Ac Question - Did I Get Screwed? (1 Viewer)

[ashooter]

Ac Question - New Question

(New question at bottom of thread added 5-27-06)


I just bought a '92 FJ80 that has been mostly sitting in a driveway for a couple of years. The day I looked at it (bought it), the seller drove it about 120 miles, then I looked at it, and drove it home 120 miles. All of the time I was in it, the air conditioner blew VERY cold. Now it doesn't work at all. Blows at whatever the ambient temp is.

Is it possible that the seals in the AC system "dried out" sitting in this guys driveway and then the freon leaked out after I got it?

Or, do you think the guy charged it up with freon and screwed me over.



BTW, anybody have a price guesstimate on converting this thing to R34 (R12 is the old stuff, right?) and/or putting a new compressor in it?

 

[Cruisin'Carolina]

Why a new compressor?

Hard to tell if the seller deceived you or not. Don't waste a bunch of time worrying about this.....sure it sucks, but other than that, assuming you like the truck and would've paid $200 more for it without a problem, fix it and move on...

 

[NorCalDoug]

Is the compressor coming on at all?

 

[Romer]

could be a fuse.

 

[ashooter]

The compressor comes on and kicks the rpms on the tac up to about 1000 when I push the "AC" button, it just doesn't ever get cold.

I had a '90 4-Runner that had a freon "leak"... Turned out to be a leak in the compressor. The compressor would run, but after a week, all the freon was gone and it wouldn't blow cold.

I will take it to a shop and have the guy check it with a sniffer and see if he can find a leak. Just wondered what a worst case scenario would cost me, and if there are seals in the system that would go bad if the rig sat unused for a long period of time.

 

[NorCalDoug]

Buy a can of R12 with dye.

Load up the system. See where it's leaking from?

 

[phxtlc]

If there's enough of a leak that it blows at ambient temp then chances are your compressor is not coming on...so since you stated that it does come on i'd look elsewhere for the problem.

When you set it to max does the blower speed up like it should?

Have you adjusted the temp mix or vent outlet selection? Sometimes it may be a damper issue.

Are any of the lines frozen?

 

[Moxwell]

I have a 92 fj80, it had a leak as well, I got the leak fixed and the car converted for 80.00 at the local good year shop. 6 months later car is still ice cold, even in the incredible south texas sun.

 

[ashooter]

No lines are frozen, and the blower sounds like everything's right. I'm thinking it's got to be a freon leak... I will just add it to my "to-do list" right after the tires, the fluids, etc. I will just have to live with no AC for a month or two.

I'll just tell my wife to imagine she's on safari somewhere in darkest Africa, or cruising across the outback somewhere "down under"!

 

[e9999]

isn't there a little window where you can see if there is Freon left?
or quick connects to put a pressure gauge on?

 

[Seminole]

I 've got my 91 in pieces right now for a water pump and A/C job. PM me with what you want to know and I can probably help some. If the compressor is coming on at all, then you still have some freon in the system, I believe it is somewhere around 1.0 lbs of freon or below that it quits coming on ( it holds 2.08lbs). When mine started dying it was a slow leak so when it leaked down below 1.0 lbs the compressor would not kick on. I traced the leaks down to a hole in the evaporator core and a leak at the service plate on the compressor and hoses, so, since I had to do the other stuff, just decided to replace the whole system. I do have access to gauges, vacuum pump and various other A/C equip. and R-12, which helps me out a lot on this job. It is really not hard to do yourself if you get the system evacuated. I would really suggest definitively ruling out the compressor before throwing parts at it since it is the biggest pain of the job and most $$$.

 

[Bear80]

What you should check first is the sight glass next to the battery box and if the system is low, which most likey it is you will see a flow of bubbles. Under normal charge, the sight glass should be clear.

The rubber o-rings do not "dry" and leak. Leask are usally due to something disturbing the system, such as an impack, flexing the lines, etc. The only seals that SHOULD be replaced after 10+ years or during a R-134 conversion is inside the compressor. You can order the new seal kit from Toyota or for around $100 look on ebay and pick up a compressor. I got a Factory Air rebuilt unit without the clutch for $50 and a Denso rebuilt unit with clutch for $100, both on ebay.

 

[phxtlc]

expansion valve maybe...

 

[Darwood]

Shouldn't the low presure sensor keep the compressor from turning on if there was a leak, or do the 92's not have this?

 

[ashooter]

Okay guys, I checked the "window" next to the radiator (opposite side from the battery box) and when the compressor is turned off, it looks black/empty. When I hit the "AC" button to turn the compressor on, engine idle goes from about 700 rpm to 1000 rpm, and the window looks like there's water blowing across it - no bubbles. Not water FLOWING across it, but blowing across it kinda like a soaking wet winshield on a car going down the highway with no windshield wipers.

Also, after letting the engine run for about 5 minutes, then running it with the compressor on for about another 3-5 minutes, the compressor feels very warm to the touch. Air blowing out of the AC inside feels the same temp as when the compressor is turned off.

Any helpful hints? Take it to an AC shop?

 

[e9999]

Harbor Freight sells the full A/C gauge and manifold and disconnects set for about $50. About the same as what a shop would charge to check things out I think.

 

[Riley]

expansion valve maybe...

I second the expansion valve. Take it to an AC shop and they can diagnois that pretty easy. If it is, then have them evac the system. Take the truck home and re/re the expansion valve yourself.

 

[Trailbus]

Shouldn't the low presure sensor keep the compressor from turning on if there was a leak, or do the 92's not have this?

The 91/2s have the loh pressure sensor just behind the radiator core support on the drivers side of the truck, just in front of the auxillary fan (that blows on the exhaust manifolds). It would be easy for the previous owner to short 2 terminals and make it run the compressor without freon in the system. It explains it in the FSM on page AC-35

.....—
.ı.........ı
.....—

Top & Bottom are the high/low switch, and the left & right connect to the medium pressure switch

P.S. This drawing is not to scale and is supposed to be oval. ;p

 

[Trailbus]

Inspection of refrigerant volume (as per FSM):

Run engine at Approx. 1,500 RPM
Operate AC at Max cooling for a few minutes
Observe the sight glass on the liquid tube.


Symptom........................................Amount of refrigerant
1. Bubbles present in sightglass.......... Insuffecient
2. No Bubbles present in sightglass..... None, suffecient, or too much
3. No temp diff between................... Empty or near empty
compressor inlet & outlet
4. Temp between compressor.............Proper or too much
inlet & outlet noticebly different
5. Immediately after AC is turned........Too much
off, refrigerent in sight glass
stays clear
6. When AC is turned off, refrigerent ...Proper
foams and then stays clear

 

[ashooter]

Okay, I was going to check for bubbles again as per Trailbus's last post, but as of today the compressor doesn't come on at all when I hit the "AC" button. I assume that confirms a freon leak?

I'll try to ask this so it's not along the lines of "my car's broke - how much will it cost to fix it?"... What do you guys guesstimate a reasonable price would be for an AC shop to:

1) Locate a leak (that's not in the compressor) and fix it? OR...

2) Convert it to R134, replacing many (most?) of the components that might be leaking?

3) Buy and install a new compressor and convert to R134?

Thanks.