How COOL is your SVX?

#1 03-21-2002, 11:00 PM

Today we got up to a blazing 64 degrees. And with the sun shining down on my SVX it got really hot in there, I decided to give the air conditioning a try. I made it go to the coldest (65) but the air it was blowing in was really warm. I then drove about 20 miles home with the "air conditioner" on the whole time and it felt like the heater was on, the air was much warmer then the air outside.

What's the problem?

Earthworm · #2 03-22-2002, 01:06 AM

Did you have your fan on high or auto?

If the fan was on high then it's likely you either need to recharge your A/C and/or it leaked out. Did you have a recent tranny change?

If it was on auto then I'm not sure.

#3 03-22-2002, 01:42 AM

i think that you might need to have it recharged, because mine blows air at about +30. if not then have it looked at

#4 03-23-2002, 02:23 PM

yup, sounds like the freon is free at last! you may want to consider a tranfer to 134a with the price of the old stuff.

SVX10 · #5 04-07-2004, 01:31 PM

Dug up some old posts trying to figure out why my AC isn't cold anymore. A few main questions.

1. Is there any way to tell if I'm out of refrigerant (or if it is too old or whatever the problem would be)

2. How do I know if my AC is 134a or not. It's a '92, so it most likely isn't, right? How much to switch to 134a? Do it yourself job?

3. Is there any way I can see if it is the compressor?

I'm in AZ, so I NEED the AC. Thanks in advance.
-Mat

lee · #6 04-07-2004, 02:19 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by SVX10
Dug up some old posts trying to figure out why my AC isn't cold anymore. A few main questions.

1. Is there any way to tell if I'm out of refrigerant (or if it is too old or whatever the problem would be)

2. How do I know if my AC is 134a or not. It's a '92, so it most likely isn't, right? How much to switch to 134a? Do it yourself job?

3. Is there any way I can see if it is the compressor?

I'm in AZ, so I NEED the AC. Thanks in advance.
-Mat

1. Hook up an A/C pressure gauge (age doesn't matter, it's there or not).

2. When the change from 12 to 134 is made, new fittings are attached. Also the person making the change is required by regulation to affix a sticker in a prominent place so stating (altho' this may not always happen at some shops).

3. First step is to just check the fuses.

4. Next step is to run the climate control diagnostics (it's on here somewhere, search - or ask again, I've got it saved somewhere).

Last, I would recommend paying the $15 or 20 to a shop to diagnose the problem and give you an estimate. There are a lot of things that can be wrong, and the trouble-shooting is lengthy. Any part of the job can be done at home, but most requires either a good vacuum pump or an air compressor and a vacuum attachment (can be sourced from Harbor Freight for less than $20). Why? Because the system has to be emptied out of all air and moisture before new refrigerant is installed.

Mr. Pockets · #7 04-07-2004, 02:42 PM

There's a possibility that nobody's mentioned yet. My AC used to be flaky - the hotter it was outside the less it worked. When it did work, it'd blow cold air for awhile and then shut off and blow hot.

I found, quite accidentally, that the front of my radiator was packed with all kinds of road debris. After cleaning it thoroughly, my AC works perfectly even on the hottest of days.

SVXer95 · #8 04-07-2004, 03:32 PM

About a year after I bought my car I realized that I ran out of refrigerant. When I recharged the system I found that there was a leak coming from one of the fittings. Turns out that as the engine torqued, the fitting became looser and looser. Make sure that you check for leaks in the system, otherwise you will be wasting money with the refill.

Under the hood, right by the radiator there should be a sticker that says what type of refrigerant and how much the system holds. Although R134a is much cheaper than R12, there is nothing like an R12 system. That stuff will ice over your windows! I don't know if you can even get a hold of it anymore. I've never changed over from R12 to R134a, but if you need only to recharge your system with the same stuff, it is very simple. Any recharge kit should come with everything necessary to do the job. A bucket of warm water should also be used to have good transfer of the refrigerant.

Forgot one other thing. The compressor has an electromagnetic clutch on it. Turn on the ac, pop the hood, and see if this is engaging. If not, this is most likely the source of all your problems.

drivemusicnow · #9 04-07-2004, 03:42 PM

yeah with the slight misfortune of R12 catalyzes the reaction of ozone to O2

Landshark · #10 04-07-2004, 03:49 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by SVXer95
Although R134a is much cheaper than R12, there is nothing like an R12 system. That stuff will ice over your windows!

i dunno - my SVX (with R-134a) has the coldest AC of any car i've ever owned, R-12 or R-134a. it'll freeze my face off set at 70 deg. next runner up was my wife's old Cavalier - the only thing that car ever did well.

Chicane · #11 04-07-2004, 08:03 PM

Fun facts: A company named DUPONT invented Freon, and held the patent on it. For a LONG time, anyone who made Freon had to pay money to DUPONT. Then, right before Dupont's patent ran out (and people could start manufacturing freon freely, without paying dividends to dupont), Dupont's OWN scientists 'discovered' that freon was bad for the ozone...but it's okay, because they had 'already' invented a new refrigerant: R134a. And guess who owns the patents on R134a?

Also, R134a is more corrosive and volatile than freon, which is why cars htat have converted usually need a ton of seals replaced: the R134a attacks the seals tt worked fine with freon.

- Rob

Noir · #12 04-07-2004, 08:35 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Chicane
Fun facts: A company named DUPONT invented Freon, and held the patent on it. For a LONG time, anyone who made Freon had to pay money to DUPONT. Then, right before Dupont's patent ran out (and people could start manufacturing freon freely, without paying dividends to dupont), Dupont's OWN scientists 'discovered' that freon was bad for the ozone...but it's okay, because they had 'already' invented a new refrigerant: R134a. And guess who owns the patents on R134a?

Also, R134a is more corrosive and volatile than freon, which is why cars htat have converted usually need a ton of seals replaced: the R134a attacks the seals tt worked fine with freon.

- Rob

all the more reason to use freon......GO BACK TO FREON PEOPLE.....we don't need the ozone, it's all made up by dupont. help me bring an end to the world!!!!!!!!!!!!11

MNYPNNY · #13 04-07-2004, 08:44 PM

I lost my refrigerant due to AAMCO's lovely ability to do everying right, 3 times.
But I haven't had it back to them for sometime.
I set my auto on cold a couple of weeks ago and all it blew was hot air, for like 10 minutes.
I turned it off and turned it back on and then it worked fine.... something goofy with the computer I guess.

FlagstaffSVX · #14 04-08-2004, 03:28 AM

I had the same AC problem in Flagstaff two summers ago. It wasn't refrigerant or radiator, it was the climate controller. Basically, it was stuck on heat and would not switch to AC. Replaced a little servo motor (and got charged 130 for it

) and my AC works fine now...

Well... except that I have to manually controll the broken servo arm for vent, bi-level and defrost.

b3lha · #15 04-08-2004, 05:05 AM

We had our R12 replaced by what they call a "drop in". It's a refrigerant designed to go in place of R12 (which is now illegal in UK). You don't have to make any changes to the system like you would for R134a - it doesn't rot the seals.

I'm told the most effective (and cheapest) stuff to put in is R600, which is a fancy name for plain old camping-stove Butane. I couldn't find any local a/c engineers willing to do it - although I believe it's common practice in some European countries.

Phil.