The a/c went out on the car...a hose broke and I lost all the freon. Now what??...have any of you switched over to the new 134a refrigerant? If so, how much did it cost you and what did they change. I was told the dryer has to be replaced, the lines flushed and fittings replaced.....and I was also told that the 134a system has more pressure and you may have to replace the compressor or the old compressor may fail. Any A/C guys out there who can confirm any of this ??,,,, and do you recommend the switch over. R12 is now 3.50/oz....wow!! how much does the rx7 hold??...thanks for all of your help..........cjf................................. ..............

 

Go with the 134r you should only need to replace the drier and the broken line. The only reason that your compressor will fail is if your system is not evacuated properly. The reason for this is the chlorides in the different refridgerants don't mix well together. They combine and corrode the inside of the compresser causeing compressioin failure.

 

Where can I get a new dryer?

 

I did the switch from r12 to r134, i bought a kit from j.c. whitny, for like $ 35.00 US.. and my a/c works awesome
if you do it yourself make sure you connect the new
(incoming) freon to the compressure with the (S) for
suction .

 

I did it myself with the $40 kit. I didn't evacuate **** or change jack **** except the fittings to get the new stuff in. It blows cool during the day, cold at night. I live in Texas.

Maybe I am shortening the life of my compressor but oh well, what's done is done. Worry about that when the damn thing fails.

Right on

 

Make the switch. If I remember correctly a 12 ac holds 3lbs.
hanman

 

Which one should I get?

JC-Whitney R134A A/C Conversion kits

EDIT:

Someone posted that the dryer needs to be replaced as well. What about the that?

 

I was told you have to flush the system before you go to 134a. Some of you who might be having a problem, this may be why. You can't mix'em. None the less, this is what I am told locally but I wanted someone who has "experience" and has done the whole thing, and what is the cost?... Does a kit include the fitting?..how about the dryer, did you replace it?...They are about $50.00 -$60.00 bucks....how about the freon...how much is the 134a ?...thanks..keep pumping info. in here for me...

 

i bought the one from j,c,witney, seemed about as good
as the rest,,all the fittings,oil,r134 cans(2),everything
came as a kit,,conversion from r12,, if anything you'll
have all the hardware for r134 ,, just have the system
pumped empty,,it's just a pump,,it works,,and save $$
rather then having someone do it for you

 

the coldest and longest lastingresult would require complete flushing of the R12 first. But, even if done right, the R134 conversion to a system designed for R12 will never be near as cold as what the R12 gave you.

So, paying the extra $ and recharge with R12 or convert to R134 (comfort wise) depends on how hot/humid it gets in your area

 

Are you sure about that, my dad has been in the refrigerant business for 38 years, he will beg to differ with ya on that... However it takes less? (cant remember if he said less or more) R134a than it did R12....

Change the hose that broke, change the accumulator (i think thats what you are calling a dryer-cylinder thing in front of the car) and put R134a fittings on the compressor (no need to buy a kit, I got some fittings from a local garage for $3/ea), pull a vacuum on it for a hour or so. Then turn the pump off, if the system holds a vacuum for an hour or so, then you are OK. Fill with R134a and r134a compressor oil, i think? its 80% of what the R12 capacity is

After I did that on my car, the bio therm I had in the vent, showed it getting pretty damn cold! If R134a doesnt get as cold, then why does every car on the road use it now? Other than the goverment bullshit they pulled a while back to drive the price up?

 

scratch the airconditioning. You dont need it. it takes away your power! plus, youll have less weight. (hey, every pound counts).

 

but if you need, my buddys dad had an airconditioning repair company(for cars) back in the day, ill ask........

 

i did the conversion and i didnt change nothing. i brought mine in auto zone for $37.00 with all the thing you need.

 

I was told the new stuff will not as well as the old stuff as from my car too. I had my system refilled about two years ago and it was only $50. and it is very cold

 

with the weight you will save you will gain if all the fly that will be coming after your smellie self.

 

 

I did the R12 to R134a conversion on my old Volkswagen Jetta and when I traded it in about two years later it was still cooling fine. The 83 RX-7 I had about 15 years ago was "topped off" with a few ounces of R22 and it worked fine for many years. On my current 83 RX-7, I can feel the hoses get cool, but the air from the vents isn't cool enough to cool the car down so I need to do something. Right now I'm considering a change over to R134a or a change over to Freeze-12 (Amazon.com). Can anyone who has converted on their own without removal of the old stuff tell me how long ago you converted and if it is still cooling OK today?

 

I had my r12 system evacuated and refilled with r134a. Didn't change a thing...no o-rings, no drier...nothing. It has cooled great for 3 months so far. It has been a typicaly hot Texas summer so far and my A/C has worked awesome. I do have a new drier, maybe I'll put it in.....

 

I filled mine with I-12 (there is a thread on it) Works great. Cheeper then r134a and cools as well as R-12.

 

Well, I did end up retrofitting mine with 134a and now I regret it. I used the Autozone kit and did not evacuate first as the kit instructions said it was not necessary. It does get really cold, but it robs a lot of power from then engine: Idle is half what it was before and it is very noticeable power rob at city driving. I also think my AC clutch might be going. Everything works fine while the AC is on, but I noticed the AC clutch is slowly engaging with the air off.At first glance it looks like it is rubbing. I'm hoping I can just clean with something like break parts cleaner and it will be fine but I have a feeling it will need to be replaced. Hopefully I can live with it for a few months until it cools off here. Plus, that will give me time to find a used AC compressor and someone who will fill with R12. Every place I've called want to do the retrofit. If I have to retrofit again I'll look at I-12 or Freeze 12.

 

Check your throttle opener & related vacuum circuit.

 

Not to jack this thread but how do I get everything out of the AC system. I mean I want all of it gone and only heater left. Should save like 100 pounds total right?

 

100 lbs? I doubt it. Maybe, 35-45 lbs.

 

the 65 pound difference includes the amount of water you will lose from sweating you *** off