Old Car Question: Re-Charging or Re-Vamping A/C

My own self ^ | 9/20/02 | Self

[MoralSense]

I have an '89 Cadillac Fleetwood, and the a/c needs re-charging. Unfortunately, it uses old-style R12 Freon, which isn't legal to manufacture any more. My old service station attendant used to have some, but he's out now. Anybody know any sources? Also, I'm informed that converting the a/c to the more modern 134 coolant can be done by a radiator shop at a cost of about $300. Anybody have any experience with such a conversion? Thanks.

[Brytani]

Quick correction to my previous post. My husband just reminded me, when we bought the retro-kit we also purchased other parts for the Jeep. He says the actual cost of the kit was $125 and our labor cost was increased because my husband also had a tune-up performed at the same time.

[#1CTYankee]

Hey CTYankee!

What are you doing on this thread? Aren't you and your wife having a baby on the other thread right now?

Good Luck!

Yeah, I know. :-o
Any thread that has the word car I got to check out.

[TommyDale]

Was at the Penske garage at K-Mart on Capital. They are gone now, but I had found several places fairly reasonable.
The radiator shops were the highest. There are a few independent garages who really do better work for much less than the auto dealers and/or radiator shops. Some prefer cash -- Gee, I wonder why?

[TommyDale]

That kit at Walmart is a good buy, but it leaves one major problem: The R-12 must be totally evacuated from the system
and disposed of by a professional to be "legal". Hmmm...
I wonder if my neighbor could tell if I just let it out?

[Sloth]

I've had three mid-eighties Ford full size cars (2 Crown Vics & a Grand Marquis) all retrofitted for r134a... cost about $400 apiece, I think. They work great. I'd recommend it.

[billbears]

There are a few independent garages who really do better work for much less than the auto dealers and/or radiator shops

You've got Freepmail. Truer words have never been spoken. Wouldn't go to a dealership if you paid for the work and then paid me to go there (i.e. Capital)

[Charles Martel]

I am a little nervous after reading an earlier post regarding the new stuff attacking the hoses.

It's more a case of the new refrigerant being able to seep through the older hose material than actually "attacking" it. Hoses intended for use with R-134a are referred to as "nylon barrier" type, which is a fairly self-descriptive.

Those Wal-Mart retrofit kits are a crapshoot - not only are the newer hoses different, the o-rings in the system fittings are made of a different material, too. Compressor crankshaft seals, too. Changing the service fittings and adding new oil (with "conditioner") and refrigerant might work okay, or your compressor might lock up after a week or two.

The "old" oil in the system will turn into sludge when exposed to R-134a, so most A/C technicians recommend a thorough system flush (not just pulling a vacuum) to remove as much oil as possible, before adding the new stuff.

R-134a can only be charged to 80% of the system's R-12 rating. That means you're starting out with 20% less cooling capacity - and a larger, more efficient condensor might be needed to keep the cooling capacity from dropping further.

[Chi-townChief]

Old car bump

[freebounder]

you could try ordering freon through a farm co-op,

or (if it is legal in your state), using HC-12a from OZ Technologies or similar producer.

From what i understand there is no conversion necessary, nor is it corrosive to the to the system like HCF. On the down side, it is flammable at 1600 F at atmoshperic pressure. Some choice--a leaky corrosive halide; or a smelly flammable hydrocarbon ).

If you are interested the web site is http://www.oztechnologyinc.com/

Dupont invested a lot of time and effort to secure HCF-134a as the sole successor to one of their cash cows--the patent expired freon. (No conspiracy--just good business sense.) Fortunately, HCF-134a is so ineffectual compared to freon that unlike freon, there are several alternatives out there.

Idaho has just adjusted its laws to allow HC-12a in motor vehicles.

[MoralSense]

Thanks to everybody. You have reassured me about the conversion and given me a good idea what price to expect.