QuestionI have a 1987 Mercedes 560SEL. The daily daytime temperatures are around 95 degrees. The air conditioner was slow to cool but was operable & took about 10 minutes to reach a comfortable climate. I took the car for an A/C service today. Apparently without my knowledge they evacuated the system entirely as it now blows HOT air. Do I have any recourse & can I have the R12 put back in the car? Do I have a leak or is the diminished cooling effect due to age of the vehicle. The shop recommended I replace the compressor & dryer for appx $1200. Thanks for your response.
AnswerDiane,
As for your recourse actions, I am alot of things, but far from a lawyer. :) But I do know hat if I was managing a shop and this was the complaint, I wold do everything in my power to get it fixed. I hope that this is the type of attitude the shop you took it to is also operating under.
As for can you have the R-12 put back into the system. Yes you can. Providing the shop has a supply of it. But please be aware that the price of R-12 is very high. Roughly 60 dollars per pound. This is due to the diminished supply that is still in circulation becasue it is being phased out due to the chlorine molecules that it contains harming the ozone layer. You may want to consider retrofitting it to R-134a. This does not require replacement of the compressor in its entirety, thogh it will need to be removed and have the oil inside it replaced with a PAG or Ester type of oil. R-134a will not mix happily and carry the old mineral type oil throughout the system as it should. This will also require a high pressure switch to be installed, and at a minimum, the metering device and drier will need to be replaced.
As for whether or not you had a leak, I am unable to say. I will say that yes, this is a common cause of diminished cooling. The age of the vehicle has nothing to do with it. There are many a vehicle on the road older than yours that are still working beautifully. Think of it like a refrigerator. Until something catastrophic happens, you should never have to service your refrigerator. The vehicle A/C is the same sytem with just a few more components added to it.
For a compressor and drier replacement... 1200 dollars. Depending upon where you are located in the country this sounds about typical. You have to keep in mind... Mercedes. This alone says expensive parts. But I cannot say that I would recommend the replacement with out more details regarding how it was behaving. Your pressure readings from when it was running would tell me quite a bit if you happen to have them on the service paperwork.
Thank you for the question, I hope I was of some assistance. If I can do anything further during this process, or in the future, please do not hesitate to ask. If you found this response to be of some assistance, please remember to rate this answer. Thanks again and good luck in everything.
