The air conditioning system has gone out four times and was recently fixed and again today it is blowing hot air,

Asked by Linda Apr 05, 2015 at 12:28 PM about the 2013 Chevrolet Sonic LS Sedan FWD

Question type: General

I bought the 2013 vehicle new and in cash.  I paid over 19 K for it and the air conditioning
system has been repaired four (4) times, each time the car was kept for over a week.  
Today a very hot day in Florida, and it is AGAIN, blowing out hot air.  Any suggestions, at
this point I don't want the car.

52 Answers

440

We live in texas and purchased 2013 brand new it too has done this 5 times dealer never witnessed it

10 people found this helpful.
440

Our trouble is the snow flake ac button will flash then blows hot air but it dosent do it all time .

21 people found this helpful.
440

Frontera_792 did u finally find out why your 2013 ac done this ours is doing it to

13 people found this helpful.
270

Mine is also doing this. It will not work and then 5 miles down the road starts blowing cool. Sometimes it is hot and never cools. Sometimes very cold from the get go.

27 people found this helpful.
190

I have a 2013 Chevy sonic as well. The condenser, and compressor has been changed out. I'm still having problems with it not staying cold!

19 people found this helpful.
710

Unplug the battery for at least 5 minutes it will work again right after you plug back on.

50 people found this helpful.
710

Unplog the battery for at least 5 minutes , this will allow the central unit to reset. Air condition will work again.

21 people found this helpful.
210

to Francesco1960: Why after resetting the central unit then the A/C works again ?

21 people found this helpful.
100

I too have a 2013 Chevy Sonic and my a/c keeps having issues. And it's super frustrating living in the California desert but recently got mail saying there is a recall on my car so I would take it to a dealership and ask about recalls if your car qualifies for them and if the a/c .is part of the recalls

10 people found this helpful.
120

No ac this afternoon I read a suggestion to unplug the battery It worked Thanks

12 people found this helpful.
290

Disconnect your negative cable for 5 minutes. It should start working after you plug it back in.

3 people found this helpful.
80

Son has a 2012 that's blowing hot air. Took it to Firestone and they want over $800 to replace the compressor/clutch. I told him to try this to see if it works first. Crossing fingers!

6 people found this helpful.
400

Can someone please explain why diconnecting the battery fixes the ac? I have the same issue with my 2012 sonic and I’d like to not have to keep disconnecting my battery every day. Would like to resolve this.

32 people found this helpful.
110

My 2014 chevy sonic ltz I bought It new and the ac keeps goin out any suggestions to help

11 people found this helpful.
400

Razorback, Yes I do nearly every day. I also noticed that the air blows cold when I try to adjust temp.

3 people found this helpful.
120

Try tapping on the air conditioner cycling switch. If it works after tapping it, replace it. One other thing is unplug the wire and plug it back up, to see if it kicks on. Unplugging battery is temporary fix, it will continue if the problem is not fixed.

12 people found this helpful.
100

Bought my Sonic brand new in 2013. Every summer (except 2017) I've had to have the a/c fixed. I've spent at least $1000 fixing it. It sounds like this is common and needs to be a recall.

10 people found this helpful.
180

GuruTWTCB Where is ac cycling switch and what wire to unplug?

18 people found this helpful.
40

2014 sonic - have had the AC sensor replaced twice now. Am i going to have to replace this every summer in florida? This is ridiculous

4 people found this helpful.
120

I have a 2015 still paying for it now A/C blowing hot air and I live in Miami Fl. Took it to dealer they told me they will charge $165 just to inspect and find what is the issue car is 29,253 miles and they told me my guarantee expired on January. Why is there are so many cars with this issue Chevrolet doesn’t take responsibilities over this matter and treat it as a recall? I think we all should send messages to Chevy headquarters this is rediculus besides the fact I was lied at purchase day they told me the car had bumper to bumper guarantee for the length of the payment life of the car which will be over in 2022. I never had issues with Toyota!

