Camry loses significant power with ac on.

[willisgakl]

My 2000 camry loses significant power with the ac on, but not the heater. The car has always been well taken care of including new wires, plugs, oil changes on a routine basis. There isn't a check engine light on either. This loss of power has always been a problem since i bought the car four years ago but I'm tired of it by now. Any suggestions???

[willisgakl]

One more important note, it's a 2.2L engine automatic.

[Zembonez]

UH...

It's that way with just about any moderately powered 4 banger. It takes power to run the AC.

[TedL]

Originally Posted by willisgakl

My 2000 camry loses significant power with the ac on, but not the heater. The car has always been well taken care of including new wires, plugs, oil changes on a routine basis. There isn't a check engine light on either. This loss of power has always been a problem since i bought the car four years ago but I'm tired of it by now. Any suggestions???

Any objective measures, like comparative 0-60 times?

[dc_98_cam]

The service manual states that the engine RPM should be 700+/- 50 rpms with the A/C on or off.
Does this specification compare with what you are observing?

[zythr]

Originally Posted by willisgakl

My 2000 camry loses significant power with the ac on, but not the heater. The car has always been well taken care of including new wires, plugs, oil changes on a routine basis. There isn't a check engine light on either. This loss of power has always been a problem since i bought the car four years ago but I'm tired of it by now. Any suggestions???

If your idle rpm checks out, then it is probably normal. Question, though, if the car lost so much power with the AC on when you first test drove it? why did you still buy it?

[LostSouthernStar]

I own a 2001 Toyota Camry 2.2L I4 and I have the same dilemma...



Most 4 cylinder Toyota sedans experience this problem...if not all 4 cylinder automobiles.



Toyota Camrys with 4 cylinders are gutless wonders...nothing against them because I love my car, but they were designed for fuel economy, not performance.



So to answer your question, there is nothing wrong with your Camry based on the information provided...it is just the limits of our vehicles and how they were engineered and designed.



TIP: Turn off the A/C when accelerating from stops and you will see a big boost in power, BUT do be cautious turning your A/C back on while at higher speeds because it puts a ton of strain on your engine and belts, possibly even causing them to slip or snap, leading to an expensive repair bill.

ALWAYS turn your A/C on BEFORE driving away in your vehicle to reduce wear and tear on the A/C system.



Hope this helps!




-LSS

[fenixus]

yeah, I think all 4-bangers the size/weight of camry will experience the same issue, given the engine gives only what ... 136HP (with no ac turned on)? AC can easily eat up 20HP ... so that doesn't leave much for the car of such body mass.
I usually do what LSS suggested and switch the AC off before merging onto some busy highway from a (yield) ramp... it helps a lot and gives a nice kick to this car, I turn it back on later when I let the foot off gas pedal.

on the other hand, without AC the car should be quite peppy (relatively). recently I replaced the old dirty/sticky IAC valve on wife's 5s-fe and this car now feels and drives fast (with no AC), very nice! it wasn't like that for a looong time (3 years probably) ... so look into IAC as mentioned above.

on a side note, recently I noticed a big power loss with AC on even on my V6, quite stupefied about this as it wasn't the case a year ago ... perhaps I need to take a closer look at spark plugs or wires soon, only stuff I haven't touched since purchase a year ago... also wondering if old drive belts could have anything to do with it too ...

[71Corolla]

Originally Posted by fenixus

I usually do what LSS suggested and switch the AC off before merging onto some busy highway from a (yield) ramp...

The computer will turn off the compressor if the throttle goes past a certain angle. But I think that "angle" is more or less foot to the floor.

[TedL]

Originally Posted by 71Corolla

The computer will turn off the compressor if the throttle goes past a certain angle. But I think that "angle" is more or less foot to the floor.

AKA wide-open-throttle or WOT. A common standard to turn off auto a/c compressors, as it's a reliable indicator that the driver really truly wants maximum possible acceleration.

[fenixus]

yeah, LOL! I don't floor the car while merging the traffic
I guess that angle was not enough to disable the AC by ECU as only option was manually turning it off

good to know though

Originally Posted by 71Corolla

The computer will turn off the compressor if the throttle goes past a certain angle. But I think that "angle" is more or less foot to the floor.

Originally Posted by TedL

AKA wide-open-throttle or WOT. A common standard to turn off auto a/c compressors, as it's a reliable indicator that the driver really truly wants maximum possible acceleration.

[carpetguy00]

my 2 cents on the camry's ac system: loss of power aside, its the best i've come across. any 4 banger ive owned, including the ranger, lost its balls when the ac comes on. creature comforts come at a price!

My buddy that does residential a/c has a special cleaner.... its only for cleaning condensers and coils. I thought my camrys condenser was clean, but he sprayed it down... it foams out all the funk. It made a BIG diff, the air is much colder now.

"ALWAYS turn your A/C on BEFORE driving away in your vehicle to reduce wear and tear on the A/C system." -lostsouthernstar

This is how i use the a/c... fan on 3, recirculated, and it takes no time to cool off the car, even at idle. I will (with the ac button) turn off the comp when i take off, especially getting on the freeway. once up to 60mph, i click it back on. with the windows rolled up, the car is so airtight it gets rlly cold, so i will click the comp off, with the recirc fan still running, for maybe 5 minutes, till it starts to get warm, then turn it back on for 5. I believe this saves gas as opposed to simply turning the fan speed down. (if u turn the fan speed down and dont touch the a/c button, would the a/c run as much?)

tho idk if this cycling i do will wear out the system prematurely. pls chime in here... i try to be as nice as possible to her, its the best car i've ever owned. ive also bought a 94 corolla with 215k miles on it. The damn ac in it is FRIGID! being a 5speed its zippier than the cam.

one more thing... does using the a/c all or most of the time wear out the engine, etc quicker than if you never use it?

[yeahitsgottahemi]

It's normal for you to notice a power reduction when the A/C is on.... Its a big power reduction when it runs

[fenixus]

depends on how big and which engine ... V6 doesn't suffer much from AC running (unless you running it on regular fuel, then yeah it can feel weak).

5s-fe is a different beast, much weaker to start with so suffering more from AC running. however if engine is properly maintained, the power loss is not tragic, ECU simply allows the engine to spin at higher RPMs when accelerating (gear shift points get changed) to compensate for power loss caused by AC compressor.

If your car feels like a turtle when you turn the AC on, then there is something wrong, very wrong. I would start with minor tune up (new drive belts, new spark plugs and wireset, new air ad fuel filter) and clean the IAC valve through the opening in Throttle Body for starters, then go from there.

Originally Posted by yeahitsgottahemi

It's normal for you to notice a power reduction when the A/C is on.... Its a big power reduction when it runs