Scotty and moderators, I have a couple questions about my '14 Fiat 500L with the 6 speed manual gearbox. I have almost 57,000 miles on it and I was wondering if I should have the transmission fluid changed when I hit 60,000. my owner's manual doesn't have a maintenance log listed for the transmission but I've always seen Scotty mention on youtube that sealed transmissions should still have fluid changed. Also, I'm having an issue with my air conditioning system. I'm having a temperature fluctuation problem even after recharging the system and am wondering if it's the condenser, compressor or something else. Any assistance would be sincerely be appreciated.
You will get better answers if you split this set of questions into two questions 🙂
i bought a can of the sub zero refrigerant with an analog gauge (i can't really afford to have anyone look at it). I'll have to look how to evacuate it and see if some place around here does free system testing.
That stuff can be toxic to your AC system. The idea that one can just hook up a $25-$30 can of stuff that only has a low-side gauge and fix a malfunctioning AC system with it is pure fiction, right up there with engine rebuild in a can. Maybe some people get away with it but it's all too easy to make things worse using such shortcuts.
To stay legal the refrigerant would need to be evacuated into a recovery system, not released into the air. For most people that means taking the vehicle to a shop. The shop does not have to work on anything, just do the refrigerant recovery, so it shouldn't cost a whole lot. Before doing this you could check system pressures with a manifold gauge set to get a better idea of what's going on. There are inexpensive (under $50) gauge sets available that are good enough for home use, or a parts store may loan one out to you.
If you decide to take the car to a shop to have your AC system tested stay away from dealers and stay away from chain shops and quick lube joints that claim they can "tune up" your AC system. You'd want a good independent mechanic, preferably an AC specialist, to evaluate it. It may well be that recharging the system the right way will fix the problem or it may need more serious work.
To do a proper recharge, after evacuating old refrigerant you'd need a vacuum pump, manifold gauge set, and a scale in addition to enough pure R134a to properly charge the AC system. (It should have no additives other than perhaps leak-tracing dye.) Also add eye protection - you don't want refrigerant spraying into your eyes if something goes horribly wrong. If you don't want to buy the equipment you may be able to borrow it from a parts store like Autozone.
Working on AC is not rocket science but it requires different tools and different procedures than most other wrenching. It also helps if you understand the physics of the refrigeration cycle and what the various AC components do. There are plenty of instructional videos out there. However if in doubt it is best to take the car to a professional since it's easy to do damage or even injure yourself doing the wrong thing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IBFLMYZEzI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HCSsv3uYfM
i also forgot to mention that when the climate is set to cabin recirculate instead of intake (or whatever it's called), i don't experience the issue. i only do in that mode
A weak AC system will work better in recirculate mode (called "MAX AC" in some vehicles).
Without proper diagnosis it's all guesswork. If you don't want to deal with a manifold gauge set you can try temperature diagnosis to get an idea of what's going on. (This does require an infrared thermometer though - you can't get away from needing some tools.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JrqdppVmcU
Changing the transmission oil is a good idea.
What are the details of the temperature fluctuation problem? How did you recharge the air conditioning system? What are your high and low system pressures?
Sorry for merging it. I just thought it would be easier. As far as the system goes, i recharged it with refrigerant on the low pressure line. I wasn't able to test what the high pressure line was but the low pressure line before the recharge was measuring below 20 on the canister gauge.
I hope you didn't use one of those so-called "recharge" cans with their cheap, useless low-side gauge. If you did, you most definitely do not know that you have the correct refrigerant charge, and if the can contains sealers as many of them do you can plug up and ruin your AC system.
You really need a manifold gauge set to do work on air conditioning. Without knowing both high and low pressures you really have no idea what's going on inside that AC system. Also, the only way to know you have the right amount of refrigerant is to evacuate the system and recharge it with the manufacturer-specified amount of refrigerant by weight.
i bought a can of the sub zero refrigerant with an analog gauge (i can't really afford to have anyone look at it). I'll have to look how to evacuate it and see if some place around here does free system testing.
i also forgot to mention that when the climate is set to cabin recirculate instead of intake (or whatever it's called), i don't experience the issue. i only do in that mode
You're right. There is no specified oil change interval for the manual trans. Which is probably why they don't last very long. I would change it out every 50K miles to keep it working properly.
Usually, manual transmissions use heavy weight gear oil, not transmission fluid as used in automatics. Check the specifications for your vehicle.
my owners manual said fluid but it doesn't specify if i have a hydraulic clutch or not so i don't know if i need clutch fluid for it or if it uses the brake fluid for it
Page 379 of your owners manual tells you exactly what to use in your manual transmission.
Any 75w90 gear oil.
Thank you everyone. Sorry for not replying. I'll have the AC system checked out with some proper tools (and most likely will evacuate it) and i'm going to change the transmission fluid within the next 1,000 miles as long as I can find the time to get to my garage to do it with my hectic work schedule