I've heard of people running the heater in cool weather with the top down, but what about running the air conditioner in hot weather with the top down? Are there any issues with over working the compressor or anything harmful by doing it?

ORIGINAL: remoandiris

I've heard of people running the heater in cool weather with the top down, but what about running the air conditioner in hot weather with the top down? Are there any issues with over working the compressor or anything harmful by doing it?


Have been doing it for 4 years? Why would it do anything other than normal wear and tear?

In a car with the top up and the A/C set to max (only way I drive), the compressor is recycling air in the car, right? With the top down, it is sucking hot air all the time. Seems to me the compressor is working harder, but I'm not an auto or A/C mechanic, hence the reason for my query.

no, its not any harder on your car - just think about the air its sucking in anyway - the recirculation theory doesnt hold much water. its only bad to use a/c with the windows down in a car with climate control.... in our cars its just stupid, not harmful

ORIGINAL: banned

no, its not any harder on your car - just think about the air its sucking in anyway - the recirculation theory doesnt hold much water. its only bad to use a/c with the windows down in a car with climate control.... in our cars its just stupid, not harmful
Another judgemental juvenile opinion. It's stupid to make such generalizations, he said, generalizing.

I use the air with the top down in order to dry my fingers, sweaty from all the work of steering the car, blowing kisses to the chicks, flipping-off the ricers and camaros, and scratching my you-don't-want-to-know.

I'd bet using the air full-on from day one to retirement would shorten its life by maybe 20%. Most of us will never see that point in our cars' careers.

"Ill-advised", "inappropriate", "thoughtless", "non-conformist". Too long to spell, I guess.

I always ride with the A/C on and the top down and the rare times that it gets cold enough down here is Florida I turn on the heat but just the floor vents and it works great.

Never done that....[&:]

We have only had the car almost 2 weeks and the weather here in the st louis area is so unpredictable that we have done both, ran with the air top down and the heat top down...

I've only used the A/C on hot-rainy-days when the top needs to be up.

But I have used the heater with the top down on cool summer evening drives,,, never thought of using the A/C with the top down, but it shouldn't cause any problems.

The problem of using the A/C "ever" though is, it does rob a lot of horsepower in it's operation.. & I'd rather have more available power instead of being just a "slight bit cooler" on a hot day with the top downlol

Haha, a "slight" bit cooler ;)

This summer we had several 100+ degree days, and I couldn't bear the thought of having the top up, so I dropped the top and cranked the A/C up :) Problem solved!

-John

ORIGINAL: remoandiris
but what about running the air conditioner in hot weather with the top down? Are there any issues with over working the compressor or anything harmful by doing it?


Are you kidding me? The compressor is always working in any car. Its either on or off for the compressor. All it is, is basically an air compressor except its designed for compressing freon. The only difference for us convertibles is that the inside of the car never gets cold because all the cold air mixes with the hotter air. ya it will eventually wear out like the engine on your car, but just take care of the system and when you recharge the system add some oil for the compressor.

I use my a/c with the top down but only when pottering around town - on a highway run it makes more sense, to me anyway, to make sure the windows are down for full airflow.

When it's not hot enough to run the A/C when the top's down, Ijust throw a dollar bill over my shoulder every few miles.That way I can't tell the difference.

Luxurious hedonistic excess is what it is… oh yeah the American style baby Like snacking while watching your fav TV show whilst buxom blonds massage you…

Never did and I left the top down all summer. Even when it was 100 degrees, the breeze felt good, and it didn't seem that hot.

A/C on or off.... Heater on or off..... Any and every chance I get to go top down.

Running the A/C with the top down will cause premature wear on muffler bearings. Dont do it.

Muffler bearings are only a myth. Running the A/C, however, with the top down with cause excessive use of blinker fluid.

In 06 I was in Vegas in July. 118 is HOT HOT HOT. Too Hot to have the top down, and when I did, I still had the AC on blowing on my feet to keep them cool. Kind of sucked to drive the car from Washington to Vegas only to NOT be able to put the top down much.

For those of you in states where you don't need the AC (and the defroster) it's good to run the AC at least once a month for 15-20 minutes to ciculate the lubricants in the compressor. NOT running the AC for long periods of time is harder on it then using it too much - It will prevent the seals from drying out.