205s With Air Con

[Sy_ 0]

Alright, I'm trying to sort out a K-plate 205 GTi that's got 90% of an air con system and need a little info to complete it

 

From the looks of things, everything's in place with the exception of the compressor and it's relevant hoses - anyone know what compressor is required - I'm sure it's shared with some 306 a/c models, but not definite.

 

My intentions are to source another compressor, connect it up, and get the system regassed and see if all's well, but have no experience of AC so would appreciate any advice from any experts out there to see if I'm overlooking anything.

 

Pics will be taken next week, hopefully,

 

Cheers,

 

 

Sy

[Alastairh 47]

Im sure Super Josh will spring along...

 

He seems fairly clued up on this.

[Super Josh 4]

Sorry for the late reply, I meant to reply the other day

So let's take each point in turn...

 

The compressor is going to be difficult to source. The chance of finding one of a 205/309 is going to be very slim. The problem that you will have in getting one off another model is that if you look at the crank pulley on your engine it has positions for two belts. One drives the alternator and PAS (if fitted), and the other drives the AC compressor. Most of the 306 models just have one belt that drives all of them.

I think your best bet for a compressor would be off an MI16 1.9L 405. A lot of these had AC and as the MI16 bottom end is very similar to the 8V then as long as you get the crank pulley and tensioner etc. you should be fine. Some Mi16s had a single belt arrangement as some has two, like yours. Get all of the bits and you'll be fine. Make sure it is the alloy block 1.9L engine and nit the 2.0L XU10 one, as the AC arrangement on the XU10 is completely different.

 

How many of the flexible pipes are missing? Their should be 3, one from the bulkhead to the compressor, another from the compressor to the top of the Condensor that sits in front of the radiator and the last one from the bottom of the Condensor to the receiver/dryer, which is the black canister on the drivers side inner wing. They are all still available from Peugeot, although quite expensive. If you go along to your local Pirtek dealer or similar, then they can make AC hoses to any length and a lot cheaper than your Pug dealer.

 

Once you have the system components all back in place then you need to make a decision on which gas to fill it with. Do a net search, but basically the 'old' R12 refrigerant, which your system will have been filled with is not really used these days because of its Ozone depleting properties. You can still find it at some AC recharging places, but it is quite expensive. If you want to use the more commonly available R134a refrigerant, then you will need to change all of the 'O' ring seals in your system to HNBR O-rings, you can buy kits of assorted sizes. These occur at the joints where one pipe meets another. You will also need a new pressure switch because R134a works at a slightly higher pressure than R12. This is something that you can get off a 306 Here are the values that should be on the side of the pressure switch, so that you can rob the correct item

 

Low 2.5 Bar

 

Med 17 Bar

 

High 26 Bar

 

You will need to fit a new receiver/dryer, these are service items and as your system has been open to the elements, yours will be fairly shagged by now.

 

Then time to get it to an AC place to get the system flushed as it has been open to the elements for so long, vacuum checked for leaks and then filled with Refrigerant and enjoy. I have an AC system on my 205, converted to R134a and running the Mi16 compressor and it works really well So it is worth all of the heartache to get it going.

 

Any questions, then fire away.

 

 

 

Josh

[cybernck 402 1 Cars]

bally (AC expert) has told me that oil in the compessor would also need to be changed when converting from R12 to R134a.

[Super Josh 4]

bally (AC expert) has told me that oil in the compessor would also need to be changed when converting from R12 to R134a.

 

That is also true. The AC guy should do this and put PAG oil in. Just for info you need the following quantities of R134a refrigerant and PAG oil in a 205

 

R134a 770g

PAG 135ml

 

 

 

Josh

[Guest srack]

here the xu compressors (205/309) aint rare at all. all 205/309 xu cars came with A/C build in

i can get a working compressor for a cheap price, 10-15gbp, but the problem is to ship it. can cost 20gbp depend on the weight. 5kg to england cost 17gbp by air!

lemme know if you need some.

[inferno 1]

thats seriously cheep for ac compressers!!!! out of intrest can you get 406/xantia ones for that kind of money?

 

back to the thread, i have an ac compressor spare, and a few other bits n bobs. i managed to have mine regassed with the gas it was designed for. until u regas the system you wont know of any problems/leaks ect, so itd be worth slapping on a cheep compresser and regassing just to check for leaks before considering converting gas types.

