My A/C has been acting up for nearly a year. Started out it would work fine at first but if I parked for a half-hour or so, the compressor would not start and it blew ambient air for ten minutes then the compressor would start again. Last summer, I had the dealer check the system pressure, they did an evac/fill and claimed it was a half-pound low. System holds only 1.3 pounds so that was a lot. That worked for about two weeks then it started acting up again. Had dealer look again and they couldn't replicate the problem. Typical.

Discovered a new mechanic and while he was installing my swaybars, I found out he can work on A/C too. Had him evac and refill the system, he said is a quarter-pound light. He added flourescent dye for discovering leaks. Again, the system worked for a few days then began same old poop. He checked for leaks a month later but found nothing under the hood. He said the next step was to look behind the dash for leaks around the exchanger. But first I was to get a labor quote from the dealer ($900). He quoted $700 but demanded I obtain an FSM first, so between that and the onset of cooler weather, I put this on the back burner.

March of this year, I'm talking with my mech and we decided that since the compressor will start and blow cold air, maybe the control panel might be the problem. I got one from our classifieds for a paltry thirty bucks shipped. I had it installed today and HUZZAH!!!, A/C is working again.

Take away from this rambling? If the car isn't leaking (much), consider the control panel before dropping big bucks on a compressor.