So, where do I attach this thing (ac recharge)

From : jmc

Q: 2001 dodge dakota v8. ac probably needs to be recharged. per the advice here from an earlier post purchased some r134a refrigerant has the gauge and one bottle has the uv dye. as a probably worthless bonus it came with a uv pen. wandered the thing around my engine didnt see a leak but fact remains the ac was recharged in december when it was hot in oz and is now not working well again. it warns that if the psi is over 65 the ac prolly has something else wrong with it. problem is i cant figure out where the low pressure valve is. i see a couple of ports that sort of fit the description but none look like the pic in my chiltons manual. can someone with a 2001 v8 dak please tell me where it is my likeliest candidate is on a solid metal tube coming out of what i think is the ac system slightly left of center as im looking at the engine. however it says to find the port just above the coolant recovery tank and i havent a clue where to find that. also cant find the evaporator core to do the touch-testing it suggests to see if the lines are cool when the ac is running. dunno if this is because im vertically challenged and thus unable to look down into the back of the engine without a stepladder thank you any help is appreciated. its supposed to get up to 95 tomorrow so im hoping to get this done asap. jmc .

Replies:

From : jmc

suddenly without warning jmc exclaimed 9/13/2008 444 pm 2001 dodge dakota v8. ac probably needs to be recharged. im pretty much a model of how not to go about things. i still cant find the leak. tried to finish off the first 12oz bottle and found out the hard way what happens if you think its empty but it isnt and youve forgotten to wear gloves. my hands and parts of my clothing now glow in the dark i didnt get any refrigerant on me just dye. anybody know how long itll take for the stuff to wear off now the first can is empty and its still not up to 25psi. is it possible the low-pressure valve is actually the leak i noted at one point when i took the hose off dye bubbled up around the pin. and it seems the more r134a i put in the messier it is getting around that valve. im making very sure the things on as far as it will go and im not seeing dye peppering out when ive got the trigger down. im also noticing a bit of inconsistency in the valve reading. sometimes it looks like im making progress. when i switched bottles the gauge told me all those gains were lost. of course its cooler now so i dont really need the ac. i think ill just leave as-is for now and when it warms up if the ac is dead ill just take it in to the mechanic. i think maybe id better just stick to fixing computers. jmc .

From : jmc

suddenly without warning tom lawrence exclaimed 9/13/2008 912 pm problem is i cant figure out where the low pressure valve is. i see a couple of ports that sort of fit the description but none look like the pic in my chiltons manual. never actually worked on a dakota but on a friends 00 durango the low pressure port was up near the compressor just behind the upper radiator hose. trace the lines from the a/c compressor. the one that runs back towards the firewall and into a canister-looking thing that canister is the accumulator is the low-pressure line and the low pressure port will be in that line. on top of the accumulator is also the low-pressure cut-out switch. depending on how much of a charge is in the system you may need to remove the connector from that switch and short the two terminals of the connector not the switch itself with a paperclip or something else. this will keep the compressor running so you can feed it refrigerant. i actually have said durango sitting out in my driveway sans transmission - but thats a whole nother story so if you want me to take a picture pointing it out i can do that. the other piece of good is that the fitting on the can can only fit on the low pressure port not the high pressure port so theres not much danger in hooking it up wrong. ok thanks. my compressor is up front right behind/above the belt system and ill have to doublecheck but i think the port i identified is on a line from that back to the cannister. although hooking up the thing to the highpressure line would be bad i was actually more worried about hooking it up to something that has nothing to do with ac - theres at least one more port on a tube in that engine thanks for the help! jodi .

From : tom lawrence

problem is i cant figure out where the low pressure valve is. i see a couple of ports that sort of fit the description but none look like the pic in my chiltons manual. never actually worked on a dakota but on a friends 00 durango the low pressure port was up near the compressor just behind the upper radiator hose. trace the lines from the a/c compressor. the one that runs back towards the firewall and into a canister-looking thing that canister is the accumulator is the low-pressure line and the low pressure port will be in that line. on top of the accumulator is also the low-pressure cut-out switch. depending on how much of a charge is in the system you may need to remove the connector from that switch and short the two terminals of the connector not the switch itself with a paperclip or something else. this will keep the compressor running so you can feed it refrigerant. i actually have said durango sitting out in my driveway sans transmission - but thats a whole nother story so if you want me to take a picture pointing it out i can do that. the other piece of good is that the fitting on the can can only fit on the low pressure port not the high pressure port so theres not much danger in hooking it up wrong. .

From : jmc

suddenly without warning roy exclaimed 9/13/2008 622 pm 2001 dodge dakota v8. ac probably needs to be recharged. per the advice here from an earlier post purchased some r134a refrigerant has the gauge and one bottle has the uv dye. as a probably worthless bonus it came with a uv pen. wandered the thing around my engine didnt see a leak but fact remains the ac was recharged in december when it was hot in oz and is now not working well again. it warns that if the psi is over 65 the ac prolly has something else wrong with it. problem is i cant figure out where the low pressure valve is. i see a couple of ports that sort of fit the description but none look like the pic in my chiltons manual. can someone with a 2001 v8 dak please tell me where it is my likeliest candidate is on a solid metal tube coming out of what i think is the ac system slightly left of center as im looking at the engine. however it says to find the port just above the coolant recovery tank and i havent a clue where to find that. also cant find the evaporator core to do the touch-testing it suggests to see if the lines are cool when the ac is running. dunno if this is because im vertically challenged and thus unable to look down into the back of the engine without a stepladder thank you any help is appreciated. its supposed to get up to 95 tomorrow so im hoping to get this done asap. jmc jodi wait until tom or denny or somebody knowledgeable gets back to you before you hook up the can. roy wasnt planning on it until i had an answer i was sure was correct. i could well imagine horrible things can happen if i dump refrigerant someplace it aint supposed to be. i may have found the evaporator core though it looks nothing like the photos in my manual. its right behind the cannister that also has something to do with the ac system. lol. can you tell im just the biggest expert on truck engines around ... figure the bit im looking for is right behind the flux capacitor getting dark finally gonna go poke around with that uv pen and see if anything lights up. fyi if its not low refrigerant causing my ac to be cool but not cold whats the other likely problems or can refrigerant get low in less than a year without an obvious leak jodi .

From : roy

2001 dodge dakota v8. ac probably needs to be recharged. per the advice here from an earlier post purchased some r134a refrigerant has the gauge and one bottle has the uv dye. as a probably worthless bonus it came with a uv pen. wandered the thing around my engine didnt see a leak but fact remains the ac was recharged in december when it was hot in oz and is now not working well again. it warns that if the psi is over 65 the ac prolly has something else wrong with it. problem is i cant figure out where the low pressure valve is. i see a couple of ports that sort of fit the description but none look like the pic in my chiltons manual. can someone with a 2001 v8 dak please tell me where it is my likeliest candidate is on a solid metal tube coming out of what i think is the ac system slightly left of center as im looking at the engine. however it says to find the port just above the coolant recovery tank and i havent a clue where to find that. also cant find the evaporator core to do the touch-testing it suggests to see if the lines are cool when the ac is running. dunno if this is because im vertically challenged and thus unable to look down into the back of the engine without a stepladder thank you any help is appreciated. its supposed to get up to 95 tomorrow so im hoping to get this done asap. jmc jodi wait until tom or denny or somebody knowledgeable gets back to you before you hook up the can. roy .