Have you done your A/C yet with ES-12a? I'm going to revive my A/C again after a 4 year engine swap and I've been reading about autofrost, ES-12a, R-12, R-134, etc. all night long and I'm not sure what I need yet. Mine was working fine with R-12 when the 305 threw a rod 4 years ago and now that I installed a 350 in there I really miss my A/C.

 

I had the Camaro filled properly to 28 ounces and it has been pretty cold at idle and better while moving obviously. Has held the same charge for a week now with R134a.

Waiting for my pulley in the mail.

 

Not working yet. Struggled with the front shaft seal, appears for some reason that aftermarket seals don't work with this compressor. Can't get it to fully seat in order to get the snap ring in. First one I thought I had done something wrong.

So tried another seal and it does the same exact thing, won't fully seat into the compressor. Tired of dealing with it, new compressor will be here next week.

RBob.

 

I put the new belt and idler pulley on and it is definitely better but still vibrates a bit. Makes me nervous with the alternator bolt so close to the belt.

I tried it with my old belt in this route...Not sure if this is safe or not for my tensioner as it is very high up because the belt is tight and the way the waterpump spins but I believe it is the sameway lol I don't know don't feel like taking the belt off and figuring it out. Check it out. I routed it this way:






Putting it on this way makes the tensioner move and vibrate back and fourth a little bit but the belt stays solid.

 

See picture for the routing diagram. Will likely need the longer belt.

I don't believe that ground strap belongs under that alternator bolt. Which would place the bolt head further in away from the belt.

RBob.

 

I ran the belt that way, the 930K6 belt and it still has some vibration to it. The ground hardly pushes the bolt up enough I tried it with and without.

Then I ran my old belt 915K6 the way in this picture and it doesn't vibrate anymore but the tensioner moves alittle bit when the a/c is on.

When you place the belt under the tensioner are you suppose to just release the tensioner or push it down on the belt as far as it will go?

I think I might get the 923K6 belt and try that it is shorter then 930K6 but longer then 915K6.

Otherwise, if the factory routing with 923K6 doesn't work out... I believe the way I have it routed in the picture above is way better..just need to get a longer belt like 918K6.

Starting to think that missing rear alternator bracket could be causing vibrations, not sure if this car came stock with them or not.

 

The belt will never be completely stable, it will always have some defection while running, on the side to lead to the crank pulley, this is normal. The spring loaded tensioner works with the stretch of the belt to keep tension on pulleys.

 

AHHH, ok. I just found out that 923K6 is a stock belt for an 89' Camaro. I have 930K6, I will be getting the tighter belt and deal with the vibration or use my routing as it is pretty much the same just a different orientation then stock. The waterpump I believe still turns the sameway as it would stock the way I have the belt in the picture. Right? our cranks go clockwise I believe.

I was thinking of getting 918K6 and running it the way I have it because that belt was rock solid but 915K6 is a tad too tight and will probably cause my tensioner to wear out prematurely.

 

Your tensioner shouldn't wear out. It's made to hold tension on the belt as the belt, in use, stretches

 

As long as the back of the belt is on the water pump pulley it will rotate in the correct direction (reverse rotation).

I just release the tensioner and leave it at that.

The '88 FSM doesn't have that rear bracket that mounts to the exhaust manifold studs. But it also shows that it uses a v-belt.

Might be worth getting and installed.

RBob.

 

Haha...figured it out..Belt 930K6 is a tad too big. Belt 923K6 is perfect and now with the stock routing the belt is rock solid and the tensioner takes the brunt of the A/C compressor and moves a tad bit. Then once it is switched off neither belt or tensioner move.

woot..thanks everyone. That idler pulley really should of been put on all the v6 cams and firebirds.

 

So, I ordered my ES-12a kit last week and got it this afternoon. Retrofited it this evening and charged it up according to the instructions of their website. It's working fine so far. Will give it a good try for the next few days since it's sooooo hot so hopefully it'll continue to work fine. I'll recheck the pressures again in a few days to see if they're still fine.

 

Good deal, do you think that it is as cold or colder then when it had R12 in it?

For me, compressor was delivered on Tuesday, installed yesterday (Wed.). Charged with two 6 oz cans of the ES-12a. It is cold. And the weather here has been hot and humid, so having A/C again is a good thing.

RBob.

 

I would say its about the same as R-12 in my case. I had to put a can of oil and stop leak included in the kit because the compressor was emptied out when I removed it to weld the A/C bracket to be welded 'cause I dropped the whole engine from the stand right before installation day. So I put those 2 small cans plus 2 and a little from a 3rd can of ES-12. The thing is my car never blew as much air out the vents as I think it ought to blow. I may need a new blower but I'll drive it in this heat for a dew days and see what happens. Thanks!

 

Glad it all worked out. I'm surprised that the idler wasn't on all of these cars with no AIR pump. The belt does flap around _a lot_ without one.

RBob.

 

Did you use a gauge on the low side to decide to put a tad in from a third can? I just did the 12 ozs as they state to not overcharge. I also vac'd the system, which they say not too.

But because of the new compressor and the system being open did a quick vac on it. Wanted to get the nitrogen and air out before charging.

A friend (a shop owner) who has switched from Freeze 12 to the ES-12a told me that he has found that the systems need just a hair more ES-12a then is stated to work at the best.

At the 12 oz charge the compressor does cycle quite a bit. Once charged the low side would go right to 24 psi and the compressor would switch off. Then come up with the compressor turning back on.

Took it out for a test drive in the heat, sun, and humidity, and it was cold. Real cold at that.

As for the lack of air from the vents, check the floor and defrost vents for flow. It may be that the doors aren't moving/sealing correctly.

RBob.

 

Yes, I used the gauge on the low side and I had the one on the high side too just for reference. I think I overcharged it a bit because I also added stop leak and oil included in the kit. I did a mild vaccuum as they said because I wanted to make sure I didn't have a leak. My compressor stays on all the time, doesn't cycle. I'll check the air vents tomorrow as you said. I may need to flush my system since it was unused for almost 4 years, not open to air though, only a couple of weeks.

 

Haha, that's a cute name Bob. I have an all black kitty (one year old), with a single speck of white on his head and I named him EightBall. Stays inside though...