Information on Replacing Major A/C Components

Hello all, I'm looking for a little direction on how to approach my current situation. About 3 weeks ago, when western Oregon was in the middle of a heat wave, the A/C on my Jetta started blowing ambient air. If I turned it off, then back on 5 minutes later, I might get 30 seconds of cooler air before the temperature warmed again.

Although I do most of my repair work at home, I know nothing about air conditioning so I took in to be evaluated by the VW dealership. They found that there were no Freon leaks, but that the compressor was only "compressing" up to 30psi. Their recommendation was to replace the compressor, receiver/drier, and expansion valve; a grand total of $1450 after everything would be said and done.

Needless to say the car is back home now, still blowing ambient air. After reviewing the Bentley manual, it appears that compressor removal amounts to the serpentine belt, alternator, bracket and the unit itself. Physically speaking, that sounds like something I could do myself in a few hours with the right tools. However, I can't find anything regarding the receiver/drier or expansion valve.

I did find a brief discussion about removing the passenger wheel well and "finagling" the unit out with some wrenches and a screwdriver, but that was in a B4 (not sure if any different on ours); nothing to say about the expansion valve. Overall, the discussion on self-replacement of these parts seems light, and I'm tentative about drudging into a foreign area of service/repair.

So that leaves me at a crossroads.

I live in an apartment, so my repair work is done on chip seal asphalt and it could be difficult if I have to do a lot of work from the underside. Is it possible to just change the compressor, maybe the expansion valve since it's at the firewall, and then have an A/C shop recharge it? Or is the compressor/drier/expansion viewed in the same manner as the timing belt service, where you'd be stupid not to replace the waterpump while you're in there?

Regardless of whether I do the work or not, where would be the best place to find authentic replacement parts, and what ballpark should I realistically look to pay for everything?

Thanks

This is the thread that has become the ac trouble shooting thread. The fact that the dealership wanted to replace everything probably means they either weren't sure what the actual problem was or were just looking for a big $ job.

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=242699

When your car is sitting in the driveway idling, turn the ac on high, do the radiator fans come on? Can you see the center part of the ac clutch turning? A no answer to either of those questions will give you ambient air flow,

I would try an actual AC shop rather than a VW shop.

Some small simple things that can give you the problems you're having. Stuff that doesn't open the refrigeration system you can fix yourself, like the compressor clutch, the rad fan, etc.

While you can physically replace the compressor yourself you can't purge the system and charge it properly without some equipment you probably don't have access to. It's also illegal to vent refrigerant to the atmosphere, it is supposed to be recovered (it can be reused if not contaminated too).

Sent from my LG-H873 using Tapatalk

Sorry for the late reply. I was able to test it this morning and confirm that I see both the clutch and both radiator fans spinning after turning the A/C on high. Is there a good way to go about the next steps of figuring out what part(s) need replacement?

In some of my searching I've seen FourSeasons frequently mentioned as a replacement manufacturer. Is there a reason I would choose them over another group I see see on RockAuto (Denso, Nissens, Hella)?

Tdijarhead said:

This is the thread that has become the ac trouble shooting thread. The fact that the dealership wanted to replace everything probably means they either weren't sure what the actual problem was or were just looking for a big $ job.

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=242699

When your car is sitting in the driveway idling, turn the ac on high, do the radiator fans come on? Can you see the center part of the ac clutch turning? A no answer to either of those questions will give you ambient air flow,

Click to expand...

Did you try giving it a shot of coolant. Local auto parts stores and Walmart have those bottles with the gage on them, although some on here don't recommend that you go that route I usually do.

Your system might just be low if everything appears to be working. You should really review that thread I linked above it started out to be a fan repair and has really become quite comprehensive over the years with DanG144 still chiming in now and again to help out.

Reality is though there's no reason for a system to be low unless it has a leak, so...

Sent from my LG-H873 using Tapatalk

^yea but by giving it a proper (to psi) shot of refrigerant you get it running. your suggestion, van, he cannt do, it ll cost him*. giving it a shot is about a $45 temp bill. then again that sealer stuff can easily make a shop turn you away from working on it. *even if he could do any/all the work its the long away around.

Bought a recharge bottle a few days ago but wasn't free enough until this afternoon to give it a go. Unfortunately it did not seem to have any effect and there was quite a bit of fluctuation in the gauge whenever I let off the trigger.

