A/C Hose Project -- "Oops"

scottb · 08-03-2002, 10:30 PM

I'm putting new barrier a/c hoses into my 84 Carrera. After having the R12 removed by my local a/c shop, I began removing the old hoses and installing new ones (from Griffiths). After removing the hoses from the receiver/dryer, and then removing the receiver/drier from the car, I realized that both of the hoses have the same size fitting. Of course, I didn't make a diagram, take a digital picture or take any notes.

Does anyone have a digital picture or diagram showing which hose goes where, or can someone tell me which hose goes where? My recollection is that the hose between the evaporator and the receiver/dryer goes to the lower fitting, but I'm just not sure. Pictures of the area, showing the hose routing, would be greatly appreciated.

THANKS MUCH!!

Thomas Owen · 08-04-2002, 04:48 AM

The hose from the front condenser to the rec. dryer goes to the 'in' on the dryer, or lower port. The 'out' goes to the evap.
Just finished re-doing my hoses and dryer as well. What a project.
Good luck,

scottb · 09:53 AM

Thanks, Thomas!

schulr · schulr's Garage

I am sure I have a leak as well and was thinking of replacing my hoses. How difficult of a job is it? Details would be appreciated.

Bob

Thomas Owen · 08-04-2002, 04:06 PM

It is not really a difficult job, just time consuming and dirty. There are many options as to how much of the work you want to do yourself. For me, I decided to buy an inexpensive crimper, bought the hose and ends and did everything myself. I think that Scott above had his hoses cut and the ends installed, then he put them back on the car.
Good luck,

scottb · 05:51 PM

It's quite a project. I bought the hoses from Griffiths (www.griffiths.com). Charlie Griffiths is a great source of information on Porsche a/c. Thomas is correct, mine had the ends already on them. The toughest part of the project is getting the hose on the driver's side into the engine compartment. That took some doing, but I finally decided to use some old electrician's tricks. I used some wire pulling lubricant to ease the hose through the tight spaces. I figured the wire pulling lubricant is water soluable, and would eventually dry not leaving an oily residue that would attract dirt and road grime. I also used an electrician's fishtape to provide a guide through the tight spaces. I inserted the fishtape through the tight spaces, tie-wrapped the hose end to the fishtape, lubed it up, and gently pulled it through. The other tough part was pulling the resevoir in the front fender. Actually, pulling it was the easier part, putting it back was a PITA. Other than that, I agree with Thomas -- it's a dirty, tedious job, but one that is not too difficult and is very rewarding. If you're going to do the lines, don't forget to replace the receiver/dryer. Also, consider taking the evaporator box apart and cleaning it out and updating it. Griffiths sells a kit for that. It's a bit pricey, but what you're really paying for is a great set of step-by-step instructions on how to remove the evaporator, clean it, update the box, and then reinstall everything. It's worth the money for the kit. The work on the evaporator box took about 3 hours. I have about 10 hours total on the entire project, with about another 2 or 3 left to finish it up. You should also change out the a/c and fan belts while you're in the engine compartment. A broken fan belt can be a disaster. Don't forget to be environmentally friendly and have a local a/c shop remove any remaining R12 in the system before you open the lines. If you have an R134 system, my understanding is that R134 can be released into the atmosphere, but you should confirm this before doing anything. Feel free to e-mail me if you'd like more info. Good luck!

schulr · schulr's Garage

Great post, sounds like a job for this fall,

Bob