Im not going to ask paypal for a refund, i just cant be bothered. The car is a 93 with 89,000 miles, almost full service history, only cost approx $700 US and thats with the exchange rate being so high, so in real terms probably $600 US. Everything else seems ok.

 

Thats because we say the day before the month

The 8th of October

etc

Im pretty sure most countries do.

 

at idle it blows snowballs and ice chunks gotta turn it off some times

 

If it's not REALLY hot outside (which it is now in Dallas) I have to either adjust the temperature slider or point the vents away from me because even 1 is too cold. So yeah, it works pretty damn good. But honestly, I have no idea what the temperature is so I really can't vote.

 

Never tested it, but I would guess that it was in the mid 50s. It blew cold but not freezing cold. I usually just had the windows down and the A/C off since I like the wind. And John, I didn't think that it was possible for you to love your car more than you already did. Guess I was wrong.

 

Mine always cools the vent temp to 50 and then cycles off for a few seconds. I've experimented with different low-side pressures, it refuses to blow colder than 50. I had concluded it was designed this way.

Now I see some of you are getting colder air. Mine's going to the $hop!

 

Yeah, the car probably has some interesting history because my UK Maxima brochures say AC is standard. From what I've read from UK owners, Maximas are very rare there anyway and its hard to imagine a dealer ordering the car with no AC. Its equally hard to imagine a climate where you wouldn't need AC, at least for dehumidifying cabin air! So now its like you have a car thats larger and more powerful than most in the UK, but no AC. I think you should install it and become a complete Maxima freak. Check out this site:

http://www.bignissans.org.uk/

One of those guys even did a 5-speed conversion years ago, so maybe you can get in contact with some UK Maxima guys that can help you locate a salvaged Max.

 

The UK isnt very hot for long but it doesnt need to be very warm outside for the cabin to turn into a mini greenhouse.

How much do you think it would cost to fit a/c? What parts would i need?

 

Compressor, Condensor, Evaporator, expansion valve, Accumulator, hoses.

 

compressor 200-300 for a cheap one
condensor 100-200 for a cheap one
Evaporator I have no clue
Expansion block I've never heard of
Accmulator/Drier = 10 bucks on rockauto.com
hoses= 80 for high pressure and 150 for low pressure at dealer
what about the other lines?

 

UK = totally different pricing.

 

Isnt he like in NY or something?

 

that's what his location says, but his car and posts say UcK

 

Here's my take on the cost:

The first factor is your source of parts.

1. New OEM, these parts were created on the same line as the parts that were installed in the car originally and they were shelved to be sold as service parts--very expensive, but worth it.

2. Salvaged OEM, oem parts in uncertain condition, very cheap, you can afford to try a few out and trash defective ones.

3. Rebuilt OEM these are basically salvage parts that have been restored by a company that usually offers a warranty, these are priced as the above post stated. Often of dubious quality, there's just no way to know what you are getting.


The second factor, labor. From you posts you seem to be in my camp, you can visualized what needs to be done but lack the skills/rescources to do it yourself.

1. Dealer, will probably do it right but charge you a couple thousand U$D.

2. Independent mechanic, somewhere in between option 1 and option 3.

3. Fellow car nut, the car will be tied up for weeks while you bond with a fellow car nut and learn together how to install an AC system in a 3rd gen Max. This is probably the cheapest and most rewarding option.


The good thing is all the parts should bolt right in. This is not a customization or anything that requires creative judgement. Its just a matter of getting everything you need and putting it together.

Best wishes for you with your new Maxima, let me know if you need anything from a salvage yard here in the states, theres one close to me some 3rd gens. I'd be glad to ship you something you need to make the project work.

 

wouldn't his stuff be like completely different as his car is right hand drive? such as condensor inputs instead of being on the passenger side for the high and low pressure lines it'll be on the driver side and the drier will be on the other side? I think he would only be able to use right hand drive parts or customize the left hand drive ones.

 

the hoses will be different because I believe the UK had the evap and heater core on the left side. everything else usually stays the same.

