Hello,
Our beautiful red wagon is no longer putting out cool air. The "shop" said that there is a leak. Meaning the condesor is still ok. What should I do? Can I get this fixed with a product from Napa? I have a son who is terminally ill, and needs AC in the car when we go somewhere...money is a bit tight. Plus, I love my car

Hello,
I am dealing with the same problem with my '96 850 Turbo wagon but I believe with mine it is the compressor that has frozen so it blows out warm air. I was told by the mechanic that the evaporator also has to be replaced and the two of them are expensive. Since it is blowing out air with the a/c switched on, I am not convinced that the compressor is faulty. I am hoping someone can offer suggestions as I am selling the car which is in excellent condition except for this. Any help is appreciated. Thanks

My soccer-mom-mobile also got the diagnosis of a bad evaporator and failing compressor (internal short I believe was the exact phrase).

I'll be picking the vehicle up shortly and have a chat with the technician who diagnosed it (ie. did they evac and leak-check, how did they determine the evap was trahed, etc/).

2k+ is the current repair quote from the dealer.

It's a bummer...

You should be able to get it done much cheaper at an independent shop, try a Napa auto care center. those shops provide wonderful mechanics and awesome deals and warranties.

when they said "leak", did they do a dye test, or are they just thinking out loud? napa, pepboys, strauss, sears, etc. offer an a/c diagnosis test. they will pinpoint where the leak is, if there is one. if not, then you might just need a recharge. but evern with a recharge, that means it is leaking somewhere because i was always under the impression that a closed loop system like an a/c unit was a no-loss system. as for replacing compressors and evaps, yes they are expensive because of the work involved. get several estimates before you decide and make sure that they check it all beforehand.

I think the dealer charged me 50 bucks to vacuum the floormats.

0.5hour labor? They didn't connect anything to my 850. Sure as hell didn't pull any codes off the ECC.

SO, I do it myself. Got the gauges (low-pressure anyway) ready, the vacuum pump arrives tomorrow and on to evac/dry/static leakchecks. If that works, add dye, PAG oil, freon, and charge to weight and TEST.

I bet the pig will run like new AFTER I dry the system out with the vacuum pump and recharge from there.

Okay, have good base pressure on the system (2 hour evac with a decent wet pump) and held vac at -30 mm Hg for 30 minutes.

Purged the service line, started vehicle and started pulling freon into the system. AC clutch engaged but NO PRESSURE DROP. System barely took any charge before happily staying at 52 psi... Sure would have been swell to have a high pressure port to verify WHICH is the problem.

No compression in the compressor or a clog between the LP valve and the compressor inlet.

Any recommendations out there for a NEW 850 compressor (R-134a, 1995 850 GLT non-turbo sedan)?

If you dont mind used and buying on line. erievovo.com (no a typo) has warranties usually lifetime warranties on their parts. Easy to deal with too. I have their number if you want it. I got an alternator from them.

you could also try vandsautodismantlers.com i've gotten a crap load of stuff from them. they are used, of course. ask for keith.

Thanks for the replies. I'll be calling them soon (starting my "savings plan" for repair parts and gonna take a few weeks) and see what we can do.

Volvos... I had no idea they had such a following in the U.S.A. Now that I am an owner, it is amazing how many of these cars are on the road.

I thought most A/C systems did lose refrigerant overtime through seals etc. That's why A/C experts advise you to have the A/C system checked over annually to detect any problems with the system before they become major (and, as they aren't Santa Claus - to make a buck or two for themselves).

Having made the above comment, my Nissan twin cab has never had anything done to the A/C since I bought it new - and when the A/C is on full bore during the summer you can hardly touch the steering wheel it is that cold.

So, what am I saying?

I guess some do need maintenance - and some are best left well-enough alone.

And not only late model ones.

You will see many old 240's etc. with 300-400 thousand miles on the clock putting around quite happily.

I don't know if the 850 model will enjoy the same longevity - I guess only time will tell.

Just a side note on possible leaks and newer A/C systems needing more frequent checks.

Part of the reasoning why the older R12 systems needed less work was due to the fact that the freon of the R12 systems was a much larger molecule, and could not escape through seals ans such as easily. Not to mention the R12 was a better and more efficient refrigerant. But, oh well, those days are pretty much gone an dthe cost of R12 is ridiculous now and can only be bought in 50lb cannisters.

The newer R134A is a much more dense and smaller molecule, which is why you cannot simply put R134A in an R12 system, as it would just leak out in no time. Better and tighter seals have to be used in the newer systems to prevent leaks, and over less time the seals could deteriorate allowing for leaks, where the R12 would not leak.

So it is a good idea to check your A/C system once a year (usually at the beginning of spring after the A/C system has basically not been used for several months. Some systems require oil in the A/C system as well (or maybe they all do, I don't know). The oil serves a couple of purposes, including keeping the seals in good shape and through the winter the A/C tends not to get run which can cause the seals to begin to crack internally, leading to premature leaking.

In Volvo's (at least the 850s and up) it seems they must detect the proper pressure or they just click on and off awhile and then quit trying until you restart the car. This can be rough on the electrical clutch on the compressor and eventually casue it to fail prematurely (which I believe is what has happened to my system as it wont even try to work anymore). A/C work isnt cheap so it's best to maintain a relatively routine schedule on keeping it in good working order or you may end up with a very high bill to get it fixed. Luckily I dont use A/C very much so it isnt a big deal to me, but it is nice on those hot days (especially with a black interior...haha).

The biggest problem with the Volvo (and other R134) AC systems, other than the evaporator, is the compressor clutch wearing. It's a long story but with this type of system, clicking on and off every minute or so the clutch surface wears away and the gap becomes too wide to pull in. You can measure it and if it is 0.030" - 0.040" it is too wide and must be reduced.
The symptoms are; AC is fully charged, it works well in cooler weather (<85F), works OK when traveling at highway speeds but stops working when in stop and go traffic, works OK for the first 20 minutes but blows warm air after that but will recover if you switch the AC off for 5-10 minutes.
There tow ways to reduce the gap.
Place shims (plastic bread bag clips) in the outer clutch springs. (easy)
Remove the clutch plate from the shaft and remove shims to get the gap down to 0.015". (difficult)
Lots of information on Brickboard.com
I would like to have the money spent on needless compressor replacements these days. I could have retired sooner :beer:
Cheers,
Tom

So you are saying that even though the clutch pulls in by visual inspection it can still be uncoupled from the compressor and not turn the money-making portion of the compressor?

It's worth a shot! Time to go buy some clearance Mrs. Bairds bread!!!

Well it was worth a shot but in my example there is no suction from the compressor even after shimming the compressor from 29 to 15. The expansion valve (orifice) was replaced - no change. The clutch was reshimmed - no change.

New drier is here, waiting on the compressor. I am going to take the leap of faith and flush the evap and condensor units prior to installation of the replacement parts and hope they are serviceable.

System could be clogged I reckon but even starting a recharge with the system under vac still does not impress the compressor - no suction seen on the LP gauge during recharge at any point and the static pressure remains the same engine/compressor on or off.