[s-cars] Hot in Seattle - A/C Struggling in '92S4 - Need advice

[djdawson2 at aol.com]

FWIW,
Please do not hook a can of anything up to the port on the front of the car and attempt to charge with the A/C running.  You may end up in the hospital, or in the ground.
 
The only accessible ports on the UrS, without removing sensors etc... are high side ports.  Those pressures are dangerous.  The only way you can charge through those ports safely, is by warming the can such that the pressure increases, and charging through the port with the car OFF.
 
Dave
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: calvinlc at earthlink.net
To: mdbishoff at comcast.net; s-car-list at audifans.com
Sent: Mon, 4 Sep 2006 10:25 AM
Subject: Re: [s-cars] Hot in Seattle - A/C Struggling in '92S4 - Need advice


Yes, the duracool is compatible.  If I remember right there is only one port
on the UrS and I simply hooked up a gauge with an "open-close valve" and a
can of duracool to that port and turned the AC on and started filling.  I
can't remember exactly what the pressures were, etc. but I remember being
able to verify that they weren't dangerous or anything and then I just went
slow and felt the AC while I was filling to see when it got cold.  I was
very careful to make sure I didn't add too much.  Before I started I had
decided to limit myself to 1 can if it wasn't getting any colder, because
that would indicate that I was not helping the situation and that the
pressure was just going to be higher with no benefit.

I know this isn't the "right" way to do this.  I know you should have your
system vacummed out, charged on the high or low side, etc. but it was $8.95
and it fixed my problem and I haven't had another for 3 years.  Of course I
am no professional mechanic and it is high pressure stuff so I am not
necessarily saying this is right for you, it's just what I did in my
situation that seemed to work.

--Calvin


-----Original Message-----
From: Mike Bishoff [mailto:mdbishoff at comcast.net]
Sent: Monday, September 04, 2006 1:10 AM
To: calvinlc at earthlink.net; s-car-list at audifans.com
Subject: RE: [s-cars] Hot in Seattle - A/C Struggling in '92S4 - Need
advice


Thanks Calvin. I've heard that most A/C systems do leak over time and since
this has been a slow to develop problem, I'm hoping that a shot of Duracool
will address the issue.

So here's the follow on - What's the procedure for topping the system off
with the Duracool? Any special gadgets or tools? I'm assuming I have R12 in
the system and that the R12a is compatible if I want to try the topping off
method before going to a full drain and replace procedure.

Mike

-----Original Message-----
From: calvinlc at earthlink.net [mailto:calvinlc at earthlink.net]
Sent: Saturday, September 02, 2006 10:52 PM
To: Mike Bishoff; s-car-list at audifans.com
Subject: RE: [s-cars] Hot in Seattle - A/C Struggling in '92S4 - Need advice

I had a similar problem (cooling part that is) 3 years ago in my '92.  The
air had stopped getting cold enough on warm days.  I put in just about 1 can
of Duracool to top off the system and it still works like a champ 3 years
later.  It is not unusual to leak a little bit of refrigerant over many
years.  It is certainly cheaper at $8.49 per can than tracking down a leak
that causes a can's worth to leak every 5 years.
--Calvin


-----Original Message-----
From: s-car-list-bounces at audifans.com
[mailto:s-car-list-bounces at audifans.com]On Behalf Of Mike Bishoff
Sent: Saturday, September 02, 2006 10:03 PM
To: s-car-list at audifans.com
Subject: [s-cars] Hot in Seattle - A/C Struggling in '92S4 - Need advice


Hi Folks,



My wife finally complained that the AC in our '92 S4 was not working up to
par and I was hoping for some advice before taking it into a shop for
analysis. There are two separate and I assume unrelated issues:



1.  The air coming out of the vents when the AC is on is not very cold.
It's cool and certainly cooler than the outside air, but it's not cold like
the air that comes out of our other vehicle. On a hot day, the air inside
never gets comfortable even with the recirculate turned on. As far as I know
the AC has not been serviced in a long time, at least 5 years, possibly
longer. I'm hoping that the refrigerant is simply low and that a good
cleanup and replacement will address the issue. The worse case is that the
compressor is winding down in its useful life and needs to be replaced.
Thoughts on this area appreciated.
2.  The center vents no longer blow air. On full auto or manual
settings, air never comes out of the vents that point toward the passenger
and driver. It appears that air does not come out of the rear passenger
vents either. These vents used to work and I'm thinking it's probably a
vacuum hose or some other mechanical issue. Air does come out of the
defroster and foot areas. What are the typical problems here and what's the
fix?



Thanks!



Mike in Seattle

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