Awhile back, my cabin fan stopped working. I believe either the fan cage could be obstructed, or more-likely the motor stopped working entirely. I am going to have it taken to an import mechanic here in St. Louis, and since we are preparing for the warmest year in recorded history (lovely global warming) I want my A/C to work. How do I tell if my 91 Accord has already had the conversion, if is it hasn't how much would a typical conversion cost?

 

You tell if the refrigerant ports are threaded like a bike/car tire (r12) or quick connect (r134a). If a retrofit has been done there should be a label on the radiator support stating it also. Best shop to take it to for Auto A/C is Affton Radiator & A/C Service.

Cheers!

 

If there's a quick-connect fitting on the service port, than it's been converted. If the service port is still threaded and looks like a big tire valve, then its still R-12. The low pressure port is right above the radiator fan.

Conversion costs will vary depending on how far you go. At minimum, you need to replace the drier, replace disturbed o-rings, install fitting adapters, vacuum down the system, and recharge with refrigerant and oil. If you did it yourself and could beg/borrow/steal the pump and gauge set its about $60 worth of parts.

Some people say that ALL o-rings need to be changed and the system needs to be flushed. My experience has shown this to be unnecessary; maybe it would improve performance, but I've been satisfied without doing these extra steps.

Don't be fooled by those little "conversion kits" they sell at Autozone or Walmart. They usually result in a quick death for your compressor. A combination of residual moisture, lack of a functional dryer, stop leak and special "seal conditioners" and "leak seals" make for a very unhappy system. Also, the gauges they supply only show half of the system so its impossible to verify proper operation (they don't measure high side pressure).

 

I called them and got quoted $275 to vacuum down the system, install fittings and fill with refrigerant and oil, that does not replace the drier. Could I get away with this? I replaced the radiator so I don't have that to refer to.
I'll take pictures of the service port and see if it's already been converted. The vehicle has had great maintenance over the years.

 

I would highly recommend you replace the drier. The part is literally $6.30 from Amazon with free shipping as an add-on.

The problem is this: your current drier is probably saturated and unable to remove moisture like its intended to. If you have any moisture at all in your system, it will freeze when it goes through the expansion valve and cause an obstruction.

The drier is on the driver's side behind the headlight. It's not difficult to replace.

 

Remove the fan and apply direct power to it. If it runs then the blower motor resistor is bad.

 

I'll get the drier and just have them do the conversion and drier at the same time.

Have not taken dash apart to get to the motor.

 

Telling by these pictures, has my Accord had the conversion?

 

Yes, those are fittings for r134.

 

So then I don't need to replace anything, just fill it up and im good? How do I know if it's the cheap-o retrofit kit or if it has been FULLY converted?

 

If the system is low there is a leak....just filling it without proper tools and diagnosis is a temp thing and might cause damage.

To know "how" the conversion was done, well there is no way of figuring that out.....unless you find the place/person that did it and even then it might have been so long ago they don't even know.

Properly inspect the system and fix/replace what is needed.

 

Appreciate the help, i will take it into Affton A/C here in the St.Louis area to make sure everything is good.