A/c Recharge - My junk blows warm, can anyone walk me through a recharge 01+

[longhornsqx4]

This is for an 01 Qx4

Basically when I bought the car 2 years ago the a/c was minty and blew cold. Now its pretty much is useless if it gets over 25 outside. I figure I must be low on the gas and possibly need a recharge??

They charge WAY to much to refill your system locally. nNd I have found this kit for $57 after tax. Does it come with everything I would need to recharge my a/c? I know nothing about a/c, nor where this needs to be hooked to, or exactly how to function the refill. Dont know if there is multiple steps etc.

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST...ws_li

Hoping to fix my a/c this week as its starting to get hot. And Id really like to learn how to do it myself.

Thanks very much guys

[longhornsqx4]

No body has ever touched there a/c system on these cars?

Im stumped on how to do this or what to buy here

[JonathanPrem]

I'm Planning on doing this soon to. I think the kit will include everything but honestly have no idea until i actually see and read the product.

[longhornsqx4]

SO instead of paying the $200ish to get it filled at the shops local, I decided to grab my own kit while it was onsale, but I am really unsure of ANYTHING on how to go about this.

Basically my car will still have some charge left in it right? I have to get rid of that right before i put the new stuff in since I think its different than oem stuff? I also dont know exactly where Im tapping into, Ive got a linetap on the drivers side front that has a teal cap labelled H, and a linetap on the passenger side closer to the firewall that isnt capped at all.

And the directions on the package are pretty shotty, they say nothing about turning the car on or when to do that, or much about filling procedure and getting rid of the old charge thats left.

Heres some pics



Excuse the big pic, but these are the instructions.



Any help would be much appreciated

[Lars]

Ok, a couple things... There are two types of refrigerant, R12 and R134. R12 is the old stuff that eats a hole in the ozone layer. R134 is the more modern stuff that isn't quite as bad. Make sure you get the right type. I think you should have R134 in your system. There should be a sticker somewhere under the hood describing the A/C and type of refrigerant. If your A/C still blows a little cold, then you can simply add some refrigerant... but if you need to add refrigerant, you HAVE A LEAK somewhere and it will be a temporary fix. How temporary depends on the size of the leak. Again, if your A/C still blows a little cold, your leak probably isn't that bad. Your A/C system has two ports, a high and a low. The high side should be marked with a 'H' the low with a 'L'. The directions on the package are about right... just be sure to follow step by step.

Now, if your A/C is completely empty and does not blow cold at all, you need to get it fixed and have a professional vacuum all the air out of the system and add the refrigerant. Air in the system will significantly lessen the life of your A/C mostly due to corrosion caused by moisture and O2.

[QX4dahuneys]

It's best if you seek a mechanic, these things can get very tricky. I once tried doing this myself and blew the ac compressor. All I'm saying is try to becareful, cause you might think it's going to be cheap but if something goes wrong you might be paying more than those 200ish.

Currently my ac compressor on my QX4 is a dud, local mechanic is charging me over 300 dollars. Dealer charges over a gran.