| Juan |
Hey guys, this is the only car forum I hang out in so I'm hoping someone can give me a hand with my wife's cars A/C problem. Here's the story: I bought it without AC and after many complaints about heat I finally bought a used system off ebay and installed it myself. I took it to PepBoys (yes I know that was a mistake) and told them to triple check it for leaks before they filled it. They system worked fine for most of the summer but in the fall it was acting like it had a leak. The next spring I took it to a different shop with the same instructions, and the same results.
So with summer fast approaching I want to take ownership of the problem and get it fixed once and for all. Since I know there is dye in the system I got an industrial strength black light and was shocked to see dye everywhere under the hood. I kid you not, it looks like a dye bomb was set off under there :confused: Does anyone know the magic elixir to remove the dye? WD-40, Brake Cleaner, or soap and water did not touch it. If I can get it cleaned up then I might be able to pin-point the problem. |
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| porcupine73 |
| Did you put all new o-rings in when you put in the used system? |
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| Juan |
| Yup, all new AC O rings, the green ones. |
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| keninn |
dunno about dye removing, but if you took it to a REPUTABLE(pep boys??) a/c shop, they will have a "sniffer" that will pinpoint the leak, that is, if you are using standard r12 or 134a. also, the very first step after a/c work, and prior to recharge, is to vacuum the system. this would IMMEDIATELY show any leaks in the system, and remove moisture(EXTREMELY important if using 134a).
and, just for curiosity, how the heck do you buy any car nowdays without a/c installed? |
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| Juan |
quote: Originally posted by keninn
dunno about dye removing, but if you took it to a REPUTABLE(pep boys??) a/c shop, they will have a "sniffer" that will pinpoint the leak, that is, if you are using standard r12 or 134a. also, the very first step after a/c work, and prior to recharge, is to vacuum the system. this would IMMEDIATELY show any leaks in the system, and remove moisture(EXTREMELY important if using 134a).
and, just for curiosity, how the heck do you buy any car nowdays without a/c installed? | |
Yea finding s reputable shop is always a challenge. (and taking it to pep boys, what was I thinking? :confused: :19: ) The second shop has been in business for years and while they don't specilize in AC they did have all the tools, including a sniffer.
The system is 134a and both pep boys and the second shop put the system under vacuum for the better part of a day. The second guy ran the AC system for 2+ hours and using the sniffer inside and out he couldn't find any leaks. He did say that one of the schrader fill valves was a tiny bit loose. I've had tires with slow leaks that were caused by the schrader valve so it seemed like a likely diagnosis.
Since the system was used I don't know how it was removed, actually from the look of it they didn't discharge it properly and let the 134a spray every when they loosened the systems hoses. Also when they shipped it some of the lubricating fluid escaped and was pretty much on everything in the box. In my naive way I was hoping for a concentration of dye on one part that could pin point the problem. Removing it from the AC parts (if possible) still seems to be the best course as there is still a partial charge in there.
I could take it to yet another shop, but I really doubt they will be able to do any better. And even if they can solve the problem they are going to charge me shop rates to do it. I know my limitations when it comes to AC and it is the lack of some specialized tools. (quick google) and with a sniffer costing around $100 that might be in the cards too. That's less than a couple of hours of shop time and I get to use the tool over and over. (edit: after reading a little more detail in the google search, there is dye remover! Got to track some of that stuff down.)
Finally how do you buy a car without AC today? That's a long story that started when my wife wanted a 1950's Nash Metro :19: as her daily driver and ended with a compromise on a Suzuki X90 as its modern day reincarnation. The X90 is basically a Sidekick/Tracker with a funky body. Parts are readily available, unlike the Nash. For whatever reason AC was a dealer installed option. After a long and fruitless search to find a NOS AC kit at a dealer my only choice was to buy used. |
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