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IHADAV8 Playground / Lotsa Cadillac wrenching today
« on: May 26 2012, 11:02:52 PM »
First thing I did was repair a stripped bolt in the water pump. I replaced the water pump a few years ago, and noticed the idiot that had replaced it previously had stripped one of the bolts holding it in. It held for a few years, and then about 2 years ago, on the way back from Costco, the gasket blew out, and I had to pull the water pump off again to replace the gasket (A huge PITA - FWD V8) I never got the bolt in right, and it wept coolant from there since then, I just kept topping it off. After removing everything I could to get better access, I got out the tap and die set and rethreaded the hole. Put a new bolt in, and for good measure I slathered it with JB Weld.
A/C went out in the Eldorado late last year, the front shaft seal leaked out all of the coolant, verified with my UV light. Since I work from home, and barely drive it, I put it off until today. I had ordered the compressor, accumulator, and orifice tube from Rock Auto about 6 months ago. Checked the accumulator a moth or so ago - Rock had shipped me a used part some jackhole had returned. Way too late to bitch and get another from them, so today I went to NAPA to get another accumulator. While I was there, I got a qt of A/C flush. I figured it wouldn't hurt, since I was converting it from R12 to R134. I have a pressure flusher can, but not all the right adapters - so i rigged some shit up to get the evaporator and condenser flushed. I flushed both twice,each way, then blew a hella ton of air through to get rid of the flush.
The system needs 8oz of oil, so I put 4oz in the new accumulator, 4oz in the new compressor. I made sure to rotate the compressor on the bench 20 times to get the oil circulated, etc. Replaced the orifice tube, and all accessible o-rings. Put the compressor in (Fuck me, there's NO room to work in there!) Luckily, I have the Cadillac shop manual - makes things much easier.
Finally got everything in, hooked up the vacuum pump, and it wouldn't hold a vacuum for more than 10 seconds, and I could tell by the sound of the vacuum pump that it wasn't sealed. Fuck me. Then I rigged up a line to my air compressor, pressurized the system, and saw oil burbling out of the manifold in the back of the really fucking inaccessible A/C compressor. I found a compressor seal on my bench that was thicker than the others - and thought that maybe one of the ports in the back of the compressor was less shallow" than the other. i looked at the old compressor - the depths were the same.
I was going to throw in the towel for the evening - but then I told myself to harden the fuck up, and just get it done.
i got back underneath the car, and wrangled the manifold bolt off. Sure enough, one side is deeper than the other, different than the old compressor I had taken off. I put the thicker gasket in, tightened it all up, pressurized the system again, no leaks. then I put the vacuum pump back on - boom, -30hg.
I left it on the vacuum pump for ~40 minutes while I cleaned up, put in the freon, I now have 49 degree A/C (80 degrees ambient, 75% humidity) and the water leak is GONE.
Yay me!
A/C went out in the Eldorado late last year, the front shaft seal leaked out all of the coolant, verified with my UV light. Since I work from home, and barely drive it, I put it off until today. I had ordered the compressor, accumulator, and orifice tube from Rock Auto about 6 months ago. Checked the accumulator a moth or so ago - Rock had shipped me a used part some jackhole had returned. Way too late to bitch and get another from them, so today I went to NAPA to get another accumulator. While I was there, I got a qt of A/C flush. I figured it wouldn't hurt, since I was converting it from R12 to R134. I have a pressure flusher can, but not all the right adapters - so i rigged some shit up to get the evaporator and condenser flushed. I flushed both twice,each way, then blew a hella ton of air through to get rid of the flush.
The system needs 8oz of oil, so I put 4oz in the new accumulator, 4oz in the new compressor. I made sure to rotate the compressor on the bench 20 times to get the oil circulated, etc. Replaced the orifice tube, and all accessible o-rings. Put the compressor in (Fuck me, there's NO room to work in there!) Luckily, I have the Cadillac shop manual - makes things much easier.
Finally got everything in, hooked up the vacuum pump, and it wouldn't hold a vacuum for more than 10 seconds, and I could tell by the sound of the vacuum pump that it wasn't sealed. Fuck me. Then I rigged up a line to my air compressor, pressurized the system, and saw oil burbling out of the manifold in the back of the really fucking inaccessible A/C compressor. I found a compressor seal on my bench that was thicker than the others - and thought that maybe one of the ports in the back of the compressor was less shallow" than the other. i looked at the old compressor - the depths were the same.
I was going to throw in the towel for the evening - but then I told myself to harden the fuck up, and just get it done.
i got back underneath the car, and wrangled the manifold bolt off. Sure enough, one side is deeper than the other, different than the old compressor I had taken off. I put the thicker gasket in, tightened it all up, pressurized the system again, no leaks. then I put the vacuum pump back on - boom, -30hg.
I left it on the vacuum pump for ~40 minutes while I cleaned up, put in the freon, I now have 49 degree A/C (80 degrees ambient, 75% humidity) and the water leak is GONE.
Yay me!
