[jblackburn]

Hmmm i wonder if that could be it then. Gonna have to book the car in and have them tell me whats wrong with it. $180 fee to charge the ac, test and diagnose, then quote repairs after.

Crawl under the car and look for rock damage on the condensor first. The refrigerant has a bright yellow flourescent dye that should make spotting massive leaks relatively easy.

 

[jblackburn]

Yeah it should stick around.

 

[jblackburn]

The ECO has the A/C condenser shield.

2011 didn't. Early 12 probably didn't either.

 

[jblackburn]

My January built 2012 had the condenser shield.

My October 2011 did not.

Cutoff date was probably December, like many 2012 changes.

 

[jblackburn]

So does every cruze model made since 2012. That shield only offers minimal protection and can actually damage the condenser over time since it rides against it. Wouldn't think plastic would wear through aluminum, but after seeing many aftermarket transmission coolers installed with a plastic tie through the radiator, I learned otherwise. There was also a user on here about 6 months ago whom had this exact ting happen(plastic shield wore a hole in condenser).

Only real way to protect the condenser is to stop rocks before they get past the grill with smaller openings. Sad part? The all new 2016+ cruze even the RS package has more grill openings that are very large in size. I would not buy one until this design flaw is addressed or a suitable aftermarket grill replacement is made.

Bottom opening is mostly blocked off with plastic on the new ones, like many new "wide mouth" cars.

 

[jblackburn]

Really? not the ones I was looking at, only the edge ones were fake.(both standard and RS models). Could reach my hand through the grill openings and most of that lower large grill is real.

Oh, at the very bottom, I see where you're saying it's open. Fortunately, that lower opening is faced by the intercooler on the new models.

There's a large chunk of foam at the top of the bumper (not plastic, sorry), but yeah, there is some exposed condensor there I suppose. The current ones seem to be taken out mostly at the bottom, though.

http://icdn5.digitaltrends.com/image/2016-chevrolet-cruze-top-angle-970x647-c.jpg