AC compressor failure

Hey forum friends!

I just wanted to make other owners aware of the possibility of an AC compressor failure I just experienced with my car. For me, at least, it caused the vehicle to completely shut down, so hopefully this can help others avoid the same situation. I haven't heard of any others having this issue, so it's possible that mine is just an extreme or isolated case.

The failure occurred while I was driving out to California with multiple DC charging sessions and warm weather (95-100F). I first noticed weak charging performance on my 2nd and 3rd charging stops when temperatures were at their highest. On my final charging stop, I began to notice the AC compressor making unusual noises in addition to the poor charging performance. Also, air conditioning had stopped working at this point, so it seemed likely something was wrong with the cooling system.

After resuming my trip on the highway and about 30-45 minutes of driving, I received the dreaded "Battery System Fault" message and was given 2 minutes to pull off the highway before the vehicle shut down. The vehicle was then towed to the nearest service center where it is currently being worked on.

Per Emad Dlala himself, this was caused by an AC compressor failure, which is a known issue. Per his email, this was resolved 1.5 years ago, which is I assume means any Air produced before December 2023 (including mine) could have this faulty AC compressor. For reference, my car had a little over 51,000 miles when this occurred.

To summarize, if you notice weak DC charging performance in warm weather, odd AC compressor noises, and/or loss of air conditioning, just be cautious and reach out to service to have them evaluate. I've included a clip of the noises I was hearing, in case that helps.

Some questions I still have are:
1. If this is a known issue with a known solution, why isn't there an active recall to have these replaced?
2. Why wasn't the AC compressor replaced preemptively while my car was in for major service (onboard charger and HV battery deplacement) earlier this year?

Again, this might have just been an extreme and isolated failure, and other than Emad messaging me personally I haven't heard anything else from Lucid about the situation yet. I'll reply to this thread with updates as they happen. This seems like a pretty rare situation, but hopefully this helps other owners avoid the situation I found myself in.

All the best.

Sorry to hear about this. Although AC compressor failures are certainly not uncommon in any vehicle, it's the first I've heard of it in a Lucid. I'm surprised that it wreaked so much havoc with the car in general, but if it's the same system that helps control battery temperature, I can see why it caused the other issues.

Attached is the service report from Lucid documenting the repairs. It sounds like the AC compressor failure damaged some other HVAC components. Thankfully, Lucid decided to cover the repairs under warranty, despite my vehicle being slightly over the mileage limit. The service teams took pretty good care of me throughout the process.

While my case seems to be pretty extreme, Lucid has told me they're continuing to evaluate this issue as it develops. It sounds like supply issues have been part of the problem, at least initially. Here's hoping no one else has this happen to them!

Hello Shane,

This very same issue happened to me just a couple of weeks ago exactly how it happened to you. Lucid is telling me that it will not be covered because it is NOT a known issue. Your post tells me otherwise. My car has 75K miles. My car is just over 2 years old I believe but I drive a lot. Based on what you've posted and correspondence you received from Lucid rep, I agree that they should have issued a recall which they didn't. They are refusing to cover this repair under warranty and is charging me 11K.

If you don't mind, I'd like to speak to you. I would really APPRECIATE it very much.

Maya

I'm bringing mine into service this week for a similar issue. When it is warm outside (85-90ish) and DCFC, my rate slows WAY down and AC performance is practically nill. Even today, out doing errands around town with it 85 degrees outside, my AC barely cools the interior. This is with it at max, top glass sunshade, sunshade on windshield when parked AND keep AC on while I'm in the store (4x stops). I really hope that they properly diagnose this and don't brush it off as "working normally". I don't think I could trust the vehicle on a road trip to Palm Springs or Vegas at this point.

Tim-in-CA said:

I'm bringing mine into service this week for a similar issue. When it is warm outside (85-90ish) and DCFC, my rate slows WAY down and AC performance is practically nill. Even today, out doing errands around town with it 85 degrees outside, my AC barely cools the interior. This is with it at max, top glass sunshade, sunshade on windshield when parked AND keep AC on while I'm in the store (4x stops). I really hope that they properly diagnose this and don't brush it off as "working normally". I don't think I could trust the vehicle on a road trip to Palm Springs or Vegas at this point.

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Hopefully they're able to help you out. I'm a bit skeptical that the AC and thermal management systems aren't really up to par for this car, but I still hope the compressor failure won't become a common issue. As long as it's not making bizarre noises or your charging speeds aren't half or less than what they should be you're probably okay.

Shane_SLC said:

Hopefully they're able to help you out. I'm a bit skeptical that the AC and thermal management systems aren't really up to par for this car, but I still hope the compressor failure won't become a common issue. As long as it's not making bizarre noises or your charging speeds aren't half or less than what they should be you're probably okay.

