I found a few threads on 550 a/c compressor problems, but nothing specifically on this issue, affecting my '02 575 F1 (RHD): The weather has recently gotten very warm and humid (about 85 degrees F and 90% humidity) and the last 2 times I have taken the car for a drive--with the a/c on--there has been condensed water dribbling onto my (left) foot (RHD car) from the lower a/c vent. This only happens when I go around tight corners at speed, but the amount of water is pretty significant. At first I didn't worry about it too much, as I figured it would go away if I turned the a/c to the highest heat setting and dried out the innards of the system. I tried that for about 30 minutes, which wasn't too pleasant given the weather, but there was still a lot of water coming out. I am a bit worried about water collecting where I can't get at it, causing corrosion, mold, electrical problems, etc. Just to be clear, the a/c itself works fine, blows very cold, etc. Any advice?
Robie- Water condenses in the evaporator unit and then drains out through pipes or hoses fitted to the bottom (normally) of the evaporator unit and exiting to the ground below. It sounds like those hoses/pipes have become clogged and need to be cleaned out, a fairly simple job on most cars. A contributing factor could be a filter/dryer that needs changing. Recommended change interval by Ferrari for the filter/dryer and refrigerant is two years, although this is probably overkill. If your fliter/dryer is over five years old, though, it and the refrigerant should probably be changed and after that only the refrigerant changed at two year intervals. These are the evaporator condensate hoses, one for each side of the evaporator unit. Number 29 is the replacement unit and it appears all drain to a single hose. Likely your pipes or connectors and possibly the drivers side vent require cleaning of something clogging the outlet system. The more humid the conditions, the more condensate/water the evaporator generates and the heavier the load on the drain/vent system. Here in the high desert (6000' at my house, 14% summer humidity), we see very little water draining. Not the same for the American South or UK. Any pros chime in if I got this fouled up, but it is pretty basic automitive air conditioning 101 and I serviced my own in the good old days when venting Freon was not considered such a big deal. Taz Terry Phillips Image Unavailable, Please Login
Correct in every way about the drain hoses. They sometimes get kinked or crushed during work on or in the console especially if any panels have been removed or stereo work being done. The dryer/filter only dries the water inside the freon system to prevent any water particles from freezing and clogging the system. It will not address external condensation.
Thanks, guys. I will check the hoses, as they might have been damaged when I had some work done recently. In the meantime, would using the "recirculate" function on the a/c help minimize water condensation?
