bobval
26-02-2014, 07:44 AM
Hi all
I'm back, what a bore!. Ok have exhausted the dual Keihin carburetor saga MKRS from Adelaide has with, what turned out to be, an EG model Civic. Different setup entirely from an ED3. I still say give the Techron 5000 solution a real tryout, up to a month or so to get a contaminated fuel system clean. This blurb is about air conditioner service? You can not service an AC system, all ac are fully enclosed, nothing can leak, nothing can degenerate other than by actual fault. So it is a repair, not a service that is needed should the cursed thing not create a cool air flow into the cabin. The first and only test the home owner can and should do is stick an accurate probe type thermometer into the central dash air outlet, run the ac at full cold, fan rate 2/3 all windows closed, and drive for at least ten minutes or at least until the engine is at operating temperature. The human body is not a thermometer, warm to some is cool to others, we need math here, not emotional feeling. Right! the ambient air temperature and current pressure must be known, the car is then parked in full shade with absolutely no sunlight striking window glass, and no hot wind either. Your beloved Matsushita ac compressor is a vane type, designed for low power engines in the 1980's. Today's ac compressors are vastly more efficient and variable displacement designs. Small ac compressors equals minimal cooling so do not expect miracles. No ac of any size must operate below about +4 deg C, the risk of freeze up at the evaporator would be too high otherwise. All said an ac converted from R12 to R134A should produce an outlet temperature between +5 (ambient below 12 Deg C) and +7 deg C at ambient around +20 deg C with perhaps as high as 10 deg C at 35 deg C. Do not freak over an ambient higher than 35 deg C, a cabin at 30 deg C with OAT over 40 deg C is bloody marvelous. The ac is a cooling device not a refrigerator, the human body is comfortable in the 18-24 deg C range, achieve this and you have no problems, irrespective of ac workshops cajoling you into what is alleged as a, service? All that can be done to an operating ac is to do a needless pressure test, a complete evacuation of the existing R134A gas (in liquid form) and then recharge the whole system, attach an R134A recharge sticker, and Bob's your uncle! after forking out anywhere between $150 to $500. Buy lottery tickets or plunge on the horses, better value. An ac will fail rapidly once seals, O rings or pipes begin to leak R134A, a compressor failure is immediate, you will surely hear and recognize this type of failure. Sorry folks, ac repair is a different kettle of fish, this is not a service, count on at least $1000 sitting in the bank before considering a full overhaul. Car ac should run faultless for at least 15 years, mine has already lasted 23 years and is OEM specs. The R134A conversion seems to have been done in 2010, no pipes, seals, o rings or receiver filter was changed. I was informed yesterday by a licensed AC fitter that this the normal procedure for older cars during conversion, if no leaks in system, and OEM specs under R12 are right, leave it alone, just a full 1 hr R12 evacuation, fit R134A service valves over the existing R12 threaded valves, set them in locknut and replace R12 with R134A refrigerant to the exact quantity using a PG oil, attach the conversion sticker by law. Total cost around $200. Hopefully you will now have a fully tested ac good for another 15 years, maybe! Do not get sucked in to a waste of money, if the ac feels cool enough for you, just make sure you run it at least once a week, winter and summer. Very few cars will still be running working ac under R12, if a 23 year old R12 system fails, just open the windows.
I'm back, what a bore!. Ok have exhausted the dual Keihin carburetor saga MKRS from Adelaide has with, what turned out to be, an EG model Civic. Different setup entirely from an ED3. I still say give the Techron 5000 solution a real tryout, up to a month or so to get a contaminated fuel system clean. This blurb is about air conditioner service? You can not service an AC system, all ac are fully enclosed, nothing can leak, nothing can degenerate other than by actual fault. So it is a repair, not a service that is needed should the cursed thing not create a cool air flow into the cabin. The first and only test the home owner can and should do is stick an accurate probe type thermometer into the central dash air outlet, run the ac at full cold, fan rate 2/3 all windows closed, and drive for at least ten minutes or at least until the engine is at operating temperature. The human body is not a thermometer, warm to some is cool to others, we need math here, not emotional feeling. Right! the ambient air temperature and current pressure must be known, the car is then parked in full shade with absolutely no sunlight striking window glass, and no hot wind either. Your beloved Matsushita ac compressor is a vane type, designed for low power engines in the 1980's. Today's ac compressors are vastly more efficient and variable displacement designs. Small ac compressors equals minimal cooling so do not expect miracles. No ac of any size must operate below about +4 deg C, the risk of freeze up at the evaporator would be too high otherwise. All said an ac converted from R12 to R134A should produce an outlet temperature between +5 (ambient below 12 Deg C) and +7 deg C at ambient around +20 deg C with perhaps as high as 10 deg C at 35 deg C. Do not freak over an ambient higher than 35 deg C, a cabin at 30 deg C with OAT over 40 deg C is bloody marvelous. The ac is a cooling device not a refrigerator, the human body is comfortable in the 18-24 deg C range, achieve this and you have no problems, irrespective of ac workshops cajoling you into what is alleged as a, service? All that can be done to an operating ac is to do a needless pressure test, a complete evacuation of the existing R134A gas (in liquid form) and then recharge the whole system, attach an R134A recharge sticker, and Bob's your uncle! after forking out anywhere between $150 to $500. Buy lottery tickets or plunge on the horses, better value. An ac will fail rapidly once seals, O rings or pipes begin to leak R134A, a compressor failure is immediate, you will surely hear and recognize this type of failure. Sorry folks, ac repair is a different kettle of fish, this is not a service, count on at least $1000 sitting in the bank before considering a full overhaul. Car ac should run faultless for at least 15 years, mine has already lasted 23 years and is OEM specs. The R134A conversion seems to have been done in 2010, no pipes, seals, o rings or receiver filter was changed. I was informed yesterday by a licensed AC fitter that this the normal procedure for older cars during conversion, if no leaks in system, and OEM specs under R12 are right, leave it alone, just a full 1 hr R12 evacuation, fit R134A service valves over the existing R12 threaded valves, set them in locknut and replace R12 with R134A refrigerant to the exact quantity using a PG oil, attach the conversion sticker by law. Total cost around $200. Hopefully you will now have a fully tested ac good for another 15 years, maybe! Do not get sucked in to a waste of money, if the ac feels cool enough for you, just make sure you run it at least once a week, winter and summer. Very few cars will still be running working ac under R12, if a 23 year old R12 system fails, just open the windows.