Trane XL14i Air Conditioner Overview

Purchased unit in 2003 and every two years, a major problem in spite of our keeping up with regular seasonal maintenance and tune-ups as recommended by Trane. Thank God we also had an extended warranty which covered the very expensive costs, but left us without a/c three times and without heat twice in the winter while we waited for parts. The evaporator had to be totally replaced in 2009 and again in 2011 due to its leaking refrigerant. Now that the warranty is expired, we just paid $300 out of pocket for a seized condenser fan motor and our service man advised us we should be looking to get a new unit. I sent an email to customer service twice, before anyone responded and then they asked me to call them. When I called, Customer Service Rep. Ms. Ebony, basically said "sorry Charlie, we have no control of how long your system will operate correctly". My neighbors have Carrier systems purchased around the same time as mine and other than worn out belts needing to be replaced, neither one has had the amount of issues we have had. Their claims of reliability and quality products is just false advertising. Learn from our experience, do not buy a Trane product.

I have had this unit for 10 years and never had a problem. Of course I have had it serviced every spring which may account for the excellent review. You have to take care of any equipment to expect it to take care of you.

If you're looking for a terrible AC product, that is overpriced then Trane products are for you. I purchased a high-end unit in 2001, and have almost paid 50% of the original cost in repairs. In less than 10 years, I have replaced the humidifier, the condenser fan, condenser fan coil, and not one(1) but three (3)-yes three of the variable speed motor controllers. Each time Trane is happy to charge you $500.00 for the part, plus the $200 the technician charges. Prior to this, I had a Carrier unit for 10 years and NO mechanical issues or breakdowns. The only reason I replaced it was 1) it has a lower SEER rating, and 2) I thought by replacing it I would avoid continued maintenance repairs. Never again, if the AC guys says TRANE, you better slam the door, lock it, or be ready to constantly repair it. By the way, I reached out to TRANE, and no help, no support, no concern.

I bought my Trane XL14i a/c unit after reading all the hype. It cost more than double the nearest competitor's model but I went ahead and bought it thinking Trane was 'the best' on the market. Wrong. Well…this system is still fairly new, in my opinion, yet it has failed each summer since we had it installed in 2007. Expansion valve…every time. Each time it failed…it took them nearly a week to get the new valve in and get me up and running. It seems as though these valves are not kept in stock. Oh, and Trane was quick to mail me a postcard, telling me how much they paid my local hvac dealer each time it failed (while under warranty). As though that was somehow my fault, I guess. My warranty ran out, so I tried to purchase another year of extended warranty. I asked for nothing free, simply more warranty time so I wouldn't have to pay these outrageous repair bills. Trane said no way, Jose…this came from the top executives, by the way. So I wrote Trane a 'shame' letter. I might as well have gone outside and barked at the moon…no response from Trane. Be advised…your state's "Lemon Law" might apply to your unhappy situation with Trane. If you are as apprehensive about your unit's future performance as I am…you will want to know which avenues you might pursue. Would I purchase another Trane? Right now, no…but if they'd meet me halfway and agree to sell me additional warranty time I might change my mind.

Constant loss of freon, dealer will not step up and replace coils. dealer will not upgrade (even if we pay differnce) we know for a fact that our unit has the same defect in similar units with first hand knowledge. Lip service and lack of integrity, definitely drove me away from Trane and their dealer. My commercial property and associated partners will also be made aware. Word of mouth is the most damaging type of advertising.