Paul Sherman Posted June 13, 2005 Posted June 13, 2005 '93 LS400, 180K miles. My A/C stopped working yesterday. It sounds like the compressor is still engaging OK, so I hope I just ran low on freon. How big a deal is it to recharge the system? (Don't have the gauges, so probably a bad idea, but just in case...) Also, I could use a source for some cloth seat covers (at least for summer use...) OK, I have a bit of a problem, I sweat easily and a lot. Driving a car with leather seats in warm weather or on long drives leaves my back soaked in sweat; not any fun for me or the seat. And now, without A/C...
akewlguy Posted June 13, 2005 Posted June 13, 2005 I had to recharge my old car and it was simple.. Either you take it to a general mechanic for about 80 bucks he can tell you what is up and add a bit of freon or you can go to auto zone and buy a can of freon.. I had some issues with the can so I took it to a mechanic.. If it worked until recently it should not be that bad. Maybe down an ounce or two which would cost up to 50 bucks.. So I would say up to $125 for the freon charge or try for your self for $20
flanker271 Posted June 13, 2005 Posted June 13, 2005 for 93 its R134a, so I think it could be cheaper. By the way if your R134a is low your compressor should not engage. It has a safety feature to protect compressor damage until the R134a is replenished.
akewlguy Posted June 13, 2005 Posted June 13, 2005 Sometimes if its low it cycles on and off.. LEXUS is high end so I would think it would for the most part stay off. Directions come with cd rom and you add through the low end. Fatter tube... Pressure differential in ac units is low end 10PSI and high end 150PSI.. The freon kits come with 8 or 16 oz bottles.. These include oil which is in system to help lube the compressor.. Good luck
VBdenny Posted June 14, 2005 Posted June 14, 2005 I'll be doing that this summer. The pressure you gave a for what year LS?
Paul Sherman Posted June 14, 2005 Author Posted June 14, 2005 Great, thanks for the hints. I saw a photo for recharging an earlier model (used Freon-12) that showed the charging port. Appeared to be on the passenger side near the top of the strut. Is that the case for the '93 as well?
Paul Sherman Posted June 16, 2005 Author Posted June 16, 2005 Follow-up Thanks all for the hints! I found the port to put in the freon. Almost immedieately after I hooked it up the compressor started working. The system took just over one can. Now to see if it holds, or if there's a leak... Oh, and any suggested sources for the little plastic port cap? Mine disappeared (brain f**t on my part)...
glenmore Posted June 16, 2005 Posted June 16, 2005 Paul, My AC just all of a sudden one day quit working also. The compressor is not engaging. How do you know how much freon to add? Thanks glenmore 1990 LS400 1991 300CE 2000 C280
larryp Posted June 16, 2005 Posted June 16, 2005 Paul,My AC just all of a sudden one day quit working also. The compressor is not engaging. How do you know how much freon to add? Thanks glenmore 1990 LS400 1991 300CE 2000 C280 ← There is a sight glass on the receiver/dryer behind the passenger headlight. If you don't have the gauges that an AC shop would use you can check the sight glass for the presence of bubbles. Once all bubbles have disappeared, stop. Do not continue adding or you'll overdo it and it won't blow as cold. Once you get enough pressure in the system the compressor will start up - assuming it's not locked up. If it's locked up the AC light on the climate control panel will be blinking. If you have a leak, you'll know in a couple of days. Has your system been converted to R134a?
