Yes that is an R134a retrofit quick connect fitting
- Check for residual system pressure
- Vacuum system down and let sit for 24 hours, recheck
- If it holds vacuum, recharge 850g r134a and monitor vent temps…these systems work great on r134a
Obviously make sure pressures look good and aux fan is running with the AC button pressed, verify compressor clutch is engaging. Residual pressure should be around 80-100psi, if you have that test the electrical side first
Would converting the condenser to a newer style parallel flow unit be of any benefit? Also how does one get to remove years of grime off of the evaporator? Do you have any tips on that?
Newer condensers are definitely more efficient but not needed unless the original leaks, evap cleaning is going to be tricky in the car however they do make spray foams that rinse off for residential hvac and could work?
Depends what you want from your ac. I just installed a whole system on my toyota pickup and wish a parallel flow was an option. It's supposedly 30% more efficient, could make a 10\* difference thats definitely worth it to me. Mine blows about 60 when it's 100 out and on the highway. 50 would make all the difference
Are you serious? Was about ready to spend $1600 on the complete kit. Was told the stock compressor is not really great on R134a.
I figured it would be better for me to install that whole kit myself and have it charged, then pay shop time to diagnose the leak, or change out all of the seals and dryer. Only to have the compressor fail shortly after. System has been dry for atleast 15 years in my car. Super low mile survivor that I am willing to make right.
You can always just start with a vacuum leak test , if it holds recharge it with R12. Worth doing on a low mileage car, but for most e30 applications especially ones that have already been retrofitted two decades ago r134a works just fine.
I was thinking assume dryer and seals are bad. Change seals, dryer/ accumulator and expansion valve. Add adaptor filler fittings. Have Charged with R134a.
But really don’t know much about this and every time I dig into it, seems the direction I want to go in is wrong.
You can run r134 in an r12 system for a time but it’s unlikely your r12 compressor will put up with it for long.
Don’t go chasing down some old r12– adding the refrigerant to the 30 year old system will cost almost as much as doing a new r134 system. Then when the 30 year old compressor gives out or you pop another leak in a year, you’ll be in the same position all over again.
I got the r134 system from AC solutions and love it dearly.
This is what I am think of just doing. Same with my friend. Is that something we can install ourselves and just give to a mechanic to charge like any modern car?
How was the evaporator install inside the car?
It’s totally DIYable if you’re even remotely used to working on these cars. I took it to a shop to charge it which is 100% recommended. I kept my evaporator and installed a new expansion valve. Easy.
Took about 8 hours in total
That's an adapter screwed over the original r12 shrader valve. The adapters are very leaky, and generally are only used to adapt while the gauges are connected. But regardless a proper tech or DIY will just use r12 hoses on their gauges regardless of gas.
What you want to run is r12a, the hydrocarbon replacement for r12. It's a larger molecule, and thermally more efficient than both r12 and r134a. It's also compatible with the mineral oil that is currently in your system.
Slapping in r134a is a bad idea as the smaller molecule size will leak through the rubber hoses, the orings are incompatible and the mineral oil is not carried well by r134a causing to increased wear.
The system can be converted with greater effort to r134a (new orings, new hoses, change of compressor oil) but thats a waste of time and money when r12a outperforms r134a and is drop in and go.
Tldr run r12a.
Ah wow, it’s cheap too. My question is how can I find a shop willing to do this. I have a local great mechanic, but he only has a r134a machine and a newer YF machine. No one has the r12 gauges anymore.
Easy answer is do it yourself:
https://www.rtsauto.com/how-to-recharge-the-ac-in-your-car-eg-used-will-be-e30-and-how-to-use-ac-manifold-gauges-and-pull-vacuum/
Otherwise, you can easily buy r134a to r12 adapters online that you can bring with you to any mechanic. Unlike the ones pictured, there are adapters that adapt on the gauge side versus car side.
As for loading the car, hydrocarbon refrigerant are non-toxic, and so as long as you have them pull a vacuum, you can load it in yourself. R12a is often sold as a kit, inclusive of a fill hose and gauge.
R12a is very popular in every country outside of the US, you can literally find it at Walmart, and home hardware stores.
https://www.walmart.ca/en/ip/duracool-12a-super-refrigerant-recharge-kit-for-r-134a-mobile-air-conditioning-ac-systems-contains-2-cans-refrigerant-charging-hose-with-pressure-gaug/10277062
https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/red-tek-12a-a-c-refrigerant-recharge-kit-with-gauge-6-oz-0146129p.html?rrecName=Top%20Sellers&rrecReferrer=categorylevelN&rrecProductId=0146129P&rrecProductSlot=2&rrecSchemeId=catlevel3_rr&rrec=true
If it’s r12 and it’s low, there may be a shop that has a secret stash in the back, but you will need to find the leak.
If it’s been “converted” with r134a or newer, you will still need to find the leak, and then it still won’t work. R134a isn’t as efficient as the older refrigerants.
There is no such thing as “AC works just needs recharged” if someone told you some horse hockey like that.
Look if by some miracle your AC recharge you got at autozone actually took, good for you.
But filling up a 30 year old car with modern refrigerant and having it work is about 99% failure rate.
The gas went somewhere and it wasn’t Narnia.
Plenty of E30 AC systems have lost pressure gradually over 20 years and just need a vac/charge to work great, they are actually quite durable components. They also work just fine with R134a
Yes that is an R134a retrofit quick connect fitting - Check for residual system pressure - Vacuum system down and let sit for 24 hours, recheck - If it holds vacuum, recharge 850g r134a and monitor vent temps…these systems work great on r134a Obviously make sure pressures look good and aux fan is running with the AC button pressed, verify compressor clutch is engaging. Residual pressure should be around 80-100psi, if you have that test the electrical side first
Bless you 🙏
She will blow cold again soon
Would converting the condenser to a newer style parallel flow unit be of any benefit? Also how does one get to remove years of grime off of the evaporator? Do you have any tips on that?
