Ford Repair: air conditioner refridgerant, layer of the atmosphere, ford taurus

Question
Hi Ken

I have a 92 ford taurus. (108,000 miles) The AC isn't putting out cold air. The mechanic says "Reclaim R12 and retrofit system to accept R134A refridgerant" This will cost $400+. As the car itself is only worth about $1500 I hate to have to go this route.

Isn't the old refridgerant still available? Must all old cars be retrofitted?

Also I'm getting the smell of antifreeze in the car. After the car's been running awhile I lift the hood and see some "smoke" on the left side between the engine and resevoir tank. Mechanic couldn't find leak and says the water pump is making a noise, could be the source of a leak and needs to be replaced. Is this correct and roughly how much should it cost to replace?

Thank you

Answer
Tom,

I highly doubt that you can find R12 anymore. In most states, it is illegal because the chlorofluorocarbons damage the ozone layer of the atmosphere. If you could find it it runs something like $1200 dollars for 30 lbs. $400 dollars is not a bad price for a retro fit and yes, all old cars would need to be retrofitted unless you knew someone that had or could find the R12 refridgerant.


As for the antifreeze smell in the car, that sounds like you have a bad heater core, especially if you are smelling the antifreeze in the car when you run the heat. As for the water pump, there is a hole on the water pump called a weep hole and if you see antifreeze leaking out of it then your water pump is bad and needs to be replaced. Another way to check if the water pump is bad is to take the belt off and grab the pully and shake it back and forth. If the pully moves it is indicative of a bad water pump and you definitely needs to be replaced. Hope that this helps and if you need further help, please do not hesitate to ask me. Good luck.


Ken