air conditioning recharge

[lenso]

I've got a s13 with a ka24de compressor. It was running cold the last time I checked in March (cold and light on the AC button was on) and now its warm (the light on the AC button does not light up). I tried using a retrofit kit but the low pressure line is too close to the turbo intake. I went to Midas today and they didn't want to touch my car since I don't have the stock motor. What can I do to get my system recharged? Anyone tried routing or moving the line?

[lenso]

bump

[doridori23]

If your ac light doesn't come on you might not be sending power tot he relay that would engage the electro-magnetic clutch on the compressor. What are your line pressures? If you have the filler with a gauge just the low side would be enough. There are only a few things that would tell the compressor not to engage low line pressure, low freon temp (to prevent ice forming in the a/c lines), and I forget ( have been up since 5am according to my first posts and it is midnight) Let me know what you get and we'll go from there.

[lenso]

i'll check the relay and the rest of the system this weekend. thanks for the help. i'll let you know what i find.

[afracer]

You have a leak in your system somewhere and are low on freon. It only makes sense since you didn't use it for a while. Below a certain pressure the low pressure switch turns on and won't allow the compressor to engage or the A/C light to come on in order to protect A/C components. It's doing what it's supposed to do. Now you need to do what you're supposed to do and find and fix the leak! Replace all the O-rings and get some UV dye!

[lenso]

so i recharged the system and the ac works now. i used a retrofit kit and now im running r134a and its as cold as it was when it was r12. the ac light problem still exists but i think its just a bad light. when the light is off, the compressor is still running and blowing cold.

thanks for everyones input!

[austins240]

i'm assuming this is on an SR?

i'm curious as to what you did with the retro fit. My AC was working fine until about two weeks ago when it stopped blowing cold. The comp still turns on, AC light stays on etc but it's not cold. I'm assuming the system needs to be serviced/charged.

since i'm still r12, need to do the conversion. but as in one of your posts, the port on the compressor (i'm not AC tech, don't know the "lingo" sorry) line is really close to the intake on the turbo.

would you mind posting some pics or maybe a writeup on the conversion? i think it would be very good for those of us that don't know the AC system too well :P

[lenso]

My brother and I figured there was air in the system which was why the compressor clutch wasn't turning on. Since you can't recharge with r12, you will need to purge the entire system anyway which would get the air out if any. Then get a retrofit kit from an autoparts store. The kit usually comes with a few cans of r134a, a hose, and some adapters for the high and low side. Using just the items supplied in the kit was impossible due to the intake, so I got an extension hose to get it to work. Just put the adapter on the low side, then the extension hose, and then put the intake pipe back on (I have a stock intake so it was flexible to accommodate the adapter and hose). Then refill and you're good to go.

[austins240]

interesting. so the longer hose (extension) off of the compressor is on the fender well or something? how did you get air into the system? were you able to check for leaks?

also, i'm assuming you took it to a shop to get the system purged and removed of air?

i need to get mine done pretty soon but i'm afraid mine would be leaking as i've HEARD the R134a has a smaller molecule than the R12 and it will leak out of the seals easier than the R12 on the origional system.

[lenso]

interesting. so the longer hose (extension) off of the compressor is on the fender well or something? how did you get air into the system? were you able to check for leaks?

also, i'm assuming you took it to a shop to get the system purged and removed of air?

i need to get mine done pretty soon but i'm afraid mine would be leaking as i've HEARD the R134a has a smaller molecule than the R12 and it will leak out of the seals easier than the R12 on the origional system.

you'll need a extension because the hose that comes with the kit is really short. you won't be able to shake the can because theres too much piping in that area (intake, ic pipe). i didn't move the compressor lines at all. everything is stock. the extension hose is just for the recharge kit.

if you've never seen one before heres a pic of one.

you see how short that hose is?

[austins240]

hahahha, that sucks. i'll have to dissasemble my intake system to use that. APEXi super suction intake and hotpipe pretty much swamp that area completely.

thanks for the info, i'm going to try to look into my system problems this weekend.