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How a simple AC problem on my Polo TDI turns out to be much more

I spent Rs 30,000 to get the issue resolved and also learnt my lesson.

BHPian Thad E Ginathom recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

AC failure turns out to be more

About a month ago, my AC stopped working. I called an auto-AC specialist recommended by Ignite Raghav, who suggested that, as the gas had never been filled or topped up, we start by simply doing that.

The AC worked for a while, then started to become unreliable: it would work for half an hour. This time, the AC man said it must go to his workshop for a full check-up.

I tried to put up with the discomfort, as I am using the car daily, but, thankfully, the Chennai temperatures rose and made me get on with getting this fixed. AC guy came to the house and found that the coolant reservoir was pretty much empty!

Shock, horror and shame: I just never check it. Since sealed coolant systems became a thing, decades ago, and radiator caps became not-a-thing, it is something I don't take much notice of unless going out of town. Or when I add the windscreen washer fluid/water.

AC mechanic took the car away. Diagnosed a leaking oil cooler. He delivered the car to Raghav.

To cut a long story short, I am now 30k poorer. But, at least, with an oil/filter change (water was mixed) and a couple of etcs, it counts as a service, albeit a few months early.

They did not suggest doing anything else, so suspension parts, engine mounts, etc, are still on hold for another year.

The lesson is to always check one's vital fluids. I don't know how long I had, but at some time, the car would have become scrap.

BTW: a friend lent me an i20. It was nice to drive a different car for the first time in years. The relative silence of petrol was pleasant. It felt quite poky to drive, but the telling moment came when I changed to 2nd and put my foot down to clear a signal while green and... nothing much happened. I like my GT TDI!

(But I now have signals/wiper dyslexia. Utterly confused by the brief switch to signals-on-right.)

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