Looks like the next step is going to involve a professional A/C shop, whether I replace the components myself of pay to have it all done.

Tdijarhead said:

Did you try giving it a shot of coolant. Local auto parts stores and Walmart have those bottles with the gage on them, although some on here don't recommend that you go that route I usually do.

Your system might just be low if everything appears to be working. You should really review that thread I linked above it started out to be a fan repair and has really become quite comprehensive over the years with DanG144 still chiming in now and again to help out.

Click to expand...

its not like your going to give it a little shot from a bottle, where your at it may well take a whole bottle +. keep on going until compressor turns on. i think.

one point: for one im fairly versed in an A/C system. another thing i have a gauge set. its real easy to hook up your high gauge and add a bottle on the low side. it gives you a better idea of what your doing there. gauges are going to be more accurate than that bottle with that plastic whatever (gauge) on it.

I wanted to re-open this old thread of mine from last Fall instead of starting another one. The summer weather became bearable shortly after my A/C problems began and I was able to put it on the wayside. Over the winter I found a scan of this helpful Haynes book on HVAC systems and have read over it a couple times in order to better understand everything. I intended to tackle this issue a couple months ago when the weather was cooler but I still live at the same place with no cover and the rainy weather prevented me from digging in. However, with the advice here and the book, I have made some small diagnostic steps forward and am ready to finish this.

As determined earlier, the compressor clutch spins when the A/C is on and the radiator fans still function also. With the guidance of the book and the Bentley manual I checked the fuses (6, 19) and relay (position 1), checked for leaks (found none), and borrowed a manifold gauge set from O’Reilly. Here is my readout from the other evening:

Temperature: 60F
Humidity: 80%

Car Status: Pressure (High/Low)
Vehicle Off: 75/75
Vehicle On, A/C Off: 75/75
Vehicle On, A/C On: 75/65

Referencing the table on 5-16 for normal pressure vs. ambient temperature, the low-side pressure is around +5-10 psi high, but not too bad. However, the high side should be about double what it’s reading. I also found it odd that the low-side dropped roughly 10 psi once the A/C is engaged. I believe that could be due to the re-circulation being turned on. The dealership diagnosis last fall indicated that there were no leaks and I didn’t find anything unusual during my own inspection this spring.

I’m not quite sure how I should proceed with this information now. The Haynes manual states that the system needs to have the correct amount of Freon for diagnosis of other components. Assuming there’s not leaks, it should be at a normal amount, but I have no way of absolutely knowing unless I have it vacuumed out and refilled. The Haynes manual (and this handy Sanden diagram) state that if the compressor doesn’t appear to be malfunctioning, it’s probably the expansion valve, but I’ve also seen forum posts (non-VW related) that if the pressures stay equalized then it is defacto the compressor which is bad.

With some conflicting information I’m not sure if I should:

a) Have the system purged and refilled, and hope that’s the problem (assumes low on freon)
b) Have system purged; replace expansion valve (and probably drier if it’s easy); refill
c) Have system purged; replace compressor, drier, and expansion valve; refill (most expensive)

I’m leaning towards ‘b’ but want to know if there’s any specific experience/evidence on our model VW if static pressure automatically means the compressor is bad. The less physical time/labor the better, but not if I have to pay double to have everything purged and refilled twice when something doesn’t work. I hope by updating this post it’s helpful to myself and provide information for anybody else who may have these symptoms in the future.

I also found this YouTube video on how to properly hook up the A/C gauges most helpful. It’s the first high-quality one I found that addresses the proper way of getting the freon back into the system, and not all over your hand/engine bay once you’re done measuring.

I’ll be watching this thread since I’m in the same boat here in a Texas summer.

There's a valve in the pump that controls its displacement. Search for RCV. It can be replaced in the vehicle but might not fix the problem. Requires venting/vacuum/recharge.

And a new drier.

Sometimes whacking the back of the pump gets it working.

Static reads pretty low, but with the system running the low side is crazy high and the high side is pretty low.

I’ve replaced the RCV, and it’s a gamble.... it didn’t work for me. Choices are a new China compressor or used oem. I’ve installed both and the China compressor is still running strong.

Most people will say to weigh the charge, and although it’s the ideal way to do it, I top my B4 off every year. 20 minutes later, I’m seeing 45-50° from the vents on high.

Follow your refrigerant lines to the firewall and you’ll find the txv inside a black cover.