12 people found this helpful.
200

I have a 2014 and It is dong the same thing got it out of the shop they replaced the instrument panel, the ambient temp sensor, and the compressor and still my ac keeps going out. The battery trick works but why is the ac doing this?

8 people found this helpful.
260

Hey guys mechanic here at meineke in fort Worth Texas you needs to replace the thermostat it's telling the central control to cut off your a/c so it does not over heat it's expensive to replace but it will fix your problem

23 people found this helpful.
60

I've had my Chevy Sonic 2016's air conditioning go twice on me. The issue surprisingly was a aluminum hose/line that has snapped on both occasions. So basically the fluid that they put in just doesnt stay in. So theres nothing to charge the system or keep it cold.

6 people found this helpful.
40

I have a 2015 Chevy sonic, that this happened to, my AC started blowing hot air, took it to the dealer and it was my air heater hose that had broken, cost me $38 to fix it, haven’t had a problem since, now I just need to recharge my system, It is not blowing cold enough for me

4 people found this helpful.
10

where can I purchase a Intake Manifold Runner Control Valve Actuator Solenoid Linkage

1 people found this helpful.
50

My a/c just stopped working Friday in my 2012 Sonic. First time it has ever happened. It happened like 2 miles after I hit 70,000 miles. I took it in and I think they said it was a sensor and the relay switch or something. It worked great for 3 days and stopped again :(

5 people found this helpful.
80

Just happened to me, heads up. Check your 40 amp fuse next to the relays. Fuse mapping is incorrect. Mine was blown and after research that’s affecting the overall thermal system. Replace that and it worked. This is probably a temp fix but I don’t see any issues with my condenser fan nor my thermostat. Will try to update if needed.

8 people found this helpful.
50

Have a 2012 sonic. Ac stopped working and engine light came on. I unhooked the negative battery cable for a couple minutes and the ac works and cheeck engine light is gone. What's causing this?

5 people found this helpful.
290

We never did find a solution, and we no longer have the car

4 people found this helpful.
30

I need help. My Chevrolet Sonic 2014 is not working well. The mechanic told me to reprogram the battery with the car so the AC start working, but nothing. I don't want to unplug the battery all day so the AC work. So please help me find another solution to fix it.

3 people found this helpful.
60

I have the same issue with my Chevy 2015 sonic,is happening to me 3 time for almost 1 year the heaters is blowing cold air,any time I go for service there saying something different,like is not related with the first issue. Why Chevy is not calling as a recall? looks like every one has problem with AC/Heaters.

6 people found this helpful.
40

Well guys u r okay, I have a 2017soniclt ,and it does the same,I'm tired of disconnecting my battery. But will change my thermostat, will let you know if it works. Have changed the reylays but still the same problem.

4 people found this helpful.
30

My AC hasn’t worked in my 2013 Sonic since the day I got it. My husband direct wired the ac compressor to the battery and it worked. That’s a temp fix bc the ac compressor ran constantly which eventually tore it up. We bought a new compressor and my dad who owns a transmission shop replaced the compressor for me. It still didn’t work after charging the system and everything. So he direct wired it for me again and said to take it to the dealer ASAP. On the way home it tore up the brand new compressor. This was at the beginning of fall last year so I’m about to take it to the dealership Tuesday. I have a warranty for my compressor so that will be free but I’m worried that they will say it’s something with my computer. I don’t know why Chevy hasn’t recalled this problem. So many owners of Sonics have this issue. It’s ridiculous! Hoping this doesn’t end up costing us thousands.

3 people found this helpful.
20

Temperature switch. Remove glove box and adjust wires to the switch

1 people found this helpful.
40

AC issues constantly. Two compressors and all the above fixes. This time figured it out. The main electrical connector replaced.

4 people found this helpful.
400

Guys, I changed my thermostat and fixed my AC issue! Also fixed my heat! No codes, just ac and heat not working. A $70 thermostat I replaced myself! Had this issue for a year before I figured it out. Was disconnecting my battery every time the AC cut out to get it to work again. When winter came my heat was not getting hot enough. If you’re having this issue, check the thermostat! Or just replace it like I did! Videos on YouTube show how to do the repair yourself.

