Good morning, I'm considering the Classic Auto Air kit for my 85 QV euro. I see others have had issues with installation (condenser) but I'm willing to figure that out. I was planning to run R12 since I have a lot of it on hand and presume it 'just works' better than R134. I anticipate R134 will be as hard to get as R12 in the coming years so why not go with the best. Anyway, let me know your feedback on the Classic Auto Air kit. For use with R12 I'll ask them but I anticipate they'll just recommend a different expansion valve. Anything else to consider with this specific application? I'll note that I run R12 in my 89 Bentley and it has an R134 expansion valve without issue. Thanks, Mike Image Unavailable, Please Login
If I had it to do over I would not buy this "kit." It's hardly a kit at all but more of an amalgamation of parts that you could piece together on your own from several very good threads on here that would cost you FAR less. And if you don't believe me, try calling their tech line before you buy it. Not the sales line (they pick that one up) but the actual technical support line. I can't even remember how many messages I left for them. I never got a single call back. Sent more emails than I can remember... never got a single email back. If it wasn't for this site I don't know that I could have done it on my own. Thanks to some of the members who have done it I was able to finish almost all of it. All I have left to do at this point is bolt up the compressor (God I hope it works and isn't junk) and connect the lines. But yeah... try that support line and see what you get. If you're not installing it yourself, and taking it to someone who knows a lot about working on AC systems it may not be a big deal. But for me it was incredibly disappointing for a "kit" and incredibly disappointing from a support standpoint post sale.
I just bought the kit, and RPM in Vermont installled it. He did say he needed to modify the condenser mount which he noted was not hard to do. He rated the kit about a six for ease of installation. They are pros though. I have not actually felt how cold it comes out now, but the system brings it up to modern standards. The compressor is also a fraction of the weight of the original one, and comes with a less complicated high/low setup. Larger condenser and appropriate hoses and compressor are designed to work with R34. It is upsetting others have noted they don’t answer support calls, but the kit is complete and many others here have installed it with great results. It is a no brainer imo.
FWIW, I used R152a in my system instead of 134. I've used it in several of my cars and it easily works as well as R12.