Here was my AC learning experience from years ago...
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=349872

-Todd

I bought a China knockoff for my '98. Lasted long enough to charge it and drive up the block.

The guy in AZ where I bought honored the warranty no questions asked. I thought that was a bad sign so I ponied up the extra for a Sanden.

Or you could go to the local junkyard.

I prefer good used stuff over a unknown china part. Wrecking yards warranty their parts too if needed.

I've been having the same issues with my 2013 Jetta TDI AC. Intermittent warm air and finally the it quit working altogether. Took it to dealer twice and all they did was purge and charge it. This last week their answer was compressor, condenser et al all needed replaced. I was highly suspicious that their "VW-trained mechanics" didn't know what the problem was so they just replaced everything. I don't have the tools or knowledge of VW systems to properly diagnose issues as some of you seem to have but I've done enough engine work to know that 95% of the time it's something simple first. The car is only 5 years old and for a compressor to fail that soon is surprising. I have had much trouble finding info about this particular TDI problem but it appears to be more common than I realized. Any feedback would be appreciated. Oh, the cost was estimated at over $2700 for the work. I did pay for an extended warranty which will cover most of it but we are still negotiating. The car has 122K + miles on it. Never had an issue until now. Also, my mileage is slowly getting worse as it ages. I had that damned EPA fix done to it and it has gotten worse from there. Down from 42-43mpg to as low as 36mpg even in warm weather. Thanks for reading this far. Sorry to drone on.

Drag SGT said:

As determined earlier, the compressor clutch spins when the A/C is on and the radiator fans still function also.

Temperature: 60F
Humidity: 80%

Car Status: Pressure (High/Low)
Vehicle Off: 75/75
Vehicle On, A/C Off: 75/75
Vehicle On, A/C On: 75/65

Click to expand...

ok, looking at what your updating, im first of the opinion that you A/C isnt actually on, your car is, and you push the a/c button. the above observation you made of the compressor 'clutch' spinning, can you be looking at whats going on there wrong??(<question). one if the car is running the pulley will spin, if you now switch the A/C on the clutch 'inner' portion will now engage and should spin. theres a difference. even if it so happens the compressor clutch is engaging (not as likely,,given,>>), your pressures you give, and nice job getting and reading pressures, gauges, you list 75psi with car off and/or just the A/C off. the same pressures (aprox) with the A/C(supposedly)on. so in my estimation your compressor isnt actually either turning, or theres no pressure if it so happens the compressor itself happens to be turning. your off pressures should be close enough and seemingly pretty high. so if it doesnt happen to need a shot of freon, its troubleshooting. check sensors are hooked-up, as far as to see if they are working, idk, however if when you switch on A/C dash button, and >then< the radiator fans turn on, thats a good sign sensors for one are giving run signals. sooo>>.

I've had good luck with used compressors from Mk3 cars where the system is still fully sealed and the car looks to have been in decent shape.

That said, I would not advocate buying a used compressor from something that got a full ghetto treatment or looks particularly haggard. Custom wiring under the hood or lots of "make shift" stuff would also exclude.

Accident victims are better than those without body damage, at least that's the rule of thumb I use for engines / transmissions. That is unless you can find something under the car that gives you a reason it's there. A rusted out k member would qualify as something that would lead me to believe other stuff is ok.

If the underhood stuff looked decent I'd be inclined to risk money on the compressor. Also, since the JY's typically don't put the miles on the body anywhere you don't have that info either.

Steve

yeaa, i bought a used compressor one time, never again, theres no reasonable reason to buy used A/C parts. the one i bought went bad for the next year, making all that work essentially useless. buy a new and a good compressor. and not a cheapie, china, etc. if you have to, and its not going to be by -chance, odds are, you try to put in used A/C parts the next year or not too long you ll be replacing them, and may be more. that doesnot include, if when in replacing these parts, you open the system(again) and in doing so cause more problems for it. do it right the first time.

i had thought at a glance, not really very sure that @60dg f -outside that a pressure of 75 may be close to right, it may low enough, like i think the first post in this topic, all you need is a charge added, so if so get a bottle, i happen to like the black bottle, i mean my A/C runs cold, and use the gauges, add charge, before you start to add charge, turn car on, turn A/C on, fan and such, and add charge, it may be simple, it may just need that!! -just if A/C does happen to kick on, make sure the rad fan is on, and go from there.

