Hi folks, new to the message boards on here. Anyways, I am proud to say that I am going to be the owner of a 1991 Camaro RS V8 5.0 Liters 305 TBI.

Now I understand that the 305 TBI engines aren't really performance oriented that's ok because if there's one thing the car can do for me, its provide me with good acceleration at my disposal.

There are a few drawbacks on to the car however, and my main concern is the A/C. I understand that the A/C on these cars were originally charged with R12 Refridgerants which is no longer being produced, my question is how are the R12 based A/Cs? I mean I have tested the car out and everything and the A/C is still blowing cold (albeit it takes awhile to charge up but it gets there) I think I may need to recharge the A/C unit soon but seeing as how the freon is no longer being produced that could be a problem.

A/C is VERY important to me especially when you are living the unforgiving Arizonan summers with temperatures that exceed 100 degrees each day of the summer. I just want to know if there are any signs or trouble I should look out for. And I also want to know if I should possibly consider converting the R12 to an R134a system. Are there any other solutions or alternatives other than converting an A/C system. I just want my A/C to blow cold that all I really want and well that's what an A/C should do. My vehicle as of now is charged with an R134a system and its quite possibly the most convenient A/Cs ever in a car. its very reliable, and very efficient.

So is it really worth it to convert my A/C system as I said before, I called Midas and asked if they had the refridgerant and they said they had plenty of them leftover and would be happy to recharge it for me.

Other than that, the car is looking great and I can't wait until its in my possession, it sounds awesome, and it may not be the fastest camaro ever made, but the amount of torque and the excellent acceleration makes up for that.

 

they had plenty of r-12 left over? I know you can still order r-12 over the internet...

 

Converting to 134a is not difficult. You just need the hoses which you can get anywhere. If you have someone put in R12 it will not be cheap.

 

roughly how much would that be? I am not really a mechanic, I mean I know the basics and stuff but with something as delicate as an A/C system I just may leave to the profressionals.

I got a quote from Midas indicating a 300 dollar recharge on the stupid A/C, might as well as pay 200 dollars more and get a conversion to the R134a.

The car may already have the R134a thingy installed I never really checked, so I may do that tomorrow evening. Should I look for an R134a refridgerant thing under the hood?

 

Use R12a. I bought it over the counter here in canada for 13bux... and for 20bux you can get R12a with a sealer additive that will seal small leaks. I used it with my existing R12 and works fine with no problems. I have many friends using it too... the mechanics around here hate it cause thy can't charge 1400bux to swap systems over as much. My car was like your.. it worked, but it took way too long to get cool.. now its cold in less than a minute.