 

everything but the master cylinder and other necessary crap huh?

 

what does the master cylinder have to do with a/c?
and it does stay the same, it just changes location.

 

The more heat energy you can cram into the gas phase, the colder the blown air will be. If you can get a larger evaporator, that can be achieved.

 

added a little clarification there for you.

 

I'm referring to keeping everything stock. What is supposed to be the temperature coming out of these when new? Anyone know?

 

flush your system.
clean your condenser and evaporator.
figure out how to modify the expansion valve.

 

Expansion valve, I think thats where we need to be looking. Since my AC cycles off at the same vent temp regardless of the load on the system, its reasonable to assume its not doing all it can. Something is killing the fun at 50 degrees.

 

The easiest way is to let some gas out, that way it will run colder, but it will have less 'grunt' (won't cool well in hot conditions).

A properly charged R12 or R134A system in good working order can not cool below freezing regardless of the size of the evaporator, condenser or compressor.

 

then do you care to explain how a freezer works then?

 

It uses R22 or an enviro equivalent.

 

that's not always true.
many current Refrigeration units use R134a.
I am including freezers in the refrigeration category because many of them can be adjusted between them.

 

You can run R12 and R134A below freezing if you run a lower evaporator gas pressure, which is why you can get a car aircon to ice up if you are low on gas.


But as I mentioned previously a properly charged car aircon in good working order will not cool below freezing, they are made this way. You could modify them to get colder if you know what needs to be done, but it is not recommended as they are a fairly powerful cooler and the evaporator would quickly ice up unless it was a very hot dry day.

 

interesting.... 10 char

 

sufficient airflow will prevent it from icing up

 

Yes, provided the airflow is fast enough and warm enough to keep the evaporator above freezing temperatures, but given a car aircon is fairly powerful, it wouldn't be too long before the occupants would get cold and want to turn the fan speed down, especially at night.

At the end of the day, if you want to turn your car aircon into a freezer, you could do it, but it would require more modification than just a bigger evaporator, or better cooling on the condenser. And some very significant modification if you want it to actually cool the car down faster and not just be capable of getting very cold.

 

I bought my 90 GXE in Sept. 1989. Only recharged the AC once (last year) during my entire ownership of this car. It has 183,500 miles now. Never had any problems with the AC. I always run the AC at least once every 3 weeks, even in the winter. If I haven't run it for longer than 2 weeks, I would start the AC at very low engine RPM, like idling speed, to prevent compressor damage due to refrigerant oil settling out of the compressor. After recharging last year, I used an infra-red thermometer and aimed it at the vent. Got a reading of about 7-8 degrees Centigrade on a 90-degree F day - that's pretty cold air. Oh, the compressor still runs on its original factory AC belt.

 

whenever you turn on the front defroster your A/C kicks in.

 

To answer the origional Question.
I have 377,000 K on a JDM, a/c was retrofit to "newer standards" (R12?) and runs nice n' cool. Intersting thing to note, is that in the year that the retrofit a/c was disconnected (open) awaithing a new engine, none of the components failed/ leaked. For this I am grateful. Superblack leather gets screaming hot here in the no-longer-frozen North. (Torontoish)

 

So, after asking at work what I could do to get my AC cooler...they told me that I probably had too much oil in it from when I charged it. They offered me to hook up my car to the machine after I was off the clock, do a refrigerant recovery, add a 2 or so ounces of pag46 and recharge...it did the trick.

Today on my way to michigan I had 20 degree air coming out of my vents, I was soo happy I took pictures


Pardon the crappy quality they were taken with my cellphone

 

can't read the temp.

 

BLA! I know lol its pointing far left though...20 degrees of icicles

 

20 degrees! Mine is definately going to the shop to be serviced properly, no more "nocturnal evacuations."

 

So is it that you had too much oil, or not enough?

P.S. Fasten your seatbelt!

 

Appearantly I did have too much but they still put in 2 ounces..why I dont know but boy do they have talent... my seatbelt light wont go away! I've got a short going on thats gonna get addressed this Wednesday