a/c issues part III (or IV OR V)

[landtoy80]

As for the "crap guage", when the neighbor filled his A/C. My crap guage said high. I told him to let some pressure out. He did but only a little. I checked it again and it was still high. He drove it and the compressor died taking out the bearing for the clutch.

Yes its a "crap" guage but it worked

 

[Rich]

I will say that your standards and my standards for acceptable quality of work vary substantially. My responses are based on what are commonly accepted practices in commercial repair of automotive ac systems. If you are happy with your outcome that is fine with me.

 

[landtoy80]

I will say that your standards and my standards for acceptable quality of work vary substantially. My responses are based on what are commonly accepted practices in commercial repair of automotive ac systems. If you are happy with your outcome that is fine with me.

If you seed pic of the TRUD you would see what my stardards are
As for the 80. Its going to the SnapOn A/C machine at work to get it evac and filled when I replace the O-ring.
I have two sets of standards. One for the good vehicle (the 80) and one for the Junky truck/s.

 

[montelawrence]

Ac Compressors Cheap!

972-723-0112 Ask for greg. I paid 190.00 for compressor for a 93 LC (TechChoice Distributiors)

 

[landtoy80]

All the R134 leaked out somewhere. I then threw the a/c system out into the driveway!
The TRUD has no air anymore.

 

[inacoma]

No fear here. I service my own AC.

What I was attempting to communicate is that a proper and professional approach to servicing an AC system starts with monitoring the low side and high side pressures with the system operating while at the same time monitoring the ambient temp in front of the condenser and the output temp at the dash vent.

There are a number of problems that can result in poor AC performance. If the system already has sufficient or too much refrigerant, then adding more is a bad thing to do.

OK, i royally screwed up. ---- btw, here is where my edit deleted my post. ---

I've got the pressures back down. Actually LOWER than what the FSM states for. But now I'm ready to charge. If I charge the high side (with engine off), will the low side go up as it's supposed to or should I add to the low side at the same time or seperatly? I'm going to guess: charge high side to fsm spec...let low side sit where it sits.

new edit: How does one charge the system to the high side with a manfold? I hooked up one of those cans and it just didn't have enough pressure to overcome the pressure in the high side. so what I did was make the rpm 1500, keep the gauge on the high side and fill up from the low side. I went to 15kg, then I re-hooked up the low side and it read 1.5kg (a bit low, BUT now the high side read close if not over 20kg...what happened?)....now at IDLE, the low side goes up to 2.5 (which is nice), AND the high side goes to a perfect 15kg (which is nice). But the fsm says to check these things at 1500 rpm, and that's when things go a bit crappy.



kumar
816.213.5174 if you want to call me....i'll keep the conversation short

 

[Rich]

Good god don't ever hook up the little cans to the high side! Read the warning on the can. The can could explode. If you get liquid R134 in your eyes you will never be driving again!

I started my first post in this thread with the statement "I'm no expert on automotive AC." and that's the truth. I do not present myself as being qualified to remotely diagnose your ac and tell you how to correct whatever problems it has and am not comfortable in providing step by step instructions on how you should recharge your system.

I do offer the following: The little cans are only to be hooked up to the low side, never the high side. The procedure in the factory service manual does not use the little disposable cans. Secondly, a proper set of AC manifold gauges will allow you to monitor both high side and low side pressures while charging the system. Thirdly, in answer to your question, the AC system is a closed loop, adding refrigerant to the low side is adding refrigerent to the entire system, which includes the high side. The low side is the portion of the loop before the compressor intake. The high side is the portion of the loop after the compressor output.

I will followup in a seperate posting of some links to manifold gauges and online instructions on recharging auto ac systems.

 

[inacoma]

Good god don't ever hook up the little cans to the high side! Read the warning on the can. The can could explode. If you get liquid R134 in your eyes you will never be driving again!

I started my first post in this thread with the statement "I'm no expert on automotive AC." and that's the truth. I do not present myself as being qualified to remotely diagnose your ac and tell you how to correct whatever problems it has and am not comfortable in providing step by step instructions on how you should recharge your system.

I do offer the following: The little cans are only to be hooked up to the low side, never the high side. The procedure in the factory service manual does not use the little disposable cans. Secondly, a proper set of AC manifold gauges will allow you to monitor both high side and low side pressures while charging the system. Thirdly, in answer to your question, the AC system is a closed loop, adding refrigerant to the low side is adding refrigerent to the entire system, which includes the high side. The low side is the portion of the loop before the compressor intake. The high side is the portion of the loop after the compressor output.

I will followup in a seperate posting of some links to manifold gauges and online instructions on recharging auto ac systems.

Hey Rich thanks for the answers. I did go ahead and inadvertantly head those warnings. I did figure a few things out while sitting out there reading and surfin'. i.e. using the center yellow hose to do the filling while monitoring both sides of the pressure (thanks for the reconfirmation). All in all, i'm ready to explain stuff to others the next time. between you, directions, fsm etc i know enough to be dangerous.

All in all, I found the FSM to be a little low in the high side numbers...just a tad....granted, we have a high humid day today so the relative outside temp was probably higher than the stated 85 readout, so I should err on the higher end of pressure. So what I did was hook the gauges up to a buddy's 80 series whose AC worked awesome. I matched his numbers to my truck and now my AC works awesome as well. everything is within spec and i'm a happy, cool, man....safely.

thanks to everyone for their help, hope this post helps others when they do a search!

Kumar
...on to other mods.

 

[medtro]

I read somewhere if your fan clutch is not at 100%, your pressure readings are going to be slightly higher.

