 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
Car Forum / BMW Cars / May 2008E30 Air conditioning
Over the last several years, the air conditioning on my E30 has gotten weaker and weaker. Now I can't tell if the air is any cooler at all with it on. Is this likely to need only a refrigerant recharge? Ron > Over the last several years, the air conditioning on my E30 has gotten > weaker and weaker. Now I can't tell if the air is any cooler at all with > it on. Is this likely to need only a refrigerant recharge? > Ron Not exactly. There is a leak somewhere. The problem is finding the leak. Having found the leak, you fix it. It might happen that you lose all of the refrigerant while performing the repair.. If that happens, you need a new drier in addition to the other parts. Finally, you are ready for a recharge. Of course, you could just recharge it again and again and again. You will eventually get tired of buying more refrigerant though. Jim >Over the last several years, the air conditioning on my E30 has gotten >weaker and weaker. Now I can't tell if the air is any cooler at all with >it on. Is this likely to need only a refrigerant recharge? If you've run it down to THAT point, it probably needs at least a new receiver-drier because it has air in the system now. And almost certainly it has a slow leak somewhere which caused the problem in the first place. --scott  Signature"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis." > Over the last several years, the air conditioning on my E30 has > gotten > weaker and weaker. Now I can't tell if the air is any cooler at > all with > it on. Is this likely to need only a refrigerant recharge? That's all I'd have done if it were mine. AIUI all a/c systems will eventually stop working through gas leakage. If yours has lasted a few years, the chances are that a proper service, evacuation, and a refill wth gas and oil will have it working again for at least a year or two. Mike >> Over the last several years, the air conditioning on my E30 has gotten >> weaker and weaker. Now I can't tell if the air is any cooler at all with [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > evacuation, and a refill wth gas and oil will have it working again for at > least a year or two. You are overlooking one BIG thing here. If this is an unmodified system, it uses R-12 refrigerant. The expense of keeping a a leaking system full would be significant. I would find it, fix it, and fill it. >>> Over the last several years, the air conditioning on my E30 >>> has gotten [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > full would be significant. I would find it, fix it, and fill > it. I'm not overlooking anything. All car a/c systems leak. What matters is how quickly they leak. If the OP's system has only leaked over a period of years, the chances are that all it needs is evacuation and a refill with gas and oil. Maybe it is an unmodified system, designed for R12 gas, but that doesn't mean it can't be refilled with a suitable alternative. R134a 'can' be used, but not at the same pressure as it is in a R134a system. Even if it only lasts for a year, it would still be cheaper than the cost of converting an R12 system to R134a specifications. In any case, asking to have it refilled with an alternative gas is probably the easiest way to find out if the a/c is still working, as any serious leak would show up in the process. It would probably cost just as much to have an a/c engineer check it. Mike.
|
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2008 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.