Type of Freon in my car?

[stang2244]

Can anyone tell me what type of freon comes stock in a 1987 BMW 325E? I need to know if its R12 or R134A and I dont want to pay the a/c guys $80/hr to find this out for me. Thanks alot

Andy

[BMWTECH]

Your vehicle contains R12. The capacity is 2.14 lbs. You should see a sticker that is behind the rf headlight on a plastick panel in front of the washer fluid reservoir. It is possible that it has been converted, but doubtful. How you check is, Your AC lines run along the fender on the right side. Your high side connections is behind the hood shock on the right front and your low side connection is on the right front strut tower. Check these for adapters that have been installed. If the threads are on the outside of the connection it is still R12. IF the threads are on the inside of it then it is R134A. 134 uses a snap fit connection as R12 uses a screw on fit.

[stang2244]

Sounds great, thanks alot for your help. You gave me a much more in depth exlpanation than I could find anywhere. Im going to go perform the check you mentioned and see what I can find.

Thanks again!!
Andy

[BMWTECH]

anytime

[stang2244]

Ok, I checked it out and I can clearly see all the threads on the outside of all connections so it seems to have not yet been converted. That right there saves me the $30 inspection fee at the local Econo Lube. Should I just go in there and say "My car needs to be recharged, it has R12 freon in it so it also must be converted" and see what itll cost?

Thanks
Andy

[BMWTECH]

Yeah you have R12 and yes it has not been converted. The cost difference of the two is night and day as far as the freon part of the conversion. There is ALOT of speculations of what has to be changed for the conversion. Typically it takes about 80% freon less than the R12. Also some people want a slightly smaller condenser for a better cooling characteristics. Some people change the compressor/oil, dryer and flush the entire system. Also typically a converted system won't cool just as good as the R12 system you had in there. There are instances that it works fine, but the other times it could vary approx 5-10*. R12 is becoming extinct and its just so damn expensive because of it. If you have a leak in the system and you have to have R12 than you are just pissing away money if you don't fix the leak first. Also another note, the particles of R134A are smaller than R12. Meaning that the new 134a will leak in places that the R12 wouldn't have. This said, they do make a type of freon called FR12 or freeze12 as some people say. The fr12 typically isn't the greatest freon but it will work. I have heard at some point that a type of freon out there, in the past, could have been fr12 contained propane particles. I know many of people that have used the fr12 and had great luck with it, cheap, no conversion and if it leaks all out once every 8 months or so, your saving alot of money in the long run. Sorry for the book, AC systems can be tricky at times, especially weighing the pro's and cons.

[stang2244]

So are you saying its still possible to find R12 as well as the FR12 you talk about? If so, can I just buy some of that and refill it myself? Im sure it takes a special tool but could you inform me if this is possible. Youve been a great help already.

thanks
Andy

[BMWTECH]

You have to have a liscense to buy R12 and its upwards of $60 a can!!! The FR12 is WAY less, probably 5-10 bucks a can, should be able to be found locally at your parts store. In fact they probaly have a refill kit that comes with it. If not you would need a set of guages for R12 and a can adapter. The R12 and FR12 are the same classification so your cool using the gauges on it.