May be a stupid question, but...

I've noticed that on my H3 that for my AC to cool down my truck I have to hit the reciruclation button to on when I turn the AC on otherwise it jus never cools like it should. Also, when I turn the recirculation button on with the AC, I get this sweet smell, which I am assuming might be the smell of antifreeze? Is anyone else experiencing either of these issues?

yes, same here , you need to turn on both....

Recirculate means just that..It recirculates the cabin air only..so the A/C can cool faster like that..With UN-recirculate selected, you draw in all that heat from the top of your hood and raod, plus humidity...The A/C has to overcome all that heat and humidity before it can cool, so naturally it will feel weak.

If you just press the Recirculate button on with fan..it will run the compressor without pressing in on the A/C button..a GM design quirk.

Sweet smell means Anti-freeze I'm afraid..See any leaks underneath where you parked it??

Thanks for the info guys! I haven't seen anything other than the normal water under the truck after running the AC. I just started to notice the smell this past week so I will keep an eye on it and if the smell continues, I guess I will be making a trip to the dealer which is no biggie.

Is there a reason you don't leave it in recirc all the time?

I leave mine in all the time, it never leaves recirc in my vehicles. It's much less work for the A/C to keep the inside air cool than cool the outside, incoming air.

Don't forget it has been way hot in many places lately, that must be working our air-conditioners quite a bit extra......not that a sweet smell could be o.k.........keep us posted.

My AC also does not cool very well unless it's on recirculate, but that is with most cars on the road. That is a normal thing. The smell, on the other hand, isn't. If you have a very small leak (anti-freeze) it could be in the heating element that the Anti-freeze flows through which is inside and behind your dashboard. IF it is a slow leak, you wouldn't see it leaking under the vehicle, but it would accumulate under your dash on the floor or carpet on the inside behind the dash. If it IS that, and any accumulates on the heating element, it is probably evaporating when you use the AC because it is leaking into the vent somewhere. I'm no expert at it, but I would assume that is what is happening. If you know ANYBODY that is familiar with cars and maintenance, I would have them smell it. Most car fanatics know what anti-freeze smells like and can tell right away. The bad thing is that is something that would probably be labor-intensive, but would be under warranty. Like I said, I'm not an expert, but I would bet that is what it is :)

i get a sweet smell from my a/c as well but its not continuous. it comes and goes.

I called the dealership this morning and they had me bring it in. It's still there and they told me they have not even had a chance to look at it yet so I get to keep the loaner H3 overnight and knowing my experiences, I am sure they will call me tomorrow telling me they didn't find anything wrong, which would be a good thing, but also would make me wonder what and where the smell is coming from.

If they say they don't smell anything, you should probably drive around with it, and when you detect the smell, march right back in there, with the car running, and tell one of them to come inside and smell. They will know right away what it is.

What kind of H3 loaner did they give you? Anything fancy ;-)

They gave me a fully loaded victory red H3 with the luxury & chrome package. It's exactly what I have now, for the exception that mine is white. So far I am very pleased with the way I was treated at the dealership.

That's good to hear Jen...My dealer loans out Cadillacs for HUMMER service........Did that sound nasty?

Same here. My dealer is a Caddy/Hummer dealership. Obviously they have taste with the Red and Chrome combination they gave you ;-)

There are two dealerships around me which one of them like yours is A Caddy/ Hummer dealership, but where I got mine they only sell Hummers.

Has anyone been getting some nasty PM's from hummerVandelizer?

quote:

ORIGINAL: jen813

There are two dealerships around me which one of them like yours is A Caddy/ Hummer dealership, but where I got mine they only sell Hummers.

Has anyone been getting some nasty PM's from hummerVandelizer?

He has been taken care of sorry for that we got him as fast as we could.

Well I got my H3 back last night. They said they didn't find anything leaking, but they did notice the smell. They said they didn't know what it was, but they put some stuff in the vents/ducts to basically mask the smell. I am just glad to hear I didn't have a leak anywhere and now when I turn the AC on my car smells really really good. They did however break my antenna I just put on the truck (it was my second after the original) They took my truck through their carwash and it snapped, but they are placing it for me. I don't listen to the regular radio anyhow so it didn't even bother me. All in all I was happy with how I was treated on my first service experience with the H3.

It may have just been some sealer or residue from the factory that was causing the smell. I'm glad to hear you didn't have any problems. Typically Hummer dealers are pretty proactive and receptive to their customers, but once in a while you hear about one that seems like they could care less. It's unfortunate because one dealer can give an entire car company's reputation a bad name in the eyes of people who go there.

I will agree with the dealerships making or breaking imperssions to people. On the subject of the smell, I once had an Isuzu pickup that had a small leak in the heater core. It wasn't enough to make the floor wet, or show a loss in the coolant resoviar, but it was definately there. Apparently the heat from the core would cause it to evaporate before it could form droplets. When I would turn the defroster on, it was like turning on a frosting machine because all of that humid air and antifreeze would condense on the windshield and the only way to get rid of it was to turn the defroster off and wipe it off with a rag. My advice would be to keep a close eye on it and check for dampness on the carpet under the dash. Also if the floor under the dash starts to feel sticky to your hand, but no moisture, that is a sign of a heater core leak as well.

But..correct me if I'm wrong..If it was a heater core leak..wouldn't that be confined to the heater core and A/C evaporator box (one in the same area)?..If so, then any Coolant leaks from the heater core would drip out on the ground underneath where the A/C condinsate drains and not inside on the carpet?...That's why I asked her, if she noticed any residual coolant drips besides A/C water underneath...If she parks in the same place evertime, there should be signs of coolant residue after a while.

But also I heard of the same thing, about the leak being so small it evaporated before it has a chance to drip.

A lot of vehicles have all of that stuff in the passenger compartment behind the glove box. The ducts aren't water tight, so any leaks will form puddles inside on the floor.

Really?..Well Okay, thanks for clearing me up...I wasn't sure.

With the tight engine bays these days, it's hard to fit it all in so somethings have to move inside. Next time you have the hood open, look on the passenger side next to the PCM and you will see some hoses going through the fire wall. That's the coolant and ac lines. After I sent that last message, i got to thinking. The last vehicle I worked on that had them under the hood was an International Scout. I owned 2 of those things. One was a '73 and the other a '76. They were the best damned money pit I ever owned. Lots of fun, but you needed the Power Ball jackpot just to keep them running.

I took my Hummer back today to the service department because at 4000 miles, the A/C should cool down fast. I know, in Scottsdale its so hot that it is probably too hot to cool the cabin efficiently. But, I want cold. So, I took it back and they gladly took it in and are going to make it better. We will see. I also asked for an oil change. lets hope they dont screw that up.