To BimmerNut Ed...Registration Poll...the verdict is in...

[Scott C]

sticky you are referring to Robin ...some are harder to remove than others...hehe.

Welcome back Ed...glad you are OK.

Darn,
How did you get pictures of my wife on here?
Scott

[winfred]

you can make the 90 and older 240s better with a good sized aux fan, they suck even with r12, a receiver drier 240 on r134 will get over 350#'s on the high side before the fan clutch kicks in, lots of airflow through the condensor helps a lot. i hooked up a pair from a late mercedes on my 84 240 turbo wagon (converted to a m47 5 speed and intercooled with 10 psi boost that i shouldn't of sold) to a dash switch so i could run em when ever i wanted. just about anything with a accumulator/orafis tube style system will work fine with r13491 and up 240 and 740/760/850/940/960 do fine

I've never had luck fixing A/C's in all the Volvo's I've owned. And every one of them (the A/C in the Volvos that it), sucked. Volvo never figured out how to make A/C cold till 1992 according to Winfred. I just ordered the conversion kit from BMA (today) and will be converting my daughters, empty R12 system to R134a real soon

[Bimmer Nut Ed]

See, I wish I woulda known this when I was into Volvos. But I'm much happier now that I'm into Bimmers, particularly with this crew on the board.

Thanks Winfred. My Dad still has a 240, and if he has any problems, I know where to go for help for the stuff I can't handle. I can do most everything on the 240's as I've driven them over 20 years, but the AC always screwed me (and not in a good way, like with George's Sisters below!). Dad does not drive much at all though, and the only thing he needs now is an exhaust.

you can make the 90 and older 240s better with a good sized aux fan, they suck even with r12, a receiver drier 240 on r134 will get over 350#'s on the high side before the fan clutch kicks in, lots of airflow through the condensor helps a lot. i hooked up a pair from a late mercedes on my 84 240 turbo wagon (converted to a m47 5 speed and intercooled with 10 psi boost that i shouldn't of sold) to a dash switch so i could run em when ever i wanted. just about anything with a accumulator/orafis tube style system will work fine with r13491 and up 240 and 740/760/850/940/960 do fine

[George M]

Ed...I see. Abnormal's car is relatively low mileage for a '90 525i, resonably priced and only a stone's throw from where I live. Had I not bought my little Saturn runabout, I would have jumped on it. I am not a big AC guy either and yes it can be pricey but perhaps the R12 has leaked out unless you heard otherwise. I am pretty astounded that my original unmolested 90 735iL R12 system still works great. I even picked up a can of R12 in anticipation of charging it at some point but its still blows cold. Remarkable for a 14 year old car that has never been charged in the 6 years I have owned it.
George

[Bimmer Nut Ed]

I just ordered a conversion kit for my daughters AC. Maybe if that goes well, and Abnormal's 525 is still available, I'll reconsider. You're right, the price is right, but I'm afraid of the AC problem.

My 1990 535 also blows real, real cold with R12, and I've never filled it either since I bought it in 2000.

Ed...I see. Abnormal's car is relatively low mileage for a '90 525i, resonably priced and only a stone's throw from where I live. Had I not bought my little Saturn runabout, I would have jumped on it. I am not a big AC guy either and yes it can be pricey but perhaps the R12 has leaked out unless you heard otherwise. I am pretty astounded that my original unmolested 90 735iL R12 system still works great. I even picked up a can of R12 in anticipation of charging it at some point but its still blows cold. Remarkable for a 14 year old car that has never been charged in the 6 years I have owned it.
George

[winfred]

e34/32s easy, blow the system free of oil or use a flush gun (i paid $125 for the gun and a gallon of flush at napa, flush goes for around $50 a gallon you don't need that much, i use it a pint at a time, i double flush the evap and cond) use the good heavy steel fittings that have their own seals and valves and remove the old r12 valves before you install the new fittings, drain the compressor of all oil and refill with 5-6 oz of ester oil. besides that it's just replacing the drier and exp valve, lube the o-rings with ac oil before installing and that's about it

I just ordered a conversion kit for my daughters AC. Maybe if that goes well, and Abnormal's 525 is still available, I'll reconsider. You're right, the price is right, but I'm afraid of the AC problem.