A/C retrofitting for $250?

[87blackroxi]

Does that sound right? I took the car in this morning to have the A/C fixed because I have been dying from heat in the afternoons here (florida). Mechanic called me back stating the system I had was obsolete and the car had to be retrofitted. I assume this is changing the old system to a new one. What exactly is retrofitting and is $250 a good price?

 

[milehigreg]

Obsolete?

It isn't "obsolete". It simply uses R-12. R-12 isn't made any more but it is still available for a price. Is something broke or does it just need a refrigerant charge? Retrofitting to 134A takes many differnt forms. New refrigerant oil, O-rings, new compressor? What is this guy saying you get for your $250?

 

[korvettekarl]

To retrofit the correct way you are going to need a new compressor and drier plus all new o-rings as well as flushing all the lines. $250 sounds cheap to this. Make sure you are getting the job done correctly or you will have problems down the road.

 

[87blackroxi]

The problem is, I am at work. I dropped the car off this morning and had my lady take me to work. we are not allowed incoming calls so I left my lady's cell#. She took the message so when it got to me this is all i got. I called her back and she said he was retrofittind to 134 as stated in one of the above threads. It's not the compressor but I didn't get alot of detail. I trust this guy for barely even knowing him. When I first got the car I stopped in this corvette shop. He looked over the car, gave me a breakdown of what it needed for the future and what to look out for. didn't charge me a thing. I could tell from speaking with him he was honest and had a professed love for vettes. So I plan on picking up the car and speaking in depth with him.

 

[Vettelt193]

The problem is, I am at work. I dropped the car off this morning and had my lady take me to work. we are not allowed incoming calls so I left my lady's cell#. She took the message so when it got to me this is all i got. I called her back and she said he was retrofittind to 134 as stated in one of the above threads. It's not the compressor but I didn't get alot of detail. I trust this guy for barely even knowing him. When I first got the car I stopped in this corvette shop. He looked over the car, gave me a breakdown of what it needed for the future and what to look out for. didn't charge me a thing. I could tell from speaking with him he was honest and had a professed love for vettes. So I plan on picking up the car and speaking in depth with him.

One HUGE issue with 134 is the particles are smaller. This leads to more frequent leaks in the system... It also doesn't work as well.

When My '93 had a broken A/C, I paid $500 to get it fixed, $250 of that was just R12.

What you do with it at this point is just your choice... If the AC starts to leak again with 134, you can just recharge it yourself with a hose and a can of 134 that you can even get at WalMart. Basically, there is no real 'good' decision with an old AC unit

 

[Im1ru2]

A/C retrofit

Be careful-- the only way your a/c could lose refrigerant is if it has a leak somewhere! R12 still is made but only in third world countries and cannot be imported to the U.S try and find somebody that still has r-12 , otherwise you should do a complete retrofit including compressor (for 134-a) and all new o rings. If you have to you could do a " drop in" for a short period just to get by.
Check out my Mechanic, "the Corvette Doctor" He is great and you can't
beat his labor rates.727 299 9041


Jamm'in Jeff

 

[87blackroxi]

One HUGE issue with 134 is the particles are smaller. This leads to more frequent leaks in the system... It also doesn't work as well.

When My '93 had a broken A/C, I paid $500 to get it fixed, $250 of that was just R12.

What you do with it at this point is just your choice... If the AC starts to leak again with 134, you can just recharge it yourself with a hose and a can of 134 that you can even get at WalMart. Basically, there is no real 'good' decision with an old AC unit

I have heard from several people that r12 is more expensive to recharge than 134 due to availability. That I guess can be a factor. But the biggest factor was: How can i get A/C the cheapest! I really was planning on spending between $400-800. That is what my brother in law was quoted when he had the car last year in Connecticut. So I when I heard $250 I got excited.

 

[87blackroxi]

Be careful-- the only way your a/c could lose refrigerant is if it has a leak somewhere! R12 still is made but only in third world countries and cannot be imported to the U.S try and find somebody that still has r-12 , otherwise you should do a complete retrofit including compressor (for 134-a) and all new o rings. If you have to you could do a " drop in" for a short period just to get by.
Check out my Mechanic, "the Corvette Doctor" He is great and you can't
beat his labor rates.727 299 9041


Jamm'in Jeff

Jeff,
Where were you last week? I couldn't find anybody i trusted to work on the car. This guy I hear is reputable. i could tell by speaking to him. But his rates are up there a little. Maybe for my next repairs I'll look at "The Corvette Doctor".
But Thanks for the idea

 

[AdvancedAutoCC]

$250 for a basic retrofit is about right now. HFC134a just had an astronomical increase in price in the last 4 months, costing 6 times as much as it did before. The suppliers have the same old tired story of "the factory has a fire, production is way down, yadda yadda yadda", but the fact is, if it costs more to the shop, it costs more for the customer. Price on the street ranges from $25-$45 per pound for for 134a.

