I have a 1992 Accord EX. The A/C has always worked well, but for the past several months, the a/c belt started squeaking for 10 seconds or so every time I turned on the car after the car had been soaking in the sun. After 10 seconds or so, the squeaking would stop. If the car was not sitting in the sun, no squeaking.

A few days ago, the I noticed the idle starting to oscillate and pulled over and the a/c belt was starting to smoke. My mechanic says that the compressor needs to be replaced, trouble is, no one wants to touch my car as they say they can't reclaim the R12 and can't find the proper parts. Even the dealership turned me down. Thus I may be doing this job on my own.

Fortunately, I have plenty of R12 to recharge the system myself, but I'm not sure where to buy a compressor and a drier. I see conflicting information on whether to buy rebuilt compressors or use a new compressor. Also, are new driers compatible with R12, if not where do I find an appropriate drier.

Any help is appreciated.

 

i would get a 2nd opinion on replacing the ac unit mite just be a belt issue or the pulley and not the hole unit

 

blakem,
A smokin' belt is not good..probably a seized compressor.

I am not an expert, but I've dabbled with mobile A/C systems. I had good success converting my old '91 Civic w/ R-12 to R-134a, & I converted a '90 Corolla as well. I was doing an engine swap on the Civic, so I removed every A/C component, flushed with mineral spirits and replaced the drier during re-installation. It worked great for over 10K miles, but then the transmission took a dump.

I would do a little more research on some place that will recover the R-12 for you. I can't believe they can refuse to do it..hello, EPA, what are my options? They certainly don't want you venting that R-12 into the atmosphere! Maybe a place that sells refrigerant commercially (to the HVAC guys) has the capability to recover R-12?

If your compressor has seized (black death??), there may be pieces of debris in the system that will reduce the ability to cool efficiently in the future, you should crack open the A/C and flush anyway to remove the debris.

Another good resource for mobile A/C systems is Arizona Mobile Air..I picked up a lot of good advice from them as I was learning on my own cars..they have an internet forum as well, but I have not checked in there in a few years.

Sorry I don't have any good news for you..If it were me, I'd find a place to recover the R-12 and get a re-man compressor, new drier and convert to R-134a.
Good Luck with whatever you decide.

 

look for this denso compressor

Amazon.com: Denso 471-1186 New Compressor with Clutch: Automotive

Any drier should be okay. Find a shop to recover the R12. You will have to flush the entire AC system. If there are metal bits you will have to replace the condensor and maybe the expansion valve as well. Thats where all the metal debris would be.

At this time you can convert to R134. You just need to make sure none of the old lubricating oil is in there and switch EVERYTHING to PAG 46.

If you want to stay with R12 you will need to find the old oil. I think they use ester oils for R12

 

Most of the time, the new parts will work with both R-12 and 134a...

It might be a good time to think about converting to 134a. Heck if you have "plenty" of r-12, you might be able to sell it on ebay and more than pay for the parts needed to convert....last time I looked, the 12oz cans of r-12 were selling on e-bay for $35~$45 a can ...if you've got a jug, you are golden....you'll make money.

 

screw it, just vent the r12 to atmosphere and then pull the compressor yourself. you wouldn't be the first person to do it...

 

I might be a newbie to this forum, but that is an unacceptable response. What is wrong with you?? Are you gonna let your children deal with our issues & the things we've learned?

Are you the same guy that tosses those Wendy's Baconator cheesburger wrappers in my yard as you drive by? How's your cholesterol numbers, Jeff??


-Shawn

 

Venting R12 is illegal in some (most?)states.

I thought that shops had to recycle R12, but I could definitely be wrong.

 

I found a shop that works with R12. They want $98 to recover the R12. They estimated about $1200 to replace the compressor. They also refused to convert it to R134a saying that they have a lot more problems with leaks with R134a and the system doesn't blow as cold.

I have a 30 lb tank of R12, but of course they won't let me bring that in, they want to charge me $375 to use their R12.

With plenty of R12 and a system that currently doesn't leak, wouldn't you recommend that I just stick with an R12 system?

 

... it's called sarcasm.