Hello, I have a 2008 vibe - 161,000 mile on her and been incredinble dependable car with minimum maintenance issues. Back in September my AC stopped work then the heater. I turn in on now and hear it clicking or whatvber that sound is. No air at all comes out. So I take it to Barsh Auto here in Texas and they did a A/C System - Evacuation and Recharge R134 for $337.00 and still no air because they said entrie unit needs replaced for $2,136.23 is there any truth to this or they just trying to make me pay some rediculus charge? I just dont get it AC before this was working good and blew cold air just fine. In novermber and december no heat would come out either. We turn it on normally and hear beleive clicking but no air comes out.
Remove & Replace Air Conditioning Evaporator Core
$2,136.23
I want to beleive its a fuse or relay somewhere noway it feels like entire system needs replaced. Any similar experiences or any help is very much appreciated.
2008 Pontiac Vibe AC issues
Re: 2008 Pontiac Vibe AC issues
Do a little research reading:
Pontiac Vibe recirculation actuator clicking noise or
Pontiac Vibe blend door actuator problem.
That may lead you to the source of your HVAC problem.
Pontiac Vibe recirculation actuator clicking noise or
Pontiac Vibe blend door actuator problem.
That may lead you to the source of your HVAC problem.
06 AWD/Abyss Black Mono/Loaded/Spoilers/Ground effects/172k/ 2025 Vibestock "Most Bling" Award
06 AWD/Lava Red Mono/Loaded/Spoilers/Ground effects/Leather/150k
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06 AWD/Lava Red Mono/Loaded/Spoilers/Ground effects/Leather/150k
05 Base/ Lava Red/ Daughters Car
06 Base/Gray/Totaled 5-24
03 Base/White/Totaled 1-23
Re: 2008 Pontiac Vibe AC issues
one problem with posting in multiple threads is that replies can get scattered
First, the AC stopped blowing cold. Then later it stopped blowing any air at all. You need to solve the no air flow issue first before looking at the no cold air.
No air flow at all could be several things.
There is a Heater fuse in the unpleasant to access under dash fuse block, and there is a heater relay in a hidden relay block above the glove box. See pictures in viewtopic.php?t=47601 If you're lucky, perhaps the heater relay has jiggled itself loose and you can reach up around to push it back in.
There is a blower motor resistor that is used when selecting different fan speeds, but the key feature of the circuit is that the resistor doesn't matter when the fan speed is set to the highest setting. If you get no air when the fan speed is set to the highest, it doesn't necessarily mean that the resistor is good, but it does mean that there is some other more fundamental problem.
People here have experienced blower motor failures. Sometimes whacking the blower motor can get it start working again temporarily, sometimes not.
You said that you get no air flow, but can you tell if the blower motor is running at all? Might be easier to hear if the key is in the ON position but the engine is not running. If the blower motor is running but you get no air flow, then you might have some debris clogging the flow.
There's a cheap plastic gear in the mechanism that switches between fresh air and recirculate, and when a few gear teeth get stripped, then the mechanism will catch, slip, catch, slip making a thump or loud click repeatedly, and the usual way to see if that's happening is to switch between fresh and recirculate and see if it has stops in one position or another
A problem with the HEATER fuse or relay would also affect the AC, so you need to get the blower working first.
No cold air could be due to refrigerant loss from a leak in the system. It's also not rare here to hear about the magnetic clutch on the air compressor failed. There's a bunch of threads hereabout how to test the AC clutch, when I've got more time I'll see if I can find a good one.
Its only March, but if you're in Houston, you're gonna need that AC sooner rather than later, so I hope you can get it fixed. And for way under $2k for sure.
There could be multiple things going wrong, and I'd investigate each before paying $2Khoustonbrewer wrote: ↑Sun Mar 08, 2026 6:12 pm Hello, I have a 2008 vibe - 161,000 mile on her and been incredible dependable car with minimum maintenance issues. Back in September my AC stopped work then the heater. I turn in on now and hear it clicking or whatever that sound is. No air at all comes out. So I take it to Barsh Auto here in Texas and they did a A/C System - Evacuation and Recharge R134 for $337.00 and still no air because they said entire unit needs replaced for $2,136.23 is there any truth to this or they just trying to make me pay some ridiculous charge? I just dont get it AC before this was working good and blew cold air just fine. In november and december no heat would come out either. We turn it on normally and hear believe clicking but no air comes out.
Remove & Replace Air Conditioning Evaporator Core
$2,136.23
I want to believe its a fuse or relay somewhere noway it feels like entire system needs replaced. Any similar experiences or any help is very much appreciated.
First, the AC stopped blowing cold. Then later it stopped blowing any air at all. You need to solve the no air flow issue first before looking at the no cold air.
No air flow at all could be several things.
There is a Heater fuse in the unpleasant to access under dash fuse block, and there is a heater relay in a hidden relay block above the glove box. See pictures in viewtopic.php?t=47601 If you're lucky, perhaps the heater relay has jiggled itself loose and you can reach up around to push it back in.
There is a blower motor resistor that is used when selecting different fan speeds, but the key feature of the circuit is that the resistor doesn't matter when the fan speed is set to the highest setting. If you get no air when the fan speed is set to the highest, it doesn't necessarily mean that the resistor is good, but it does mean that there is some other more fundamental problem.
People here have experienced blower motor failures. Sometimes whacking the blower motor can get it start working again temporarily, sometimes not.
You said that you get no air flow, but can you tell if the blower motor is running at all? Might be easier to hear if the key is in the ON position but the engine is not running. If the blower motor is running but you get no air flow, then you might have some debris clogging the flow.
There's a cheap plastic gear in the mechanism that switches between fresh air and recirculate, and when a few gear teeth get stripped, then the mechanism will catch, slip, catch, slip making a thump or loud click repeatedly, and the usual way to see if that's happening is to switch between fresh and recirculate and see if it has stops in one position or another
A problem with the HEATER fuse or relay would also affect the AC, so you need to get the blower working first.
No cold air could be due to refrigerant loss from a leak in the system. It's also not rare here to hear about the magnetic clutch on the air compressor failed. There's a bunch of threads hereabout how to test the AC clutch, when I've got more time I'll see if I can find a good one.
Its only March, but if you're in Houston, you're gonna need that AC sooner rather than later, so I hope you can get it fixed. And for way under $2k for sure.