What does an air conditioning condenser do?
The condenser sits at the front of the radiator and is an integral part of your air conditioning (AC) system. It converts the refrigerant gas into a cold liquid to provide chilled air throughout your vehicle, to keep you and your passengers at a comfortable temperature on a hot day.
How often should a condenser need replacing?
A well-maintained and properly serviced condenser should last as long as your car will. However, as with all vehicle components, they’re prone to wear and tear, and leakage and blockage can create irreparable damage.
The law, vehicle regulations and your MOT
A faulty air conditioner won’t affect your car’s MOT but it can affect the comfort of you and your passengers. It’s worth keeping your air conditioning running at its optimum performance as the impact it can have on your vehicle’s fuel efficiency could significantly affect the day-to-day cost of your motoring.
What causes an AC condenser to stop working correctly?
There are a variety of reasons your **AC condenser **could need replacing. It could be that the fan has stopped functioning correctly, or that the condenser has developed a leak or blockage somewhere. It may be because it has become clogged by refrigerant contaminated with unwanted elements, infiltrating it from other parts of the system.
It’s also possible that objects being thrown up from the road—including gravel, litter and other debris—could cause damage to interfere with your condenser’s correct operation.
Symptoms of a malfunctioning AC condenser
Your air con isn’t as cold as normal or not working at all
Your condenser could have stopped working correctly if you notice that the air conditioning in your car isn’t providing the usual levels of cold air as normal, or if it isn’t working at all.
You can hear a ticking sound or see liquid
A ticking sound from your engine or areas of liquid leaking around the air conditioning unit are signs that your condenser could be malfunctioning.
Your fuel consumption isn’t as high as normal
A malfunctioning condenser could also affect your fuel consumption, so if you notice that you’re not achieving your usual mpg, it could be time to have your condenser checked out.
Seat
Seat S.A. is a Spanish automobile manufacturer, founded over 65 years ago in 1950.
In 1986, the German Volkswagen Group bought Seat from the Spanish government to become the owner and operator of this established marque.
How popular is Seat in the United Kingdom?
Since the VW takeover, the number of Seat cars on the roads in the UK has grown steadily to over 500k.
Marketing similar cars to different markets
Although the structure and engineering behind all of the Volkswagen Group’s cars are closely related, based on very similar systems and practices, VW has aimed Seat at a market that offers something a bit different to Audi and VW.
Seat: Affordable, youthful versions of established models
Given that the brands under the VW umbrella (not forgetting Skoda too) all carry similar architecture, what sets the Seat models apart from their counterparts is their character, price-point and their ability to deliver slightly sportier handling due to their tuning. When you think of Seat, you think fun. VW: solid. Skoda: value. And Audi is for the executive.
So despite all being very similar machines under the hood, VW has created each of them to sit in quite different marketplaces. The Leon, for example, will appeal to a different type of driver to the Octavia or the Golf (and the Audi A3) despite being almost the same car. The same goes for the Ibiza, the Arona and the rest of the models in the Seat range.
Seat’s reliability and reputation
Seat ranked 10th place out of 30 car brands in the What Car? Reliability Survey in 2018.
Pitted against the other makes under the VW umbrella, it was Skoda who ranked highest in 7th place, with VW and Audi performing less admirably at 17th and 20th respectively.
Recent Seat recalls and reliability issues
Various recalls have been made on Seat models throughout their motoring history. The following are a list of the most recent in the UK and Europe.
26/04/2019 – Seat Ateca (2018)
The locking pin for securing the head restraints may be missing from the central rear seat
13/04/2019 – Seat Ibiza and Seat Arona (2016–2018)
Due to an incorrect setting, the handbrake may have to travel further to ensure immobilisation
17/02/2019 – Seat Ateca (2018)
The fitting of the headrest in the rear seat’s backrest may be defective
24/08/2018 – Seat Ibiza TGI-CNG (2018)
The nuts of the gas pipes may not be sufficiently tightened, causing a leak of gas
27/07/2018 – Seat Ibiza and Seat Arona (2018)
The seat-belt buckles may open unexpectedly
23/03/2018 – Seat Alhambra, Seat Ibiza, Seat Leon and Seat Altea (2011)
The spring on the starter relay may remain in the wrong position
04/03/2018 – Seat Alhambra (2016–2017)
The passenger airbag module may have been produced with an inadequate welded connection
04/03/2018 – Seat Leon (2014–2015)
In the event of deployment of the passenger airbag, the casing of the gas generator could be damaged
All recall information sourced from gov.co.uk data.
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