I have a 98 and just replaced my compressor, drier and condenser. The symptoms you describe were pretty similar to mine. I didn't have any leaks either. Replaced all 3 myself and if you're mechanical, this shouldn't be an issue. The whole job took me about 3 hours start to finish. Got all the parts from Rock Auto for about $250. Then cost $77 for a recharge.

To remove the compressor, had to remove the bumper, serpentine tensioner and the belt. Also pulled the condenser since I was replacing it anyway. Pulled the compressor bolts and squeezed the compressor through a space between the radiator and the frame. Worked pretty well for me.

Word of note, I had 0 oil in my old compressor BUT no discernable leaks either. I suspect I had a blockage somewhere in the system. Condenser is the most likely place for blockages.

1st comment on your post dieself--, id prefer to stay away from rock-auto, in all to tell you the truth. it doesnt really justify saving so much on anything, *here parts. R-A tends to be the cheaper side of the business, and im of the opinion and i have found limited life span and quality from parts coming from them. i think some or more of what they will ship to buyers, for new, are at or near tolerance. in the same point what you put in there, you may be replacing before a normal 'life span'(for (those/or any) parts). buy from a better mfg and supplier. think you will have better results over-all. more cost for a better part, that has a longer and more stable life span, works out better in more ways than just a few(ways).
now to the main body of my comment.
the work you did on your A/C, did you check?? i ve heard normal stories of A/C systems being fixed up, only to find it will blow. culprit, esp and not abnormal, incorrect oil put back into system, common, over oiling. for instance, one, the compressor you bought, did it have oil in it, was it dry? was it full oil for the whole A/C system, or was it enough oil just for the compressor. this may be labeled on a compressor, smart of a supplier, and help for the mechanic. if its full oil for the whole system, you now drain all that oil out, and measure the right amount for the compressor, and put it in, later you will put oil in and around system, as all individual parts of the system take their own certain amount of oil. you, smartly would have wanted to get all the oil out of the system already in there. let me point this out.
you say your compressor that came out had -0-oil in it, and suggest a restriction(in the condenser) seemed to have sucked all that oil out. if thats the case, all the oil, already in the system and the oil the was in the compressor and got sucked out, is all around in the system. when you open system and take parts out, you also need to drain all the oil out, better idea if you do anyway, for most services you open an A/C anyway, in many cases.
i know for a lot of A/C compressors you can with them out of the car, just turn upside down and drain the oil out of them, turn it upright, and you can add oil.
you will have to add the right amount of oil to each hose, and part, whether receiver/dryer, condenser, evap, expansion valve, etc. its in the manual the exact amount in each part.
so if you didnt get the amount of oil in the compressor and each hose & part right, i not run that A/C until you can correctly service it, that will be again.

srry for the like really long post. ^here.

Long post is fine if the info is good, and I agree with what you said. I will add my own footnotes to your post if you don't mind.



I do not like Rock auto either as a rule. mostly china crap just like all other cut rate places. I do not mind used parts, the quality was good to start with and longevity is generally good. I have three cars i am presently running and one has 290K on it, the other 270K, and the young one with only 180K. All are running their original compressors and a/c system in general.


Over oiling and overcharging are very commonly found problems. If you get too much oil you reduce the amount of freon capacity sometimes to a detrimental inefficient level, plus the expected size of the system is smaller and leads to overcharge often.



If you charge out of a bottle you buy at the parts store be sure it has no sealant in it. If you later take the car to a shop and they detect sealant, and they do test for it, you may find that they refuse to work on the system at all as it might plug their recovery machine. I have personally had two of them destroyed and would rather turn the job away than risk it.


A/c is not hard, or complicated but purely physics and all laws of physics apply. A little extra oil or freon is not a good thing, set up and run the system as designed and they can be almost trouble free as I have proven on several cars over the years.

iluvmydiesels said:

then again that sealer stuff can easily make a shop turn you away from working on it.

