My 1992 Ranger is in need of an A/C charge.It has the old-style R-12 setup on it,and I know that they don't make that stuff anymore.Can I use the new R-134 freon?I've heard of guys doing this before and it locked up their compressors.I'm not really worried about that,because if it doesn't cool,it's just taking up power.Know what I mean?Anyway..If anyone knows anything about it..Let me know.

Jacob

 

They still make R-12, its just more expensive. I did the 134 change in the wifes dodge van and had nothing but problems, they put R-12 back in finally. Seems the 134 conversion puts only 50-60% of the gas in due to its expansion. To change you need to go the whole route, larger evaporator etc.

I just had my 94 redone, $600 with R-12

 

I agree with Hank85713!
The r-12 is still available. It comes in two flavors, virgin and re-conditioned or recovered types. I don't know the price of either of them but they are out there to be purchased if you are willing to pay the price. Still cheaper to vac it down and re-charge by a professional. They are not allowed to re-charge a system with known leaks and you will probably find out that you have a leak somewhere in the system!

Does your compressor kick in at all?

Can you spin the front or clutch face by hand without the engine running?

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Hank85713
They still make R-12, its just more expensive.

Let us know what you find out.
And Remember...

 

Well..You guys are probably going to kill me,but I purchased one of those conversion kits at Wal-Mart.It's got the oil and the leak sealer in the can with the new R-134a coolant.I brought it home,read up on it,and went for it.I started the Ranger and turned the A/C on MAX,which didn't even kick the compressor in because it had nothing in it.Just to be sure..I took the valve out of the low side hose and nothing came out.Then,I hooked to the low side hose and turned on the bottle.After about 2 minutes..The compressor started kicking in and out in 10-12 second intervals.A few minutes later..It would kick in and stay going for up to 3 minutes.When the bottle was empty,the compressor would run like it was suppose too.But..I did notice one thing when I turned the truck off..The valve on that side is leaking and letting all of the freon out on my drive home from my dad's.I tried to tighten it,but me tool just pressed the valve in and let the freon out even quicker.Tomorrow,I'm going to tighten the valve down and start over again.When it was running..Boy was it cold!As long as it will do that,I'll be satisfied.Even if it does lock up the compressor,it won't really bother me.I've got windows I can roll down .

Thanks for the suggestions..So far,so good.

Jacob

 

Hi Jacob,
I feel pretty sure that no one here will kill you.
I would say that none of us are even upset. We can only offer advice and opinions as to what we believe. If you choose to make changes to your vehicle well...it is just that, "your vehicle". Thanks for letting us know what you did and please be sure to let us know what the final outcome is. If the 134 conversion kit works then we want to know. If it doesn't work we want to know.
Take care and keep posting!!
And Remember...

 

I know..I was just playing .I'll let you guys know how it turns out.I personally think that it will work.All I know is that I'm on 'Cloud 9' because of that cold air that was coming from those vents before it leaked out and quit working!!

Jacob

 

Wow, I can't believe that you guys are having all those problems. Larger evaporator? Never heard of that one. I replaced my accumulator, installed the new R-134 o-ring kit and ester oil (4 oz in the compressor and 4 oz in the accumulator) and filled the sucker with r-134 and it now gets cold within 15 seconds and STAYS that way. I also have an electric fan that comes on with the A/C.

No problems here!

 

yes, the same thing with my friends 92 aerostar. all he had to do was change the valve fittings over to the r-134 and put in the new oils. and changed the dryer (accumulator) and it worked awesome he said.

 

I did an R-134 conversion on a 1989 Nissan Sentra that I was fixing up because I was bored. Once I got everything charged up, it worked great, it would just get a little not-so-cold if you were sitting still.... R-134, for all of it's earth-freindly non-ozone depleting qualities sucks as a refridgerant. It requires components way, WAY bigger than R-12. But hey, whatever makes the tree-hugging greenpeace hippies happy...

 

Have any of you heard of this subsitute for freon? It's called Duracool 12A. I clipped an ad out of The Wichita Eagle. I could e-mail it to you if interested. It said it's more efficient then R12 and better then R-134A.

drifter22@americaseagle.net

 

Thanks for the heads up...they even have a website: http://www.duracool.com

 

I dont know if its the same stuff but a local garage has some stuff like that, doesn't mix with R-12 or R134. You need to evac the system prior to install and then run a cleaner thru it the guy told me. He had no real experience with it as he had just gotten it to try.

 

I converted an '88 T-bird about 5 years ago (maybe 8 years ago - I cant remember for sure) It was right after the price of R-12 started sky rocketing and Advance started selling the conversion kits.....

I took it to a friend of mines who had one of those machines that purges the system of all of the R-12 and had him remove what R-12 was still in the system. I added a can of the R134 sealer, a can or two of the R134 lubricant and then the R134. It worked like a champ.

Anyway, It is still going strong (we gave the car to my Daughter and she's still driving it - must have about 150K on the odometer by now...) and hasn't had to be recharged yet.

 

I noticed that you didnt mention pulling a vacuum on the system in question. My advice to you would be to pull a vacuum or your head pressure is going to sky rocket and your going to blow a hose or lock up your compressor. You might want to take it to someone with the proper tools and experience with working with AC systems.

 

Yes they still make R-12, but to my knowlege, not in the U.S. Yes, I'm sure our government sanctions the limited production of it here for its own purposes, but it is banned by federal law.

Other countries still make it, against the wishes of the nat'l consortium that banned it and it is possible to procure the stuff through the underground, though there are certainly heavy fines involved if one gets caught.

The only legal way to get freon is to reclaim it from sytems already in existence prior to the ban. All of this is what has made the price of R-12 skyrocket.

An interesting article regarding the ban on r-12:
http://www.trunkerton.fsnet.co.uk/The%20Freon%20ban.htm