A/C THERMOSTAT DIAL

Anyone ever take the center console out of a 87 Carrera? I tried and in an attempt to remove the left a/c dial, the switch accompaning it exploded. (OK I took the switch apart to get the console out, THEN it exploded). After putting it back together, my a/c no longer works. I believe there are three wires, one green, one green w/white stripe and one white covered vacuum looking wire. Where in the heck are you supposed to disconnect the odd looking white wire looking thing and does anyone know where to get a new one?

I think your talking about the thermostat. It is a closed tubing with the white cover. You have to buy a new one not to much $$ compaired to other parts. It must be handeled very carefully. you can't bend the tube too much our it will colapse like copper tubing. It is full of gas.

Mike Miller
89 911

Originally posted by Mike Miller:
I think your talking about the thermostat. It is a closed tubing with the white cover. You have to buy a new one not to much $$ compaired to other parts. It must be handeled very carefully. you can't bend the tube too much our it will colapse like copper tubing. It is full of gas.

Mike Miller
89 911

Thanks Mike, thats the one and I crimped it. would this stop my a/c from working? Do you know how to disconnect it from the switch side without taking the whole switch apart? How about the other end? Sorry for all of the questions, it stopped me from pulling the rest of my hair out.

The tube thing is itself a closed system. Its consisting of a hollow tube filled with a special media with a high thermal expansion rate (usually a kind of oil). The one end of the tube is sticking inside the condensor/fan housing in the smugglers trunk to measure the temperature. The other end is connected to some membran or other device. If heated up, the oil expands. Multiplied through the mechanic movement of the membrane, it actuates a sort of switch (like a thermostat) to operate / control the power.

So if you have cut/crimped/badly bended this little tube, there is no functioning thermostat switch for your A/C and it will not work properly. You have to get a replacement.

Sorry, but it should be cheap. Look carefully at the switch. The operating range should be marked. If you cannot get it from your P-car dealer, you can use similar devices from all other cars or home A/C equipment with the same ops range.

Hope this brings in a bit of light...

Jens

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CJ,

The other posters are correct. The capillary tube, once bent, crimped or cut, will keep the A/C from working in the auto mode. It should stay on all the time.

Also, the two green wires are the power to the clutch on the A/C compressor. For now if you want to get the system up and working until you get the new switch you can simply put a toggle switch (very high amp rating pls, those are heavy duty wires) in the console and when you want the A/C on, turn the "fan" switch on, then the toggle switch on and off to engage the compressor as needed.

Will get you cool until you can get the real switch. Putting it in sounds like a bear, and be very careful not to crimp the new capillary tube or its start all over again!

JA

It's not to difficult to do really. You must basicly remove both A/C switches from the console. Remove the carpet and clean up all the wires so you can put in the new thermo tube very carefully in place. Go buy the new one first so you can see just how it looks before pulling out the old one, if you know its the problem. I did like Joeaksa and wired it direct buy placing the two wires to gether for a while.
Good Luck
Mike Miller
89 911