I have recharged a/c in other cars before , but on this 85 i can not find the spot to charge it at , if anyone can help would be appreciated.

 

Do you have access to R12? As for the recharge port, they both are located by the compressor. The low pressure one is the line that has the hose going by the accesseries belt. The High Pressure one is should next to the headlight/radiator. You can track it by following the hard line coming out of the condensor on the passenger side of the car.

S

 

sarin's right as to the location of the low-side service port. as for getting your hands on R-12, you'll find it sitting right next to a triceratops it's hard to find and extremely expensive, and if I'm not mistaken, you need a license to use it anyway (I could be wrong here.) your best bet is to get a R-134a conversion kit. I dunno about where you live, but at the auto zone in my area (which is where I work) the conversion kit is like $35. it comes with the new fittings, the necessary compressor oil, and some R-134a refrigerant. basically everything you'll need. and from what I've heard, it's really easy to use. one setback though is you'll need to get all the old R-12 out of the system first.... technically it's illegal to just vent it into the atmosphere, so I'm not telling you to do that... but I can tell you that the low-side uses a schrader valve like you'd see in a tire, so any tire valve stem remover will remove it. when the blazer needed the conversion, somehow this valve stem came out..... (ps, anything's legal until you get caught.) after you get the old R-12 out, I think it's just a matter of adding the oil and refrigerant.

Dan

 

Actually after getting the R-12 out you have to evacuate the system. If you know a local mechanic they *may* be willing to evacuate the system for you if you let them suck the R12 out and keep it. The R-12 is recycled by repair shops and re-sold... modern A/C machines filter it and store it in an on-board 30lb canister. Then you can recharge it yourself. Be aware that with R-134 less is more, as in a system cools better if it is slightly undercharged than if it is overcharged. A good starting point is to charge the system with R-134 to about 1 lb less than the rated capacity of R-12. Then using a vent thermometer gradually add R-134 until the air coming out gets no colder. You will probably have 1/2 to 3/4 lb less R-134 than R-12.

Of course, for not a lot of $$$ you could have a mechanic buddy recharge it using the machine so the pressures are correct. This takes out the guesswork. :-)

Will