im opting to take the test and buy off ebay, its 2.25 or something thats what mine sais uinder the hood anyway

lmao go to get my grade and get this error

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If you do it that way, get something with a guage and oil recharge. Do not take this personally; but if you do not have a lot of hours in under the hood, Vital49 is offering a good deal. IMO

Here is my EPA certificate; You get a cool little credit size card and a tree hugger sticker

Its the high side that needs a special fitting on my car. ~$10 from carquest.

If anyone is interested in investigating this product here'* the link http://autorefrigerants.com/co00033.htm

This is what I"ve decided to go with . My Chevy truck is having a/c problems also and I'm going to do a full charge with this stuff - ES-12A . THis product is non EPA regulated and is hydrocarbon based. It is compatible with both types of oil - mineral and synthetic. If you're curious call the guy who runs the place , Randy is his name. They also claim that you can shoot it in with R12 . I'll keep you guys posted and I guess I'll be the guinea pig By the way , if you have an Autozone near you with a commercial department they will loan you a vacuum pump with a refundable deposit.

cheeta what brand name of R12 off ebay did you get or would recomend?

so besides buying R12 i should put in an additional can of oil when i add it to my system? what kind of oil, some of the things on ebay have hoses and oil and R12 sshould i opt for that?

Just remember that ES-12 stuff is a mix of propane and butane (hence the hydrocarbon composition)

I'd never use it in my car, but I'd be interested to see how it works and holds up in someone'* car.

i still think ur much better off switching to r-134a now. cuz r12 is just gonna get more expensive, and probably soon banned.

I would either take the deal from vital49 or just convert it

R12 is no longer manufactured. What you will find is recovered R12 (taken out of exisiting systems and cleaned), or someones old stock of R12. 60/70 per pound is about right.

Converting: It does work, but you'll need some tools and chemicals. 1 gauge set for R134a ($90), one vac pump ($50 for a venturi type), conversion fittings ($5), all the O-rings ($10 for an assortment). Accumulator/Dryer ($50), an orifice tube ($5), can tap ($5), system flush ($12), and PAG150 oil or Ester oil.

When I did mine, I completely dissassembled the entire AC system. Removed everything from the car except for the evap core (which I just filled with the flush chemical and blew out with compressed air on the car). The rest of the parts (condensor, muffler, hoses) got flushed and blown clean. Old orifice tube and Accumulator are throw away items. (Don't reuse the old accumulator, it'* got a bag of dessicant inside it to remove water vapor from the system, it'* also full of the mineral oil and will contaminate the new system. Just chuck it in the trash and use a new one.

Note: when using the conversion fittings: REMOVE the old schrader valves from the original High and Low side ports. Yeah, the conversion fittings are supposed to operate them using a pin off back of the new schrader valve, but this doesn't always work right. By removing the old one before installing the fitting, your valves will always work right.

Reassembled the system with new O-rings and PAG150 oil, hooked up the gauges, and pull 30inches of vac on the entire system for 30 minutes. Then leave it that way for an hour to make sure you don't have a leak. If all goes well (no loss of vac), then change the system with refridgerant. Static pressure (compressor off) is 100 to 120 psi. Running pressure varies with temp and condition of the compressor. Mine runs approx 200 psi on the high side, 22psi on the low side, before cycling off and letting the system equalize through the orifice tube. Compressor kicks back on aroud 45 psi low side.

Another alternative to R134a is ES12a (EnviroSafe) which is what my 90 Bonnie has in it now. Costs about $35 for a half case (enough to do the car twice)

If you don't want to flush the system, then use Ester oil instead of PAG. If you use ES12a, you can continue to use mineral oil. Personally, I'd flush the system clean while it is down just to be on the safe side. What you don't want is to mix PAG with mineral oil..result is a goo that looks like cottage cheese and clogs up the system.