Back in the bad ol' days when the changeover from R12 to 134a was starting and the price of R12 was getting pretty steep, there were several instances of cars repaired in Mexico having propane and other hydrocarbons in the A/C systems. At the time, there was a picture making the rounds of a Ford Aerostar which had the A/C recharged in Mexico, was driven back to the States and then subsequently checked for leaks by a tech at a dealer in the US. At the time, the propane leak detection devices were still in fairly common use. The evaporator case exploded, sending shreds of aluminum and GRP everywhere.
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May 5, 2009 3:02 p.m. Jensenman SuperDork
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May 5, 2009 3:30 p.m. bludroptop Dork
This thread has inspired me to try to do a R-134 conversion on my BMW, so I went to H/F and bought these today:
Anyone know of any moron-friendly online tutorials regarding how to....
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May 6, 2009 11:44 a.m. Clay Reader
I found this link in my bookmarks, but use at your own risk. I used a different site for info, but I can't find that link... http://www.firstfives.org/faq/AC/ac_charge.html
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May 6, 2009 12:55 p.m. poopshovel SuperDork
Didn't read the whole first page, but the 134 "conversion" is retarded-easy, and cheap. Hang onto the hose/fitting that comes with the kit, and next time you need to refill it, you can just buy the cheap cans (they're usually hidden behind the counter at most parts stores.)
The cheap ones are the dupont cans w/o the flashy packaging:
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May 6, 2009 12:57 p.m. aircooled SuperDork
HF does sell "normal" vacuum pumps. From what I have heard those venturi pumps are really loud and take a lot of air. I know a lot of people like to pull a vacuum for a long time (like an hour) to make sure everything is boiled out. I suspect you will not want that thing going for an hour.
Let us know how/if it works.
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May 6, 2009 1:32 p.m. nedc New Reader
Those venturi things aren't very efficient- you need a LOT of air to make them work.
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May 6, 2009 2:35 p.m. Clay Reader
Yeah, when I was considering using the HF vacuum pump I was planning on doing it at the auto hobby shop on base that has an industrial supply of compressed air. Don't think a home compressor would cut it.
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May 7, 2009 4:55 p.m. Brust Reader
I bought the HF electric vacuum pump and it worked well. $75 I believe. I also bought the hose set. Whole thing worked like a champ.
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May 7, 2009 5:24 p.m. RexSeven HalfDork
Just a quick heads-up: I read on rx7club.com that aluminum lines do not like R-134a. IDK if your Miata has aluminum A/C lines, but my FC does. The Super-12 stuff seems cheap enough; I'll be using that sometime this summer.