What are your high and low readings now at 1500 RPM? (just want to know for future reference)

 

[inacoma]

I read somewhere if your fan clutch is not at 100%, your pressure readings are going to be slightly higher.

What are your high and low readings now at 1500 RPM? (just want to know for future reference)

at 1500 rpm on 85* 80% humidity (probably higher).

low was 2
high was near 20

these are all kg/cm2 (something like that)

Kumar

 

[Riley]

Warning.... old thread back to top

Sorry to dig up this old thread but it seemed to be the most complete and relevent.

Anyway over the weekend we had very warm temps up here in BC and I noticed that my AC wasn't very well. After doing some MUD investigation I decided to check my belts and the bubble window:

- My belts seem OK (but do need to be replaced with the OEM ones sitting in my tool box since last spring)

- AND I do see bubbles in the window.

I'm thinking I'd just get the AC serviced by a pro. So my question is -

Is the AC system on an 80 pretty standard and thus any good AC shop should be able to deal with it?

OR should I take to the dealer for service?

Basically I'm trying to figure out where to take it, dealer OR a shop that's known for AC service (which I haven't found yet).

Thanks

 

[semlin]

Riley, how bad is it? My a/c went onfor the first time this weekend and was pretty anemic saturday but by sunday afternoon it was ok. Maybe they need to stay in practice?

 

[Rich]

In the US there are AC shops that only do AC work. If you can find one, I would expect that the techs would have more AC expertise than you may get a general service dealer shop.

As far as I know, your Land Cruiser AC is nothing special compared to any other auto AC. I would expect that its components are common to many Japanese vehicles.

Note that some bubbles are to be expected in an R134 system. No bubbles would indicate either an empty system or an system that is overcharged. Of course, too many bubbles does indicate an undercharge. Probably just needs a recharge.

For your own curiosity check all of the visible conections in the AC system underhood for dirt adhering to leaking oil. Where the AC oil leaks, freon leaks, and dirt often adheres.

 

[GXO]

Took mine to a shop, converted to R134 from R12 (in the 3FE monster) and I can hang meat in there. I am in HOTlanta and have no issues. I would take it to a shop you are friendly with and get it over with. I prefer not to monkey with high pressure systems carryin nasty cold chemicals

 

[Riley]

Riley, how bad is it? My a/c went onfor the first time this weekend and was pretty anemic saturday but by sunday afternoon it was ok. Maybe they need to stay in practice?

Well Simon on Saturday it was totally lame. I could feel cool air coming from the vents but after awhile I gave up and put the windows down. It was cooler with the windows down. I think for $100, I'd like to have it running top notch. I don't think I drove it much on Sunday.

The bubbles look pretty big (not foamy), I think the pressures should be checked against spec and I'll try to find a good shop to do that for me.

 

[flintknapper]

Don't take this the wrong way......but

Rich is the only person here that is giving any advise worth following.

I can't believe what I'm reading here, from people that are pretty knowlegable in other areas.

Gauges are the ONLY way to accurately diagnose your a/c system PERIOD!

Even with gauges you must be familiar with what they are telling you.

High and Low side readings are only a small part of the equation. They can fluctuate, the needles may bounce, they may stay steady or rise and fall on one side only, etc. indicating different problems.

If you have a "significant" leak FIX IT, it is pointless and irresponsible to keep feeding your a/c system refrigerant.

Adding oil (if not needed) is one of the best ways to decrease your a/c's performance.

You NEVER add refrigerant to the high side (unless you have evacuated the system, pulled a full vacuum on it, and with engine off....are rapid charging, and then fine tuning with the low side).

What are pressures supposed to be? They change with the ambient temperature (measured a few inches in front of the condensor). So, unless you can match the amb. temp. stated in the FSM then you need to know what temps. correspond.

As far as a sight glass is concerned... the Cruiser is sold in quite a few countries where their primary use is far away from a qualified a/c shop. It can be used (remedially) to check for certain conditions...with the understanding that you also know what lines should be cool or hot etc...

Too much refrigerant= poor cooling, high head pressures, and worse.

Too little = poor cooling, clutch won't cycle, accelerated compressor wear...because the "freon" carries the oil", etc..

Too much oil= poor cooling in a hurry.

Can you educate yourself, obtain the PROPER tools, and service your own vehicles? YOU BET!

But a little can of oil and freon, with a .50 cent gauge on it is a sure recipe for disaster. I don't care how many people have "thrown" a can of freon into their system and made it cooler, it will bite you in the butt eventually.

One trip to an a/c shop to replace a compressor, drier device, flush (if not replace compents in your system) pull a vacuum and charge your system.....will cost you half again what you could purchase gauges, flush canister, and a good vacuum pump for.

For those wishing to do their own a/c work....get the equipment, and study.
I've been doing all of mine for 20 yrs. and have only had to add 134a gauges to my other tools. I have saved thousands of dollars over the years, and I don't have to wait for my vehicle to be serviced on their schedule.

If you're not comfortable with learning to do your own, or you suspect a potentially serious problem....take it to a professional.

Leaks......your local a/c professional will love you for putting that "leak stop" in there, more money for him.

 

[Riley]

Agreed, that's why I'm taking mine to a shop for service. This is one area of the cruiser I'll leave to others.


As I've been looking in the yellow pages for an AC shop in the area, I see that all of the shops claiming AC specialty, are also focused on radiators. Seems to me that being an expert in radiators doesn't really mean that they know that much about AC systems.

Guess I'm still looking.