Click to expand...

i had posted this earlier in the topic. and was going to point out that most bottles(at least the 'large' ones)will have a certain amount of this sealant in it. before either you buy a bottle, or use one you need to be aware of this. the smaller bottles i cannt be sure, then again they need more care and an attachment/valve set-up, as well. you have to carefully read the bottle for this. the black bottle i happen to like has this sealant stuff in it.

i thought it is a good information in my post. as checking what dieselfiend had posted, i quite quickly recall one of my first A/C lessons, oh back in the late '80s. where a mechanic would put a 'new' compressor in, compressor already, supposedly, being prepared. not too long later it would just not work. same culprit, it would blow, common back then, and also could be very possible at anytime. is the oil in your system thats left after you open it, and also removing parts. so a compressor can have any amount of oil in it. it needs to be on a tag from the supplier. if its compressor oil, the whole systems oil. or what. because in my example, which was not uncommon, in the past. a mechanic would remove a compressor, and throw in a new one. other parts aside(usually a receiver/dryer, and charge) the new compressor would be full with all the oil the whole system would need. this is now added to the oil that you didnt take out of the system. blows the compressor shortly. if you get a compressor, know what, how much oil is in it. its not a bad idea to drain this oil, and measure it and put back in compressor. if its full with the whole systems oil, the idea is to drain it anyway, and measure each part of oil. etc.
my other and last thing. any system as old as ours, even if you smartly get it charged by weight, it wont be too long, usually a year, can be two or so. it ll need a shot(at least) of charge(before summer, warm weather, whatever). new systems seem to hold ok, yet anytime an A/C seems warmer, you need to hook up gauges and take it from there. it can be every year, or as needed.

I'll try and address the meat of this with brevity. While I agree that RA parts are hit and miss, you're basically getting the same thing from the major auto parts stores for 2/3 the price. I did my homework and chose the compressor very carefully. Completely up to the mechanic though. For me, I didn't buy the cheapest compressor but didn't buy the most expensive one either. I honestly bought the one that had the least google hits for problems. My TDI has 310K on it. If the compressor lasts 3 years, well, it's probably going to outlast the rest of the body of the car at this point.

My troubleshooting steps below:
1. A/C starts to fade this year. Had it reserviced at a shop. No leaks and A/C works a little bit better. After a couple days, A/C fades again.
2. Replaced the compressor, condensor, and dryer. The old compressor had 0 oil in it. There are a lot of hidden spaces in the compressor so there could have been oil in it but just wasn't circulating. Also the oil could have been trapped in the condenser somewhere and no allowed to circulate. Who knows. Either way, I replaced all the parts that could have housed trapped oil. New compressor came with about 5 oz of oil in it which is about what they should have for these cars. I dropped the amount just a tad so all in there's probably closer to 4 and the residual left in the lines.
3. Had it pressure checked and reserviced and works like a champ. So you can pay a mechanic an exorbitant amount to do all the things I just did for $1500 + if you want but I'm a licensed Aircraft A&P and have kept this thing running for over 10 years and really have no excuse for not doing it myself.

iluvmydiesels said:

1st comment on your post dieself--, id prefer to stay away from rock-auto, in all to tell you the truth. it doesnt really justify saving so much on anything, *here parts. R-A tends to be the cheaper side of the business, and im of the opinion and i have found limited life span and quality from parts coming from them. i think some or more of what they will ship to buyers, for new, are at or near tolerance. in the same point what you put in there, you may be replacing before a normal 'life span'(for (those/or any) parts). buy from a better mfg and supplier. think you will have better results over-all. more cost for a better part, that has a longer and more stable life span, works out better in more ways than just a few(ways).
now to the main body of my comment.
the work you did on your A/C, did you check?? i ve heard normal stories of A/C systems being fixed up, only to find it will blow. culprit, esp and not abnormal, incorrect oil put back into system, common, over oiling. for instance, one, the compressor you bought, did it have oil in it, was it dry? was it full oil for the whole A/C system, or was it enough oil just for the compressor. this may be labeled on a compressor, smart of a supplier, and help for the mechanic. if its full oil for the whole system, you now drain all that oil out, and measure the right amount for the compressor, and put it in, later you will put oil in and around system, as all individual parts of the system take their own certain amount of oil. you, smartly would have wanted to get all the oil out of the system already in there. let me point this out.
you say your compressor that came out had -0-oil in it, and suggest a restriction(in the condenser) seemed to have sucked all that oil out. if thats the case, all the oil, already in the system and the oil the was in the compressor and got sucked out, is all around in the system. when you open system and take parts out, you also need to drain all the oil out, better idea if you do anyway, for most services you open an A/C anyway, in many cases.
i know for a lot of A/C compressors you can with them out of the car, just turn upside down and drain the oil out of them, turn it upright, and you can add oil.
you will have to add the right amount of oil to each hose, and part, whether receiver/dryer, condenser, evap, expansion valve, etc. its in the manual the exact amount in each part.
so if you didnt get the amount of oil in the compressor and each hose & part right, i not run that A/C until you can correctly service it, that will be again.

