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General Cross condenser replacement

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General Cross condenser replacement

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Rambling7325

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The fins on the AC condenser on the cross seem to crumble as you look at them as many have reported on this forum. Mine is functionally fine but like many others the bottom row has partially detached and some other fins have fallen out as well. Functionally it works perfectly and I wouldn't change it until it starts leaking (hopefully a long time from now.) Was just wondering if anyone has tried a different one to the OEM one as seems to be really poor quality. On the cross it doesn't get a lot of protection but it still seems to fall apart too quickly/easily. Just wondering if potentially a Denso condenser would be of better quality?
 
Rambling7325 said:
The fins on the AC condenser on the cross seem to crumble as you look at them as many have reported on this forum. Mine is functionally fine but like many others the bottom row has partially detached and some other fins have fallen out as well. Functionally it works perfectly and I wouldn't change it until it starts leaking (hopefully a long time from now.) Was just wondering if anyone has tried a different one to the OEM one as seems to be really poor quality. On the cross it doesn't get a lot of protection but it still seems to fall apart too quickly/easily. Just wondering if potentially a Denso condenser would be of better quality?
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Denso are OEM on many cars but tbh mine had lasted c12 years before it had to be swept up off the workshop floor, so I didn't give much thought to its replacement's longevity (but yes, Denso was sensibly priced and I knew and trusted the brand, so shoved one of those in!)
 
The bits that crumble are ‘only’ there to disapate heat, so it shouldn’t leak as the actual tubes are still in tact.

However, a question: in any of these cases where the a/c condenser (and sometimes radiator or intercooler too), have the cars been cleaned with snow foam or traffic film remover (TFR)? As a Landy Defender owner (much of which is made from aluminium ) I am very aware of the chemical damage those products cause to aluminium and other alloy materials. The Landy is new-ish to me but its previous owner clearly had it cleaned a lot (it was spotless!), but several of the aluminium parts had very badly corroded. Reading the Landy forums shows these chemical cleaners to be a common cause. Also, of course, the radiator, condenser and intercooler should never be exposed to the jet of a pressure washer.

Mine on the Panda (six years old) looks like new… am I just lucky?

As to Denso, the blower fan is clearly labelled as being made by them, and I’d not be surprised if the a/c parts aren’t too (Fiat don’t make their own, or indeed many of the other bits either)
 
Herts Hillhopper said:
The bits that crumble are ‘only’ there to disapate heat, so it shouldn’t leak as the actual tubes are still in tact.

However, a question: in any of these cases where the a/c condenser (and sometimes radiator or intercooler too), have the cars been cleaned with snow foam or traffic film remover (TFR)? As a Landy Defender owner (much of which is made from aluminium ) I am very aware of the chemical damage those products cause to aluminium and other alloy materials. The Landy is new-ish to me but its previous owner clearly had it cleaned a lot (it was spotless!), but several of the aluminium parts had very badly corroded. Reading the Landy forums shows these chemical cleaners to be a common cause. Also, of course, the radiator, condenser and intercooler should never be exposed to the jet of a pressure washer.

Mine on the Panda (six years old) looks like new… am I just lucky?

As to Denso, the blower fan is clearly labelled as being made by them, and I’d not be surprised if the a/c parts aren’t too (Fiat don’t make their own, or indeed many of the other bits either)
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Yeah not thinking of replacing for a long time as I think it's very far off leaking. Just wondering if anyone has any experience of any other radiators that don't do this. Previous Cross did 85,000 miles before selling and had the radiator fins break in similar places but no functional problems in 8 years. New one (4yrs old) which I bought 6 months ago was perfect when I bought it. Now the bottom row of fins has become detached on the LHS as you look at it, just as my old one did and just like other pics I've seen on the forum. Also the odd section of fins also damaged. Roads are very bad around here - lots of mud and loose gravel plus it does go through a very shallow ford in summer. This is probably the cause but is does seem very weak especially that solder joint on the bottom left. Was just wondering if anyone had any experience as to whether there were any better built ones out there.
 
On a previously owned 2005 dynamic a/c I fitted a wire mesh in the back of the bumper and never had any disintegration of the rad or loss of aircon and sold the car in 2024 having never changed a headgasket or front cross pipe. Aircon still worked too
 
timmycm850 said:
On a previously owned 2005 dynamic a/c I fitted a wire mesh in the back of the bumper and never had any disintegration of the rad or loss of aircon and sold the car in 2024 having never changed a headgasket or front cross pipe. Aircon still worked too
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Curiously I have thought about adding a mesh here ‘just in case’. Still might, one day ;)
 
Bonefish Blues said:
Isn't the major issue alloy corrosion, not impact damage
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Yes.

The big enemy is salt, and salt spray in particular. Plain water will corrode unprotected alloy, but salt water is much worse.

Drive on a busy salted motorway and the condenser is going to get drenched in it.

Driving around town, there's much less spray in the air that's going through the matrix.

So it may simply be down to the kind of roads you drive on in winter.

Rinsing off the condenser when washing the car can't hurt.

Look through the front grille of a 500/Panda in a car park; if it's more than a few years old, chances are that most of the small fins will be gone. Interestingly this doesn't seem to have much impact on A/C performance unless it's actually leaking.
 
But fitting a wire mesh in the holes in the bumper stops the impacts. Shame I don't have the car anymore to show an image of the grills and the fins still there
 
If you hit the front of your car a great number of times, at some point your bonnet will start to corrode.

It's simple. If your happy leaving yours exposed, fine by me
 
timmycm850 said:
If you hit the front of your car a great number of times, at some point your bonnet will start to corrode.

It's simple. If your happy leaving yours exposed, fine by me
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The condenser is constructed of raw alloy, which is rather different to a bonnet. You're saying that fitting some mesh behind the bumper prevents corrosion, I'm just trying to understand why that is the case.
 
It may have just been that it stops the stone/ debris from braking off the fins, sadly I never fitted a camera in that area to check in preparation for you inquisativeness,
Sorry
 
timmycm850 said:
It may have just been that it stops the stone/ debris from braking off the fins, sadly I never fitted a camera in that area to check in preparation for you inquisativeness,
Sorry
Click to expand...
That I can understand - protection from mechanical damage. I had a new one fitted about a year ago, I will make a point of taking a look at how damaged it is after perhaps 10,000 miles of mixed driving.
 
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