Anyone clued up on air conditioning ??

Need technical Q/A then you're in the right place

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GDBN
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Post Fri Jun 03, 2005 1:58 pm

I have an 86 325i convertible and the aircon doesn't seem to work anymore. I have had the car for 4 years now and it worked fine last summer ....never that cold but was ok.
Now nothing .... the engine noise doesn't really increase when I turn it on but the compressor seems to be turning ok. Bentley says to check the little glass window ....no bubbles or streaks.
I realise that the system is pretty old now and probably never had any maintenance (car was imported from southern spain when i bought it) .

Any clues or is an expensive trip to the dealer ??

Thanks in advance .....
Widge
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Post Fri Jun 03, 2005 2:25 pm

There are independent guys (I know of one in Leeds who sorted my dads Saab 900's AC) with vans and all the gear inc gas (old and new R34) in the back. The guy who did my dad's said he gets called to the BMW / Saab dealerships when they have to fix AC systems an just does it out the back door. Reasonable rates too. Have a look in the yellow pages. By the sound of things yours has gradually degassed, probably a seal dried out, as it was not so good las year and now doesn't work.

Good luck
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browny
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Post Sat Jun 04, 2005 11:02 am

I've had lots of fun with my airconditioning lately. First thing you need to do is go and get it re-gassed. If it works ok just after re-gassing then you have a leak somewhere in the system. Usually when you re-gass they will put a dye in the gas to help locate the leak. If you re-gas the car and no cold air then you will probably find that the pressure switch (one for low one for high) has packed it in. Those are the two main things that I know of that match your description of the problem. Good luck!
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Borderbmw
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Post Sat Jun 04, 2005 11:14 am

As widge said its probably a seal dried out and let all the gas out,its a good idea to run it for a few minutes each month just to keep it all free and the seals damp.
Of all the people ive met,youre definitely one of them!
GDBN
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Post Sat Jun 04, 2005 5:06 pm

Thanks for the help guys ......
If I have it regassed do they use the same as they did in the old days ??
I thought I read somewhere that R12 was no longer used ??
Any ideas ??
smithy318i
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Post Sat Jun 04, 2005 8:05 pm

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