If you're looking to fix the car with just a retrofit, it may only work for a short time (if at all), because the refrigerant had to have gone somewhere if the system's empty. A/C work isn't cheap.

 

[srs244]

not to be contrary (but i guess i will be anyway, lol). all this guy is apparently going to do is change a few seals and swap out the two valves necessary to charge the system to be compatible with 134. in the days of the "change over" when everything switched from r12 to 134, the going rate was about $250-$300 in my part of florida (ft lauderdale area). right now the going rate is significantly less than that around here because there aren't that many folks who are still running around with r12 systems and the demand is way down for "conversions" to comply with the changed regulations. i had my 71 454 el camino changed out to 134 last year and the entire cost of "conversion" was a bit more than $100.00 out the door ($112.00 if i remember the exact amount correctly). while i don't think $250 is ridiculous, my personal opinion is that it is on the higher end of the scale. as a point of reference, my neighbor who is an a/c tech (home and commercial refrigerant type) will convert my 78 pace car to 134 and the cost of the parts (seals and valves) is less than $30.00. add to that the cost of the refrigerant itself and the labor (well less than 1 1/2 hours) and that should give you a good idea as to the expense.

steve

 

[87blackroxi]

I guess the tell all in this case will be once I pick up the car is to ask him what he has done and report back to y'all.

 

[ZumZum]

I guess the tell all in this case will be once I pick up the car is to ask him what he has done and report back to y'all.

Yeah, I want to know what your mech. did, cause I need to do the same to my car.

(by the way Blackroxi, is that a picture of your girl passed out with puke bucket in front of her?) LOL

 

[87blackroxi]

Yeah, I want to know what your mech. did, cause I need to do the same to my car.

(by the way Blackroxi, is that a picture of your girl passed out with puke bucket in front of her?) LOL

Holy turdball of flame. You're the only one who got that. you've got to be a youngan like myself. heck ya, puck bucket and all. her 21st birthday which was 2 years ago. what a time. Captain Morgan private stock.

 

[87blackroxi]

Oh everybody,
here's the list on the receipt:1 receiver dryer $63, 1 set of retrofit fittings $18, 2 cans of freon $35, labor $70, fan motor resistor $35.
So What does everyone think? Any Thoughts?

 

[G Winter]

I would say , not out of line at all . Did he install new O rings? Other than that I think he covered the bases pretty well.

 

[tyrel]

I've been through this whole thing several times. $250 sounds reasonable if he didn't have to replace anything. Here's what's involved:

a) depressurize the system
b) flush all the components (except the compressor, I just remove it and turn it upside down over a bucket and let it drain for a day).
c) change all the o-rings
d) new orifice tube
e) new accumulator
f) 2 oz of oil in each component: evaporator, accumulator, condenser, compressor
g) tighten up everything
h) pull a vacuum, see if the vacuum holds for an hour (I always go an hour, anyway)
i) slooooooooowly recharge the system, this can take another hour, carefully watch your high and low pressures
j) adjust the low pressure cutoff switch accordingly

So you see it's a little more involved than just changing some rings, as one person said. Most people can't tell the difference between R12 and R134a in terms of cooling, or claim that "it doesn't cool as well" or "the molecules are too small". I've successfully done the conversion on several cars and they're all still icy cool.

It should have taken more than two cans of refrigerant, though.

 

[nyernga]

a) depressurize the system
b) flush all the components (except the compressor, I just remove it and turn it upside down over a bucket and let it drain for a day).
c) change all the o-rings
d) new orifice tube
e) new accumulator
f) 2 oz of oil in each component: evaporator, accumulator, condenser, compressor

h) pull a vacuum, see if the vacuum holds for an hour (I always go an hour, anyway)
i) slooooooooowly recharge the system, this can take another hour, carefully watch your high and low pressures
j) adjust the low pressure cutoff switch accordingly

My thoughts exactly. Especially the oil change, flush and orifice..

 

[G Winter]

Ford blue orfice tube ? This is new to me. Are they a diff. size then the GM ? In the past I have replaced the orfice but never with a ford part. I would like to know what the deal is with this.

Thank you
Glenn

 

[87blackroxi]

Ford blue orfice tube ? This is new to me. Are they a diff. size then the GM ? In the past I have replaced the orfice but never with a ford part. I would like to know what the deal is with this.

You all are speaking Greek to me. Tubes, orfice, connectors.. All I know is I have A/C for the first time in 8 years! The mechanic was a genuine corvette lover. we chatted more about cars than we did the bill or my work. Good to know he covered all the bases and did the job right.
Thanks for everyone's insight!

 

[Jeb]

Why the fan motor resistor? Was that part of the changeover or was it something that needed to be done anyway?