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While DCFC when it is hot outside, on two recent occasions, the rate slows down after about 10 minutes and got as low as 13 kW @76% ... AC was blowing warm air. I had to stop as I was roasting. After 30 min of driving home, the AC barely got cool. I tested again in an evening and the rate at the same SOC was 57kW ... not great, but better than 13!!!

Tim-in-CA said:

While DCFC when it is hot outside, on two recent occasions, the rate slows down after about 10 minutes and got as low as 13 kW @76% ... AC was blowing warm air. I had to stop as I was roasting. After 30 min of driving home, the AC barely got cool. I tested again in an evening and the rate at the same SOC was 57kW ... not great, but better than 13!!!

View attachment 30667

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Yeah, this sounds all too familiar, sadly...Definitely not normal. Which trim do you own?

Shane_SLC said:

Yeah, this sounds all too familiar, sadly...Definitely not normal. Which trim do you own?

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I agree ... Touring ... purchased in Dec 22. Hopefully they resolve it during my SC appointment this Thursday. Unfortunately, my closest SC (Costa Mesa) is overwhelmed and doesn't have anything available until late September; I'll have to drive 55 miles to the Torrance SC location. I'll update once service diagnoses. I also have constant failing cameras for lane departure and forward collision - they also fail if it gets hot outside, and failed again today.

Tim-in-CA said:

I agree ... Touring ... purchased in Dec 22. Hopefully they resolve it during my SC appointment this Thursday. Unfortunately, my closest SC (Costa Mesa) is overwhelmed and doesn't have anything available until late September; I'll have to drive 55 miles to the Torrance SC location. I'll update once service diagnoses. I also have constant failing cameras for lane departure and forward collision - they also fail if it gets hot outside, and failed again today.

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Gotcha. My car's just a little bit newer than yours, then. The thermal issues sound exactly the same as what I was experiencing pre-HV battery replacement / AC compressor failure.

mthona said:

Hello Shane,

This very same issue happened to me just a couple of weeks ago exactly how it happened to you. Lucid is telling me that it will not be covered because it is NOT a known issue. Your post tells me otherwise. My car has 75K miles. My car is just over 2 years old I believe but I drive a lot. Based on what you've posted and correspondence you received from Lucid rep, I agree that they should have issued a recall which they didn't. They are refusing to cover this repair under warranty and is charging me 11K.

If you don't mind, I'd like to speak to you. I would really APPRECIATE it very much.

Maya

Click to expand...

Many years ago I had an A/C compressor failure on my 1970 Dodge Coronet. At that time the warranty was 12,000 or 1 year. At the time of the failure, my car had 17,00o miles and was 7 months old. Chrysler refused to cover the repair under warranty due to the mileage. I fought them contending that you don't use A/C in winter and spring. For that reason the A/C should not be mileage dependent, but should be covered for one year. After some back and forth, they agreed with me and did the replacement for free. Try this argument. Good luck.

Tim-in-CA said:

I'm bringing mine into service this week for a similar issue. When it is warm outside (85-90ish) and DCFC, my rate slows WAY down and AC performance is practically nill. Even today, out doing errands around town with it 85 degrees outside, my AC barely cools the interior. This is with it at max, top glass sunshade, sunshade on windshield when parked AND keep AC on while I'm in the store (4x stops). I really hope that they properly diagnose this and don't brush it off as "working normally". I don't think I could trust the vehicle on a road trip to Palm Springs or Vegas at this point.

Click to expand...

My car started out this way. Within a couple of days - the *SH__* hit the fan and I find myself stranded on the side of the freeway with the car making weird noises and shutting down. I purchased my car in March 2023. I'm sure it's one of the earlier productions.

A Fischman said:

Many years ago I had an A/C compressor failure on my 1970 Dodge Coronet. At that time the warranty was 12,000 or 1 year. At the time of the failure, my car had 17,00o miles and was 7 months old. Chrysler refused to cover the repair under warranty due to the mileage. I fought them contending that you don't use A/C in winter and spring. For that reason the A/C should not be mileage dependent, but should be covered for one year. After some back and forth, they agreed with me and did the replacement for free. Try this argument. Good luck.

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I refuse to pay 11K for a problem they already knew was a problem and did nothing. I told them I will pick up my car and now they are telling me that they will confirm if I can even drive the car! So, because of an AC problem the car is not drivable? So, I am now held hostage to paying 11K for this repair?

mthona said:

My car started out this way. Within a couple of days - the *SH__* hit the fan and I find myself stranded on the side of the freeway with the car making weird noises and shutting down. I purchased my car in March 2023. I'm sure it's one of the earlier productions.

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Same month and year I purchased mine! I fear this may become an emerging issue for early Touring builds.

I had 2022 December Touring build and my A/C compressor didn't work from day 1. Apparently an internal short in one of the control wires. It was replaced in May 2023 when it got warm enough to notice, hopefully that was after they fixed it!