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I have been trying to get the A/C working again in my '85 900T for a couple of years now (I live in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles where temps routinely get into the triple digits in summer). Since A/C repair requires certain equipment, I leave the work up to my local Saab indie mechanic. He tells me that the problem is that the seals are all blown on my compressor and that that big "S" A/C hose needs to be replaced, then all the Freon replaced. I asked him if we should just convert to r134a (or whatever that newer crap is...) and he told me that although the old r12 is EXTREMELY expensive, it's both better and cheaper to use that than to convert to r134.
I have him re-seal the compressor, add new oil to the compressor, replace the A/C hose and re-fill the system with r12. This work was done during the winter because I hear the price of Freon goes up the warmer the weather gets (as demand rises). This work cost me $600!!!
Now that it gets warm, I try to use the A/C. It just blows outside air. I take the car back to the guy who then tells me that there's a small leak in the evaporator and that I've lost about a 1/2 pound of Freon (over about a three month period of time). I'd have to recover the Freon left in the system, replace the evaporator, and add the Freon back in (plus an extra 1/2 lb to make up for the lost refrigerant). By the way, the price of r12 has gone up, AGAIN.
That's not the bad news. I bought a USED OEM Saab evaporator from Sobstory (thanks, Jim!). But now that I'm going to have my mechanic install it, he tells me that it's a labor-intensive job because in order to get the old evaporator out and the new one in, part of the engine needs to be lifted because it's in the way!!!
I'm saving my money to have this done because I just CAN'T go another summer in traffic on the freeway in 105 degree weather. But by the time this work is all done, I will have paid over $1000 just to have the A/C fixed. This is on a car that's probably only worth $2500!!!
Saab A/C sucks. Sorry to say it. I LOVE Saab, but the A/C system seems to have been an afterthought. I'm told they just took some Japanese system and stuck it on their car, and that's why it sucks so badly...
-- Mike Mc Gill
, Sat, 28 Apr 2001 03:21:19
, Fri, 27 Apr 2001 20:57:04
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