Had a specialist check the car over and no leaks at all in the system now the condenser has been done and holding pressure, still issues after a couple of weeks with a regas though and he said the only thing it could be is the compressor which is essentially a unbolt and put a new one on and put the belts back I think?.
This is a job for some point over the winter/spring as I don’t really need working AC now but wondered how hard it is to do?, not sure about where abouts it’s located as very difficult to see as the TDV8 is so tightly packed!, for anyone who’s done it are you better off accessing from underneath or on top?, I’d like to remove as little as possible to get to it obviously!.

What are the symptoms? Your AC tech should be able to tell if the clutch on the AC compressor is engaging and what the pressures are doing, if you don’t have leaks and the pump is working, it’s more likely to be your expansion control valve which is located I believe under the dash on the side of the evaporator core.

Access to the compressor is from the top and underneath, it’s not to hard once you have the fan shroud, fan and belts off.

But you need someone to degas and refill afterward. It’s cannot do yourself, you have to be trained and use the right equipment... you can’t just vent to air... legally.

Regassed once and all fine, holding a vacuum and pressure before degassing, AC blew ice cold for a couple of weeks then stopped working, checked in gauges etc and no gas, second time pressure tested with the specialist, not just a standard regass, whole system was showing fine, he checked and no leaks present and was quite thorough, regassed and put some extra oils which can help o rings etc in?, and said to run it on full cold for 30 ish mins a day for 2 weeks to allow it to penetrate the whole system properly, after about day 10 again not blowing very cold, gas low again, he thinks it can only be an issue with the compressor now?, leaking internally.
It’s not urgent for me to do now as it’s winter and I don’t really need the AC at the moment but it’s an issue I’d like to get resolved at some point over the winter.
I’ve got more pressing issues on it at the moment, it’s away having the rear subframe bushes done and I want to do a gearbox oil and filter change for peace of mind and give it a service, after that I will do the AC, it’s a relief that the compressor doesn’t sound too much of a pain to do, the condenser I had to do was pretty fiddly!.

If you are loosing gas do a UV dye check, it will show where the leak is... most likely the evaporator then next likely the condenser. Note you can see the evaporator but will find the dye in the water drain under the car.

The compressor either works or doesn’t, leaks have to be external so finding it isn’t to hard... yes regard, add dye, run the AC for 10 minutes then check, any gross leaks will be seen with the UV light on the condenser and pipe work, if nothing found then run as often as possible for a few weeks to allow the dye to make it out if its the condenser or smalller leak elsewhere.

Note the AC can be run in winter to dry the air (useful if your car is steamed up) you don’t need to have it on cold! It just doesn’t work below about 4’C from memory as the evaporator will just turn into a block of ice... no damage, it’s on the outside and will just melt out of the drain under the car - the same drain you need to find to see if there’s any UV dye!

With out finding the leak you will be throwing money down a hole and just hoping you replace the correct item.

I would suggest using a new specialist...myour ‘specialist’ seems out of his depth.

P.S I used to be a master tech but also fully trained by AutoClimate in Shrewsbury who design and make AC solutions for OEM as well as training for technicians 👍

Thanks for your reply and help , it has had a brand new condenser put on it before regassing so I’d imagine this is unlikely to be the cause but not impossible by any means!, could be a faulty/damaged one?, although I’d guess the leak must be quite small to not show up on a pressure/vac test but large enough to lose gas in a couple of weeks, definitely a bit puzzling!.
If there is anyone you could recommend to diagnose the issue I’d be very grateful, like I say there are other bits on it which I want to sort first but having working AC by the spring/summer is important but no rush if they’re busy.
Thanks again for your help.

You don’t want to leave it, moisture in the system causes corrosion and can stop the system functioning as it freezes the expansion control valve.

I haven’t lived in the UK for years but suggest asking around for some who can do a leak check with UV dye.. I am very surprised your ‘specialist’ can’t/hasn’t done it, it’s very common and easy process!?

Again for leaks the evaporator core is the main failure item because it sits in condensation/water for most of it life, condensers tend to fail from damage in an accident or stones. Seals can fail but are normally easy to Spokane oily patch around them, again a UV test will soon show them up.

I had it in for some other work and the guy spotted a leak in one of the pipes, must be quite a small one I’d guess to not pick it up on a pressure test but it’s in the pipe that runs from the condenser to the compressor, not sure how tricky it would be to replace.