Retrofitting A/C to R134 on a '88 240 Wagon

[Jimmy]

My a/c compressor went out on my 240 and I thought it might be a good
time to retrofit the system. I found a kit on ebay ($25)thats has all
the washers and rings it says I will need to do the job. Just
wondering if any other home mechanics out there have done this job?
Will I need to have the system decompressed by a a/c shop? Am I
getting in over my head? Any advice or warnings will be appreciated.
Thanks!

 

[Mike F]

My a/c compressor went out on my 240 and I thought it might be a good
time to retrofit the system. I found a kit on ebay ($25)thats has all
the washers and rings it says I will need to do the job. Just
wondering if any other home mechanics out there have done this job?
Will I need to have the system decompressed by a a/c shop? Am I
getting in over my head? Any advice or warnings will be appreciated.
Thanks!

Both the condenser and evaporator are a little small for the job on a
240, and converting to R134a will make it worse. Volvo sells a kit that
is quite reasonably priced (believe it or not!) that includes a new
evaporator, expansion valve, drier, high pressure hose and the orings.
You're still stuck with the poor condenser, and lack of auxiliary fan,
but you'll get better results with this kit. If it were my car I
wouldn't use the oil that comes with the kit (ester oil) that is
designed to mix with the R12 mineral oil, but PAG oil which is normal
R134a oil, since there will be so little original oil remaining because
you're changing so much of the system.

--
Mike F.
Thornhill (near Toronto), Ont.

NOTE: new address!!
Replace tt with t (twice!) and remove parentheses to email me directly.
(But I check the newsgroup more often than this email address.)

 

[Rob Guenther]

Could you bolt in something from a 740/940/960/850 in place? Our 960's A/C
is quite good, more then up to the challenge of keeping the big car cool.

I'm thinking this route would be quite a bit of money tho.

 

[radietz]

Both the condenser and evaporator are a little small for the job on a
240, and converting to R134a will make it worse. Volvo sells a kit that
is quite reasonably priced (believe it or not!) that includes a new
evaporator, expansion valve, drier, high pressure hose and the orings.
You're still stuck with the poor condenser, and lack of auxiliary fan,
but you'll get better results with this kit. If it were my car I
wouldn't use the oil that comes with the kit (ester oil) that is
designed to mix with the R12 mineral oil, but PAG oil which is normal
R134a oil, since there will be so little original oil remaining because
you're changing so much of the system.

The majority of the refrigerant oil is split between the receiver drier
and the compressor. Unless you R&R and drain the compressor then flush
the lines to the condensor, the condensor, the line to the new drier and
the line from the new evaporator then Ester oil is the ay to go. PAG oil
and Mineral congeal to make a nasty mess. Its a good idea to pull the
evaporator loose and blow out the fins good. Most are somewhere between
seriously and severely clogged.

Bob

 

[James Sweet]

The majority of the refrigerant oil is split between the receiver drier
and the compressor. Unless you R&R and drain the compressor then flush
the lines to the condensor, the condensor, the line to the new drier and
the line from the new evaporator then Ester oil is the ay to go. PAG oil
and Mineral congeal to make a nasty mess. Its a good idea to pull the
evaporator loose and blow out the fins good. Most are somewhere between
seriously and severely clogged.

Bob

Is there any disadvantage to ester oil? I used it and the system works fine.
You do need access to a vacuum pump to do this job unless you have it
charged at a shop. As others have said, you'll need a new reciever/dryer,
orifice tube, and solvent to flush the system.

 

[Mike F]

Could you bolt in something from a 740/940/960/850 in place? Our 960's A/C
is quite good, more then up to the challenge of keeping the big car cool.

I'm thinking this route would be quite a bit of money tho.

Anything's possible, but the big problem here is physical
compatibility. The evaporator is a different shape, mounted in a
different location and the pipes point in different directions. The 240
uses an expansion valve and drier on the high pressure side, the later
ones use an expansion orifice tube with the drier on the low pressure
side.

--
Mike F.
Thornhill (near Toronto), Ont.

NOTE: new address!!
Replace tt with t (twice!) and remove parentheses to email me directly.
(But I check the newsgroup more often than this email address.)

 

[Mike F]

The majority of the refrigerant oil is split between the receiver drier
and the compressor. Unless you R&R and drain the compressor then flush
the lines to the condensor, the condensor, the line to the new drier and
the line from the new evaporator then Ester oil is the ay to go. PAG oil
and Mineral congeal to make a nasty mess. Its a good idea to pull the
evaporator loose and blow out the fins good. Most are somewhere between
seriously and severely clogged.

Bob

In this case both parts will be replaced. The new compressor probably
comes with PAG oil already, which would introduce a 3rd oil. Factor in
almost everybody (carmakers, compressor manufacturers) except Volvo
recommends removing as much mineral oil as possible and using PAG for
retrofits.

Example, Sanden: http://www.sanden.com/support/RETRO.html

--
Mike F.
Thornhill (near Toronto), Ont.

NOTE: new address!!
Replace tt with t (twice!) and remove parentheses to email me directly.
(But I check the newsgroup more often than this email address.)