[200q20v] Re: Refrigerant for 200 TQ

[Jeff.Bernstein at pneumaticscale.com]

I have run 134a in my '91 200 for two full years now.  I did have a
compressor seize two weeks after I converted but the compressor had been
making bad bearing sounds for two years prior to the conversion so I wasn't
surprised.  I put a used compressor from another '91 200 on and have had no
problems since.  It hasn't leaked down yet.  

I think maybe the reason that people are saying 134a leaks down is because
they may have had multiple leaks in the system prior to the conversion.  To
be honest isn't that why most people make the conversion in the first place.


I converted my '87 944T over four years ago and it finally leaked down this
spring enough to need a slight recharge to get the cooling back up to where
it used to be.  The car is stored every winter which is very hard on the
compressor so I really can't blame the 134a after four years on a 14 year
old car.

The 134a was just as cold in both cars or at least I couldn't tell any
difference between the two after the conversion.  I wouldn't worry too much
about the conversion to 134a since there have been a lot of successful
conversions assuming that there wasn't a problem before the conversion.  You
shouldn't do the initial conversion yourself since to do it correctly the
system has to be vacuumed out and the oil changed to the new compressor oil.
This is not something a home mechanic can generally do .  You can however
add 134a to a system that has already been converted  fairly easily and
cheaply at home which could be handy.