5 people found this helpful.
30

Griff996, I have a customer with this same issue. 6 Days later has the thermostat fix still been the solution? AC still blowing cold? My customer has a 2016 sonic with no power getting to the ac clutch. All relays and fuses are good. wires are intact. pressures are accurate with freon.

1 people found this helpful.
30

Also, there are over 1739 TSB's issued for the sonic. WOW.

2 people found this helpful.
170

I'm working on a 2017 Sonic 1.8L A/C compressor will not kick on. I've tested the system, it will work and blow cold air if I power up the compressor. The instrument cluster has a code for Ambient Air temperature sensor. Replaced it. Reads normal when I look at the data through the Power-train control module. But when I go through the instrument cluster (where the Ambient temp code exist) the data reads 25F when the actual temp is 85F. Also the compressor is not being commanded on by the PCM. Still digging for a solution. I'll keep you posted.

11 people found this helpful.
30

Pinappple tech I have a 2017 sonic 1.4 n I’ve replaced the coolant fan assy n nothing I replaced both coolant temp sensors n nothing I replaced all the relays and fuses n nothing . All of a sudden my cluster went blank n my a/c started working ??? Then i disconnected the negative n cluster came back on but now the a/c not working ?????? WTF I was told if battery isn’t at least 12.5 on a load it isn’t strong enough to kick on compressor so I’m buying a batter since mine tested bad also will be replacing thermostat if that doesn’t work will keep all you posted

3 people found this helpful.
10

The original OEM compressor has been discontinued by GM.

1 people found this helpful.

i replaced my ambient temperature sensor and reset the system by disconnecting the batter for 5 min - chevy sonic 2016 older version.

170

AC is working now! Wire harness was damaged at front bumper causing a incorrect reading for the Ambient Air Temp sensor. Wires pulled out of connector. The AC will not work if the ambient air temp is not working correctly! Here are some pics of the damaged wire harness, I believe it was damaged due to a front end collision,

4 people found this helpful.
20

My air in my 2013 Chevy Sonic Turbo LT Hatchback went out just a couple days ago. It's blowing super hot air, and that isn't working for me with this Arkansas heat. I have added Freon and nothing helps. (Which is weird because last month when I added Freon, it worked immediately.) I tried to unplug the battery for five minutes like the above posts state, but that did nothing. Any suggestions will help. Planning on buying a new thermostat tomorrow, will update if it works.

2 people found this helpful.
20

I was having this same issue with the AC compressor not kicking on. Disconnected the battery and reconnected...compressor kicks on like normal. Then, I noticed a couple of times when I went to start the car, it was slow cranking...few days later, I come out on the morning and the battery was completely dead...so much so, jump starting wouldn’t start it after leaving it connected to the jump car for 15 minutes...cleaned the terminals real good and managed to get it to start...took it to Autozone and they checked the battery...it was bad...replaced battery and no more AC issues. I’m no mechanic, but it appears that if your battery is on the way out, and the voltage happens to fluctuate, the PCM won’t let the compressor clutch kick on. I was also throwing a couple different codes before the battery was replaced. One was for coolant temp too low, the other was crankshaft position sensor...it would appear the failing battery caused those too. GET YOUR BATTERY CHECKED AND REPLACE IT IF ITS BAD. That seems to cause a whole lot of computer problems.

2 people found this helpful.
20

I have a Chevy sonic as well (like new) just bought it not even 5 months ago and out of nowhere the a/c just started blowing hot air... I’ve tried recharging it but I also noticed when I checked under the hood, when I turned the a/c on the fan was not moving at all...idk that much about it but I’ve been told it’s either that a leak or to be reacharged again... I’m desperate... my car is all black and it’s been so hot out please if anyone has any suggestions plz help!!!

2 people found this helpful.

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