7 replies to this topic

[boss351]

Well the old 88 5.0 GT needs the air conditioner fixed.  It is not blowing out ice cold air.  What would be the best way to remedy this?   

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[Evil95GT]

I could be wrong, but I *thought* R-12 was phased out. I believe the only way to recharge the a/c is to get the R134 retrofit. I know stores like PepBoys and Autozone sell kits to do this yourself, but I've never tried it.

[ford4v429]

I put the 134 in my lincoln mark VII and my 85 camaro- worked pretty well, but not as cold as the R12 was...with the cost of no longer produced R12, there really aint much of a choice- its all gonna leak out sooner or later. My Mark had a leak at the compressor, but the 134 'sealing oil' seemed to stop it- have to add a pound every couple years...the R12 cost me 100 bucks the one time I had it serviced(1995?) and I think 134 costs about 5 bucks a pound...the kit with thread adapters/oil costs 25-30...

[TwinTurboBoss]

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Edited by TwinTurboBoss, 03 July 2006 - 10:11 PM.

[68fastback]

I had my wife's Taurus ('93) converted last year.  The old 112 was going for $38/lb so would have cost about $90 just for the refrigerant.  The 134 only cost at $15 in total.  But you can't just change the fittings and refill with 134.  The 112 will contaminate it and it will not get/stay cold.  We're in a rural area and I asked around with mechanics and found most don't have the right equipment to properly convert and purge the system after the fittings conversion.  I wound up using a taxi company that has been running Crown Vics for ages and was really on top of making sure the A/Cs work right.  For $100 they installed the conversion kit, purged the system for nearly and hour and 20 minutes (that's how long it took for the automated purge and test equipment to fully evaporate the traces of remaining 112 (down to a minute amount -- .0053 something units??).  Then the correct amount of 134-compatible a/c oil was added, and then the 134 refrigerant goes in -- still all through this automated equipment.  An initial amount was addded and then the automated machine adds more while the a/c is running on max with windows open until the temperature of the system stabilizes at a target operating pressure.  The old-timer mechanic told me that if you put in too much refrigerant, you'll can blow the seals or collapse the system depending on what fails first.  The hoses from the equipment were then removed.  And it has worked great!  Don't know if this place is unique (small town taxi service place) but I think any place that does a lot of a/c conversion and trubleshooting will have the right equipment and know-how to do it right -- if they also take in folks off the street.  I got this place's name from a mechanic friend who told me if I wanted it done right, "go see Tony and tell him Richie sent ya"  ;-)  Good luck!

[KCMO-GT500]

a 12 oz can of R12 is going for about 21; you need a tech certification to buy it.  If the ac is still blowing a little cold, a single can will make a world of difference.

[KCMO-GT500]

evilchris, on Aug 1 2006, 05:23 PM, said:

If you have to "recharge" your A/C then it is leaking.

My 5.0 still blows ice cold and has a full charge.

...the point being that if it only needs a can every few years, then that is a whole lot cheaper than trying to track down and fix a very small leak that usually ends up being a multitude of very small leaks.  I consider it a pragmatic approach.  EPA rules allow freon to be added to car systems without trying to find a small leak, in spite of what a lot of repair shops say.

If it is a car that you value as a collector's item, then it might be worthwhile to start replacing hoses and fittings.