I have checked the refrigerant, AC fans, Fuses, relay, Compressor seems to be always engaged. No luck. When AC is turned on i hear a CLICK but not other noises or hums. Any one have any tips on what it could be? Im afraid of frying the electric battery in the 100 degree CA weather. Thanks!

 

Unfortunately, I can't provide any guidance on the A/C. You have a very real fear. I wouldn't drive it until you get the A/C fixed. I've seen many cooked packs due to inoperative A/C.

 

Apparently, the Ford engineers arranged for the battery to shutdown once thermal sensors indicated that the battery reached an internal temperature of 140 degrees fahrenheit or 60C (from a 2010-12 Ford Escape Hybrid Emergency Response pamphlet). That said, I have seen a couple of internet posts that say the vehicle will shutdown once the battery reaches 100F although I consider this unsubstantiated. Personally, I think 100F is too low considering the operating temperatures of vehicles in the southern part of the U.S. including travelling in heavy traffic on blacktop. That said, it would be interesting if someone could chime in on the ideal as well as the usual lower and upper limits of nickel-metal hydride batteries of similar design and construction. Currently, I am running Hippo the Hybrid (2010MY) with a non-functional a/c system in temperatures of 30C.

 

i can say with absolute certainty that 100°F is a hard threshold where the hybrid function is severely restricted and aggressive cooling begins. IMHO, Ford established 100°F as the upper limit of full power operation for the rear evap equipped models.