Hello,
I posted in the intro forum, and have posted here several times before, but didnt have that email anymore. I tried to reset the password but I forgot my user.

Anyways...I have successfully removed my radiator/condenser on my G35 (07 base auto sedan VQ35HR). Being a freaking cheappo and not really understanding the risk factor, I purchased a used radiator from salvage yard with 33k miles on it. When I finally got it, I didnn't know what to expect, but I noticed it was dirty and not sealed off on the AC ports.

I called them back and a radiator shop and they both said try to use some high pressure air thru the lines to remove any dirt. So I did. It was not too bad but some dirt came out. I installed, and the radiator was no longer leaking (my old one was in crash) but now my ac didnt work. I changed the drier, but no matter what no cold air. It seemed as thought the passenger side started to get colder, but nothing like it was. So I took to a dedicated AC repair shop in St. Louis. The gentleman said it was likely clogged, and hooked a machine to it, said it was pulling 10lbs vacuum so it was clogged somewhere. Since I replaced the drier, it was likely the condenser he said.

My question, how come I could get a little cold air from the passenger side, not driver. Is this conclusive of anything? He gave me an answer that maybe the condesner was not as clogged on that side, but I have asked alot of people questions and instead of getting "I don't know", they usually give me a thoughtful guess. I have never done this type of repair, so I was wondering what you guys thought. I know there is alot more collective knowledge here compared to basic mechanics sometimes.

 

The driver and passenger side use the same source for cold air. The blower sends cold air through the vents. Did you recharge the AC system after installing the new AC system?

 

I had an AC guy evacuate the lines and vaccuum them. It only took 15 minutes of "vaccumming", but then he proceeded to full it with freon. After 15 minutes of that he said there was a problem that he was not getting enough PSI. So it was recharged by a guy that had been working exclusively on AC's, but I was unsure if there was some specific infiniti trick to refill that he did not know about.

I do not want to pull the radiator/condenser again, but at least I can do it quickly now if I have too.

Thank you for your reply DEMO. He said some valve could be the culprite but since my system was cooling perfectly before the radiator was removed, he is convinced its the condenser. I used an air hose on it before installing to clean any debris out of the unit before, but he said that usually will not work. I told him I got air thru the other side, so it was not "clogged completely", but he said just one fin clogged up will compromise the condensor.

 

If anyone remembers, this is the same car that was stolen and found in St. Louis. The neighbors where it was found said the car had been running for 22 straight in the middle of summer!

I think the rad leak I had was from a lady that cut me off three times before we collided. I was certain after the second time that driving in the middle of the road between the concrete median and yellow line I would avoid collision. Nope, she decided to do bust a u-turn in the middle of a 4 lane highway.

 

The only reason i can think of that it would only cool on passenger side is the expansion valve may be clogged. So maybe its letting enough through to cool just a section of of evaporator core. Its possible that since the blower is on the passenger side the air is just warming back up by the time it reaches the driver side but since it only travels a short distance on passenger side its still slightly cooled?
Just a half educated guess haha