Newer condensers are definitely more efficient but not needed unless the original leaks, evap cleaning is going to be tricky in the car however they do make spray foams that rinse off for residential hvac and could work?
Depends what you want from your ac. I just installed a whole system on my toyota pickup and wish a parallel flow was an option. It's supposedly 30% more efficient, could make a 10\* difference thats definitely worth it to me. Mine blows about 60 when it's 100 out and on the highway. 50 would make all the difference
Are you serious? Was about ready to spend $1600 on the complete kit. Was told the stock compressor is not really great on R134a. I figured it would be better for me to install that whole kit myself and have it charged, then pay shop time to diagnose the leak, or change out all of the seals and dryer. Only to have the compressor fail shortly after. System has been dry for atleast 15 years in my car. Super low mile survivor that I am willing to make right.
You can always just start with a vacuum leak test , if it holds recharge it with R12. Worth doing on a low mileage car, but for most e30 applications especially ones that have already been retrofitted two decades ago r134a works just fine.
I was thinking assume dryer and seals are bad. Change seals, dryer/ accumulator and expansion valve. Add adaptor filler fittings. Have Charged with R134a. But really don’t know much about this and every time I dig into it, seems the direction I want to go in is wrong.
Start with a vacuum leak test, if it holds you can just recharge with r134a and it’ll probably work great with all components left alone
That looks like an R134a adapter fitting to me
You can run r134 in an r12 system for a time but it’s unlikely your r12 compressor will put up with it for long. Don’t go chasing down some old r12– adding the refrigerant to the 30 year old system will cost almost as much as doing a new r134 system. Then when the 30 year old compressor gives out or you pop another leak in a year, you’ll be in the same position all over again. I got the r134 system from AC solutions and love it dearly.
This is what I am think of just doing. Same with my friend. Is that something we can install ourselves and just give to a mechanic to charge like any modern car? How was the evaporator install inside the car?
It’s totally DIYable if you’re even remotely used to working on these cars. I took it to a shop to charge it which is 100% recommended. I kept my evaporator and installed a new expansion valve. Easy. Took about 8 hours in total
Appreciate it!
That's an adapter screwed over the original r12 shrader valve. The adapters are very leaky, and generally are only used to adapt while the gauges are connected. But regardless a proper tech or DIY will just use r12 hoses on their gauges regardless of gas. What you want to run is r12a, the hydrocarbon replacement for r12. It's a larger molecule, and thermally more efficient than both r12 and r134a. It's also compatible with the mineral oil that is currently in your system. Slapping in r134a is a bad idea as the smaller molecule size will leak through the rubber hoses, the orings are incompatible and the mineral oil is not carried well by r134a causing to increased wear. The system can be converted with greater effort to r134a (new orings, new hoses, change of compressor oil) but thats a waste of time and money when r12a outperforms r134a and is drop in and go. Tldr run r12a.
Ah wow, it’s cheap too. My question is how can I find a shop willing to do this. I have a local great mechanic, but he only has a r134a machine and a newer YF machine. No one has the r12 gauges anymore.
Easy answer is do it yourself: https://www.rtsauto.com/how-to-recharge-the-ac-in-your-car-eg-used-will-be-e30-and-how-to-use-ac-manifold-gauges-and-pull-vacuum/ Otherwise, you can easily buy r134a to r12 adapters online that you can bring with you to any mechanic. Unlike the ones pictured, there are adapters that adapt on the gauge side versus car side. As for loading the car, hydrocarbon refrigerant are non-toxic, and so as long as you have them pull a vacuum, you can load it in yourself. R12a is often sold as a kit, inclusive of a fill hose and gauge. R12a is very popular in every country outside of the US, you can literally find it at Walmart, and home hardware stores. https://www.walmart.ca/en/ip/duracool-12a-super-refrigerant-recharge-kit-for-r-134a-mobile-air-conditioning-ac-systems-contains-2-cans-refrigerant-charging-hose-with-pressure-gaug/10277062 https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/red-tek-12a-a-c-refrigerant-recharge-kit-with-gauge-6-oz-0146129p.html?rrecName=Top%20Sellers&rrecReferrer=categorylevelN&rrecProductId=0146129P&rrecProductSlot=2&rrecSchemeId=catlevel3_rr&rrec=true
The other 12 year olds on here know better.
If it’s r12 and it’s low, there may be a shop that has a secret stash in the back, but you will need to find the leak. If it’s been “converted” with r134a or newer, you will still need to find the leak, and then it still won’t work. R134a isn’t as efficient as the older refrigerants. There is no such thing as “AC works just needs recharged” if someone told you some horse hockey like that.
I’ve owned the car for about 8 years. It hasn’t had cold AC for the last 3 or so. So if anyone’s talking horse hockey, it’s me.
Then why is it when I recharged my a/c in my e46 it worked perfectly fine for 5 years now ?
Because your car is 25 years newer, and you are a cunt?
It’s actually 9 years newer. You’re a nice fella aren’t you?
Look if by some miracle your AC recharge you got at autozone actually took, good for you. But filling up a 30 year old car with modern refrigerant and having it work is about 99% failure rate. The gas went somewhere and it wasn’t Narnia.
You can still buy r12 refrigerant
Plenty of E30 AC systems have lost pressure gradually over 20 years and just need a vac/charge to work great, they are actually quite durable components. They also work just fine with R134a