Click to expand...

For my replacement, I drained the new one to make sure there was the correct amount of oil it it. The MFG tag said 5 oz. but drained it anyway to verify.

iluvmydiesels said:

i had posted this earlier in the topic. and was going to point out that most bottles(at least the 'large' ones)will have a certain amount of this sealant in it. before either you buy a bottle, or use one you need to be aware of this. the smaller bottles i cannt be sure, then again they need more care and an attachment/valve set-up, as well. you have to carefully read the bottle for this. the black bottle i happen to like has this sealant stuff in it.
i thought it is a good information in my post. as checking what dieselfiend had posted, i quite quickly recall one of my first A/C lessons, oh back in the late '80s. where a mechanic would put a 'new' compressor in, compressor already, supposedly, being prepared. not too long later it would just not work. same culprit, it would blow, common back then, and also could be very possible at anytime. is the oil in your system thats left after you open it, and also removing parts. so a compressor can have any amount of oil in it. it needs to be on a tag from the supplier. if its compressor oil, the whole systems oil. or what. because in my example, which was not uncommon, in the past. a mechanic would remove a compressor, and throw in a new one. other parts aside(usually a receiver/dryer, and charge) the new compressor would be full with all the oil the whole system would need. this is now added to the oil that you didnt take out of the system. blows the compressor shortly. if you get a compressor, know what, how much oil is in it. its not a bad idea to drain this oil, and measure it and put back in compressor. if its full with the whole systems oil, the idea is to drain it anyway, and measure each part of oil. etc.
my other and last thing. any system as old as ours, even if you smartly get it charged by weight, it wont be too long, usually a year, can be two or so. it ll need a shot(at least) of charge(before summer, warm weather, whatever). new systems seem to hold ok, yet anytime an A/C seems warmer, you need to hook up gauges and take it from there. it can be every year, or as needed.

Click to expand...

Dieselfiend said:

While I agree that RA parts are hit and miss, you're basically getting the same thing from the major auto parts stores for 2/3 the price.

Click to expand...

theres holes in your explanation, i feel im going to end up making another elongated post. if to make point(s).
lets start with this one, above. ok, be aware i dont think this is the case. yes the parts your getting are cheaper. so this is how it works(ime). a supplier gets shipment, they if they are part of the upper end of the business, check the parts that they must. anything rejected gets 'tossed', this bin, i for the purposes of the post think of it as 'trash', so this bin gets returned to sender, the mfg. then cheaper end companies can easily get these set of parts, that have ended up in a (initial)reject pile. ok, most likely and in all probability what these suppliers are shipping to you, and customers are parts of questionable tolerance, or questionable in another way(can be more than one, i suppose).
so my whole point for buying the better parts, isnt necessarily for those who have the money, its for those, who are here, who are on a budget. if you buy a set of parts, one or any to do one certain job(for this example). ok, the better quality parts, will only save you what you end up paying, but at the time who knows how much more, and the work you pay, or do your self, is to be added and included. doing it right first will save you more than the base 1X to pay-out to 'get the juob done again', cause it well could cost you more problems next time, to fix 'the same thing' again, cause who knows what other problems can add up, i cannt really think of one specific part we can work on and/or replace, etc, on a car thats not integral to more parts, systems, or whatever term to put more smaller parts to larger part(s) to the whole. sum, equals. and the equals is also a $-sign. its your pockets. just my 2cents, if you will.

Dieselfiend said:

For me, I didn't buy the cheapest compressor but didn't buy the most expensive one either. I honestly bought the one that had the least google hits for problems. My TDI has 310K on it. If the compressor lasts 3 years, well, it's probably going to outlast the rest of the body of the car at this point.

Click to expand...

you point out in your post on this page you spent $250 for parts from R-A.
not really a hefty price, even at 3 years if it works out that long. still i have A/Cs that are 20years and have never been opened, and running, about the only thing is charging when needed. my dads 2002 pontiac, i dont think the A/C has even been serviced, if its cool, i dont get into it. it works.
if you have other considerations, hey its all good. do what you got to do, and keep it working for what you gotta do. and a cool car in the summer, aah these days, to have it like 71dg and the A/C on the fan on lo--.