glenmore Posted June 16, 2005 Posted June 16, 2005 Paul, As far as I can tell, it is original. I have all the PO records and the AC was never touched. Thanks, glenmore 1990 LS400 1991 MBZ 300CE 2000 MBZ C280
Paul Sherman Posted June 17, 2005 Author Posted June 17, 2005 Update... Phooey! It looks like I have a leak. The AC stopped working again yesterday. My mechanic was in, so I stopped by his shop, we added dye and ~ 25 oz of freon. And we can't find the leak yet. However... When I fire up the fan, I get a funny smell out of the vents for about 1-2 seconds. At first I thought it was a mildew build up, but now I wonder if I'm not smelling freon. If so, then I suspect the evaporator is leaking. Just in case it is the evaporator, are there suggestions for sources and links to a "how-to" on changing it (I'm sure it ain't gonna be fun...) :(
larryp Posted June 17, 2005 Posted June 17, 2005 Paul, Don't think you can smell freon. Mine leaked out after changing the compressor and converting to R134a. I tried the dye "thing" but couldn't locate the leak so i replaced all the o-rings including the evaporator core. I think the one that actually caused the leak was on the compressor high side port (which i should have been able to see from the dye - but didn't). I would suggest you replace the all the o-rings except the evaporator core and recharge. Also check condition of schrader valve on both low side recharge ports and the high side port on the receiver drier. The rest of the o-rings are relatively easy to replace. The evaporator core was a BEAR. :cries: If it still leaks then you can tackle the evaporator core. Mine's a 91 w/ 182k and the evaporator was in great shape so i basically spent half a day for nothing. hope that helps.
Paul Sherman Posted June 17, 2005 Author Posted June 17, 2005 Being ever so hopeful... From what I've found in searching the archives, it sounds like at least some of the o-rings are fairly standard. Any outliers I need to worry about? I'm nervous about evacuating and recharging the system... BTW I found the pdf download containing the shop manual info on working on the AC system. Highly recommend it. Just wish I had the AC tools to do that work properly... Given the tool limitations is there another way to evacuate freon and purge air from the system once it's put back together? I am fairly mechanically minded and willing to tackle new challenges. Did 90% of the work on my 1940 Chevy street rod; assembling engine, frame off body/frame restoration, designed and installed wiring from scratch, modified the dash for new digital gauges and DIN stereo, etc. Never worked on AC before, get to learn something new at 48+!!
jadecuir Posted June 19, 2005 Posted June 19, 2005 Being ever so hopeful... Just wish I had the AC tools to do that work properly... Given the tool limitations is there another way to evacuate freon and purge air from the system once it's put back together? ← You need a vacuum pump and a manifold with gauges to evacuate system and properly recharge. You should also add oil; need at least a hand-pump for that. I have a '90 LS,270k, and the air quit last yr. My son took it to a local AC shop, and they told him the compressor was shot. We didn't touch it until recently, due to expense, and where we live has very mild weather. Anyway, while at a friends in Sacramento, where it gets VERY hot, I told him about our AC, and he volunteered to check it. He has the necessary tools and freon. He charged the system with R-22 to check the comp. and for leaks, and pumped in some red-dyed oil. The comp. was working fine! We couldn't find any leaks, so he evacuated the R-22 and charged with R-12. After more than a month, it's still working! That little shop ripped me off for a small inspection fee, but he was probably fishing for a big payoff on a phony repair job! All the caps were missing, so I picked some off a toyota at the junkyard, N/C. That may have been the reason for the system failure, leaky valves. By the way , freon smells like propane. If that's what you smell inside the car, that's where your leak might be. John
Paul Sherman Posted June 21, 2005 Author Posted June 21, 2005 Well, we got it up on the rack and found the dye running out of the drain line off the evaporator... So, barring an o-ring miracle, it looks like time for a new evaporator (OWWW!) :(
larryp Posted June 21, 2005 Posted June 21, 2005 Ouch, that's gonna hurt - evap core is a lot more expensive than an o-ring (DUH!). I believe there's only one o-ring involved with the evap core - maybe you'll get lucky.
Paul Sherman Posted June 30, 2005 Author Posted June 30, 2005 Follow-up... I was SOOOO unlucky!! Evaporator shot, along with most of the rest of the plumbing. I think the only thing not replaced was the compressor. $2000 later, I have AC. Phooey :( To make it worse, the AC/heater control is now acting up... No heat function (it appears) and either no low or no medium fan speed. The shop called me the day they took it in and told me about it...that part was working fine when I took it in. May be a coincidence, may be a screw-up on their end (though they've done well for me on other vehicles) Regardless, guess I need to contact Jim Walker and see if he can repair the whole control (I know he does the display)
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