Need AC help!

My 83 caprice (305) AC is not working at all. It blows hot air. I'm gunna try and get the thing recharged. Gaskets might need to be replaced because the car was sitting for years not being used. So then, i can probably just get a gasket kit from my local auto supplier. Is the recharging part something i can do myself? I know make these cans that you can recharge it with (or should i pay someone to do it?). How much would it cost to have an auto shop do it?

Odds are you have no R-12 refridgerant left in your system, but to be sure and legal, get any refridgerant recovered by a shop. Many will do it for free because it benefits them to acquire some more R-12 seeing it keeps getting more and more expensive. I suppose you could hurt the ozone a little more by letting the remainder out. If you think about it, most of it's out anyway. Either way... Once that's done you can get a gasket kit if you'd like, they're actually all o-rings, no gaskets at all. Odds are though the leak is coming from the compressor, or a puncture of some sort. From my experience the O-rings almost, almost never fail. Since all the R-12 is gone though you can fill the system with R-134a which is the consumer legal, CFC-free alternative to R-12. Those are the cans you see in the auto shops... and Wal-Mart. DO NOT mix R-12 and R-134a. Thats why you want to have all the remaining R-12 removed from the system. Anyway... If you'd like, before even opening up your A/C system, get the R-12 to R-134a retrofit conversion kit from any auto parts store. Charging your system will allow you to pinpoint the leak, and possibly even seal it without even taking anything apart. It comes with EVERYTHING you need you convert your system to R-134a. Basically some fittings, three cans of refridgerant, and a guage. The instructions are very easy to understand and if you get the kit made by InterDynamics (id) it comes with a very well explained and visually clear DVD on how your A/C works, and how easy it really is to repair yourself. It really isn't as intimidating as people think it is to work on your A/C yourself.

To add onto what Pete has already said, you will need to have all traces of the old oil removed. If the car has been setting that long, you may as well go ahead and replace the accumulator. The O-rings, as Pete said, rarely fail but they're cheap to replace, do it now while you have it apart. Use the green O-rings. When you go to charge it with R134a, you will only need 2.5 pounds (as opposed to 3.5whatever R12). Use a good gauge and do not overfill the system. *CRITICAL* - ONLY USE ESTER OIL. Do NOT use PAG oil on a converted system. Use one oil charge, and put this in before you put in the straight refrigerant. Make certain you get the oil that says "Ester" or "For converting R12 systems". Most all ester oil I've seen also contains a fluorescent dye, which makes pinpointing leaks a snap (with a blacklight). It glows bright yellow under blacklight.

My 83 caprice (305) AC is not working at all. It blows hot air. I'm gunna try and get the thing recharged. Gaskets might need to be replaced because the car was sitting for years not being used. So then, i can probably just get a gasket kit from my local auto supplier. Is the recharging part something i can do myself? I know make these cans that you can recharge it with (or should i pay someone to do it?). How much would it cost to have an auto shop do it?

all this info given sounds great ...except that they forgot to mention that this a/c system will require a vacuum pump to be used to remove all air from system/oil.....if this is not done your a/c system will turn into a mess called the black death...this is where the internal componets get coated with a sludge that will reqiure the complete removal/replacement of everything...

converting r12 to 134 refrigerent is fine if you properly follow the instructions and know what will occur if not...no short cuts...

removal of all old r12 refrigerent oil is highly recommended

one componet replacement that would give increased cooling would be replacing the evaporator...since this was designed for r12 it is not as good as one made for 134....I have seen these around but unless your from a very hot area like arizona you may not need the best efficiency...

the longer the a/c system has been inoperative the lower the chance of success..

[QUOTE=the longer the a/c system has been inoperative the lower the chance of success..[/QUOTE]

So what exactly do you mean by this? Does this mean that my ac might not work again?

Yes... For the record mine was inoperative for 8+ years, and five years ago was converted (by me) to R134a with no problems since. But that's just luck, and a well performed conversion. Quick black death story: The parts station wagon I bought a few years back was very improperly converted to R134a. They didn't even fully remove the old R-12 out of the system, just added in the R-134a. Only weeks after, some loud compressor noise like a lawnmower almost. A few weeks after that the compressor locked up. All the internal components were caked in black crap, especially the orifice tube. They said "Oh it was probably already on it's way out, even after I charged it, it wasn't that cold after I charged it." I didn't want to get into an argument, but I think it had ot be because of the remaining R-12 mixed with R-134a.

Yes... For the record mine was inoperative for 8+ years, and five years ago was converted (by me) to R134a with no problems since. But that's just luck, and a well performed conversion. Quick black death story: The parts station wagon I bought a few years back was very improperly converted to R134a. They didn't even fully remove the old R-12 out of the system, just added in the R-134a. Only weeks after, some loud compressor noise like a lawnmower almost. A few weeks after that the compressor locked up. All the internal components were caked in black crap, especially the orifice tube. They said "Oh it was probably already on it's way out, even after I charged it, it wasn't that cold after I charged it." I didn't want to get into an argument, but I think it had ot be because of the remaining R-12 mixed with R-134a.

I don't know how much like i'm gunna have getting it working then because in its past life my car has needed to be recharged a lot and sent to the shops to get the ac working because it always went bad. What would i have to replace in this case? How much $$ is this gunna cost?

all this info given sounds great ...except that they forgot to mention that this a/c system will require a vacuum pump to be used to remove all air from system/oil

I said "To add onto what Pete has already said, you will need to have all traces of the old oil removed.". While I didn't come out and say 'evacuate system', that's pretty much what it means.

great explination from everyone, as far as what could be wrong with it, i wouldnt be surprised if its the compressor, thats what i had to get replaced on mine, if you cant do it yourself it costs around $500 parts and labor. could be that or the coil as well, or whats mentioned above. i kinda lucked out cause when i bought mine it was already converted to r134a, i charged it and it lasted about a week

Ok so I was wondering if maybe I killed my system or something. I can fully charge it and it blows cooler than hot air but nowhere near cold let alone ice cold. Is there something else besides the refrigerant that makes the air cool?

If your vaccum lines are messed up it could be that the heater air and the cool air are getting mixed together

That, plus you need to make sure the orifice tube is not clogged as can happen some time. Also, I can't remember if it's the orifice tube or the return line, but screwed into the side of the accumulator, on one of those lines, is a small screen. Check to see if that's plugged. Either of these will require evacuation/recovery of the refrigerant.

So what exactly do you mean by this? Does this mean that my ac might not work again?



the longer the system is dead, open to atmosphere , air in system the greater the chances of internal componet damage...living in a very moist environment this is very possible.....the oil absorbs air , the mixture causes a corrosive result...removal of all old oil is required.... the correct oil added then put vacuum pump on system ...if the system holds vacuum then your system may very well operate....if there is a leak and its been years since it operated be prepared to spend money on parts....