Should i bother fixing the A/C on my beater?
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AC systems seem to hold up a lot better today than they once did.
The AC on our '97 207K Accord still works, for example.
All of the cars in my sig have working AC.
If you can find a cheap fix, go for it.
If not, just lower the windows and grin and bear it.
That's what I would do, while thinking that I'm driving a car that costs little more than the price of fuel to use, unlike most of those around me in traffic.
They may have AC, but most of them are also writing a check each month just to be able to have a car.
This is one of the joys of beater ownership and at this point I don't think this car owes you much.
The AC on our '97 207K Accord still works, for example.
All of the cars in my sig have working AC.
If you can find a cheap fix, go for it.
If not, just lower the windows and grin and bear it.
That's what I would do, while thinking that I'm driving a car that costs little more than the price of fuel to use, unlike most of those around me in traffic.
They may have AC, but most of them are also writing a check each month just to be able to have a car.
This is one of the joys of beater ownership and at this point I don't think this car owes you much.
If you don't know how to fix and repair the AC system yourself, then I wouldn't bother as you will have more money into the car than it's worth. But if you are like me who really never worked on AC systems before and had a fiance that said that she needed the air to work in the 92 Cavalier of mine that she drives and that she would buy all of the equipment I needed to fix it, it gave me the incentive to learn how to do this type of repairs and now I know how to.
Since 2006 when I fixed her car, I've repaired probably around 10 vehicles with only one failure.
The AC in her car still works good after over 100,000 miles and almost seven years of use. The AC in the 92 Cavalier that I drive that I also fixed, will freeze you out of the car. Of course, I kept that one R12.
Both of these Cavaliers are our daily drivers even though we both have several other vehicles we can drive and for our use, we want the AC to work. It comes down to how much trouble and money you want to spend vs your ability to live without it.
Wayne
Since 2006 when I fixed her car, I've repaired probably around 10 vehicles with only one failure.
The AC in her car still works good after over 100,000 miles and almost seven years of use. The AC in the 92 Cavalier that I drive that I also fixed, will freeze you out of the car. Of course, I kept that one R12.
Both of these Cavaliers are our daily drivers even though we both have several other vehicles we can drive and for our use, we want the AC to work. It comes down to how much trouble and money you want to spend vs your ability to live without it.
Wayne
Patman
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The AC stopped working in my Corvette about two years ago and I haven't bothered to fix it either. I rarely ever used it, most of the time I drive with the windows down and the removable roof panel out, so AC just isn't that important in this car. Even in my Honda, I only really use the AC when it's hot and raining outside, otherwise I drive with the windows down. Keep in mind, summers up here aren't super hot, a typical summer day time high is about 75 to 85 degrees, and doesn't often go much above that.
Unless it is something like a compressor you can pick up used and you have either a good independent shop or can shadetree it your self, it is not worth it.
In my case on my old Taurus, I lucked out that it was a compressor and got a guy to install it out the door for $450. In my case, it mattered to me because I spent 2.5 hrs/day in the car wearing a suit. Your circumstances may be different.
In my case on my old Taurus, I lucked out that it was a compressor and got a guy to install it out the door for $450. In my case, it mattered to me because I spent 2.5 hrs/day in the car wearing a suit. Your circumstances may be different.
Mine finally kicked the bucket last year after being intermittent (usually going out when it was stuck in traffic) for a year before that.
I had a shop diagnose it and they didn't really give me much confidence. They said the refrigerant was low and so I had it recharged. Then I picked it up and it blew straight hot air. Then they said it was actually the coil on the compressor. I just left it for the summer. Luckily I drive into the office so early that I don't break a sweat in the morning.
I'll probably get another opinion on it pretty soon and see what it will cost to repair. I wasn't sold on their diagnosis since the a/c going out was usually related to heat. When it cooled down, it worked. It made me think maybe I had a fan issue that was tripping the thermal fuse. Of course, enough overheating may have killed the compressor. Whatever it was, it was dead after that recharge.
I actually budgeted for it when considering if it was time to say goodbye to the Civic. Unfortunately my driver side window has a tendency to come out the track when all the way down, so I can only go halfway down without risking having to take the door apart again when I get home. The window works, so I have no "need" to get the regulator replaced. I guess I'd rather put that money into a compressor.
I had a shop diagnose it and they didn't really give me much confidence. They said the refrigerant was low and so I had it recharged. Then I picked it up and it blew straight hot air. Then they said it was actually the coil on the compressor. I just left it for the summer. Luckily I drive into the office so early that I don't break a sweat in the morning.
I'll probably get another opinion on it pretty soon and see what it will cost to repair. I wasn't sold on their diagnosis since the a/c going out was usually related to heat. When it cooled down, it worked. It made me think maybe I had a fan issue that was tripping the thermal fuse. Of course, enough overheating may have killed the compressor. Whatever it was, it was dead after that recharge.
I actually budgeted for it when considering if it was time to say goodbye to the Civic. Unfortunately my driver side window has a tendency to come out the track when all the way down, so I can only go halfway down without risking having to take the door apart again when I get home. The window works, so I have no "need" to get the regulator replaced. I guess I'd rather put that money into a compressor.
I actually did find the source of my problems. I had a leaking high pressure port and a leaking compressor. I replaced the high pressure port with a new one, and I got a used A/C compressor off eBay shipped for $38 that only had 63K miles on it. I also replaced the orifice tube. The old one looked like this:
IMO, that orifice does not really look bad at all, especially since I had put in so much stop leak, but that appears to have gummed up nothing, even though I pressure tested this with compressed air before I vacuumed it out before I did the recharge. It's been working long enough (since Sunday) that if I had not replaced the correct part, it would be not working already. I did not spend much on this repair, and only had to use Autozone loaner tools for the orifice removal (which I do recommend using).
IMO, that orifice does not really look bad at all, especially since I had put in so much stop leak, but that appears to have gummed up nothing, even though I pressure tested this with compressed air before I vacuumed it out before I did the recharge. It's been working long enough (since Sunday) that if I had not replaced the correct part, it would be not working already. I did not spend much on this repair, and only had to use Autozone loaner tools for the orifice removal (which I do recommend using).
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