So this is new territory for me. I just got my 85 T/A on the road a couple months ago, once the weather got hot I decided to have the A/C charged for ***** and giggles to see if I could get it working at all. A friend of a friend who works for a mobile AC repair biz did me a favor and charged it up for me. Since it had been a couple years since the system was run he suggested we add bit of oil, so he did.

To my surprise the system blew ice cold and has been working well for about 2 months now.

Then the other day i noticed some oil under the car, few decent size droplets. After some poking around I discovered that it's coming from the AC compressor. Even more strange is that it'll leak without even starting the car. Seriously, I de-greased the complete area last night, left the car sitting all day (HOT day) and came home to find more oil leaking out of the compressor.

The car has an OE Harrison compressor. I know almost nothing about AC, but I am worried because I've never seen this before.
What does an oil leak from the compressor mean? Is the compressor shot? Can I maybe replace some seals without opening the system?
Should I avoid using the AC? Should I avoid driving the car until I get it sorted out?

 

at this point , i would just replace the compressor and re charge it

 

Where is it leaking from? Two common areas is the front shaft seal and the case o-ring.

To repair any leaking you will need to open the system.

RBob.

 

Yup, just throw it in the trash and start over.

Now's a great time for a R-134A conversion. Your perfect opportunity in fact. Just do it.