[Sy_ 0]

Alright lads - thanks a lot for the replies - I'm going to take some photos of the car now and will try to post them later.

 

Essentially what I'm trying to work out is how much hassle it's going to be to get it running - compressors/regassing sounds easy (!) enough, but I don't have enought time at the moment to really invest in a full re-installation if that's what's required - I'll post the snaps a bit later

 

Many thanks again,

 

Sy

[ablister 31]

i have a peugeot manual for converting 205/309's from r12 gas to r134a. Rescued it from a pile about to go in bin! Never looked at it yet so don't know how useful it is but will bring it home with me and see if it'll answer any questions

[Sy_ 0]

Right, I've never posted images on the forum before, so I hope these come out clearly (well as clearly as they can through the 1/2 inch of dirt/grease/PAS fluid everywhere, yes I know she needs cleaning up):

 

 

 

 

 

 

You should be able to tell from the snaps that one of the compressor mounting casting loops has been damaged and repaired - I think the car was in a light frontal quite early on in it's life and has been repaired; but since then the compressor has been removed - am in right in saying that they were prone to siezing up? The idler pulley seems to rotate freely enough.

 

SuperJosh - Many thanks for the post and info - I haven't traced all the pipes yet, though they look in ok condition - nothing is certain. I'll have a better look at them bearing in mind your descriptions - then sure I'll have lots more questions after!

 

Changing all the o-ring seals sounds simple enough, but is it that typical sort of job that there's no access for, you end up splitting pipes that were fine before and swearing at the car wishing you'd never started the job? I'm an ok diyer (changed head gasket is about my limit so far) but AC is a bit of unknown territory for me.

 

Inferno - how much would you want for your compressor? Send me a PM or e-mail if you want?

 

Thanks again for the posts - I think I'll start compiling a list of components/tasks and see if it's worth it.

 

Cheers,

 

 

Sy

[Ryan 99]

If you think it's been in a front-end smash then check the condensor radiator as that may have been damaged too.

 

Also since the system has been left open for a long time the drier cannister (the thing on the inner wing) may need replacing, although you might be able to get away with removing it and putting it in the oven on the lowest setting for half an hour or so to dry it out.

 

An aircon service garage should be able to do a leakage test to make sure there are no holes in awkward places.

[Guest LONDONgti]

Gents,

 

I was about to bring my K plate 205 to Kwik fit to have it regassed but having read what has been said, is it likely that they will simply fill it with the newer gas that would require the new seals.

 

Please excuse my ignorance but what would happen if they regassed my system without checking or replacing the seals as suggested?

 

Thanks in advance

Edited January 2, 2007 by LONDONgti

[Ryan 99]

I wouldn't trust Kwik Fit to do this kind of job, as like you say they'll probably put the wrong gas in it, and will probably look at you funny if you even tell them there are different types of gas.

 

Although the old gas is now illegal there are drop-in replacements available which don't require any components or seals to be changed, but they are a little bit more expensive than the new type of gas. Find a specialist garage in the yellow pages and they should be able to talk you through the options.

[Guest LONDONgti]

I wouldn't trust Kwik Fit to do this kind of job, as like you say they'll probably put the wrong gas in it, and will probably look at you funny if you even tell them there are different types of gas.

 

Although the old gas is now illegal there are drop-in replacements available which don't require any components or seals to be changed, but they are a little bit more expensive than the new type of gas. Find a specialist garage in the yellow pages and they should be able to talk you through the options.

 

Thanks for the advice.

 

Typical - I was hoping to do it on the cheap but I should have guessed that it wouldnt be possible. Not to worry no comes the fun task of finding someone local who would have the drop in replacements.

 

Any idea what the spec of the replacement is so that I make sure I m getting the right one? Thanks

[inferno 1]

london guy if i can get in touch with the dud who regassed mine ill pm u his number, hes from north london area and will regass with correct gas for 40-60 quid, mine was 60 and he filled it twice for that. sy, u have pm, i also have the condenser and pipes u need, and the sump if your repairs not upto it.ignore waht i said about alternater bracket in the pm as yours appears to be the right one.

[Guest LONDONgti]

london guy if i can get in touch with the dud who regassed mine ill pm u his number, hes from north london area and will regass with correct gas for 40-60 quid, mine was 60 and he filled it twice for that.

 

Many thanks - if you cant find his number pm me his company name and ill try to track it down on the net