp is in blue zone(Manual A/c). So ideally what can be done, is increase the temperature, but he keeps on switching the A/c on and off , while fan remains on always(Like cabbie guys). I don't know whether this is the right practice, he hasn't faced compressor issues, just gas top up at 70kkms.

 

[alanpeter2710]

I will update the cost involved when the work is done. Currently, the car is sitting idle because of this and hopefully repaired this month itself.

Yes would love to know the repair cost and technician’s comments on it. Thanks!

 

[alanpeter2710]

@alanpeter2710 Check the part number of the compressors, in the various models(based on years ) mentioned sir! Probably, all will be having the same specification/model compressor. I think most of the cases, brands like Hyundai, Ford and all use compressors which cools cabin effectively, but durability is less- Just a wild guess, it can be even due to the usage conditions our cars are put in. We use in stop and go setups also, where these compressors won't be long lived during such usages.
My friend, in his Fiesta, always uses fan in level1, but still the cabin cools so chilled, if the Temp is in blue zone(Manual A/c). So ideally what can be done, is increase the temperature, but he keeps on switching the A/c on and off , while fan remains on always(Like cabbie guys). I don't know whether this is the right practice, he hasn't faced compressor issues, just gas top up at 70kkms.

I agree with you completely. Some part numbers made in one particular period of time can be the faulty ones. Also the tactic of smart usage of air-con definitely helps the parts last longer. I drive a lot on highways and ghat sections so I don’t really use this practice as much as I would in the city. Thanks for the advice though!