I have a 95 LT1 that just came out of storage from a long WI winter. After finding out that my A/C worked, but was low on R134A, I decided to do the recharge myself. After looking in my Haynes repair manual, it only shows the "low side charging port" for 93 and earlier models. Does anyone know where the low side charging port is on a 95. I'm going to assume because of the reverse cooling that my set-up is different. Thanks

 

Reverse cooling has nothing to do with a/c.

How did you find out it was low if you didn't hookup a Manifold Gage set?

The High Side is the (smaller) line from the Compressor to the Condenser and then out from the Condenser to the Evaporator (at the bottom). The Low side is from the Evaporator Outlet (top - larger line) to the Accumulator and then back to the Compressor. There's a quick connect schrader on both lines for your Manifold Gage Set. The low is either on the Accumulator or the Evaporator outlet to the Accumulator. These quick connects are sized so that they only accept the correct hose.

You also need to look at the High Side when charging. If it is low, I'd at least check for oil on the hood above the compressor which would indicate a leaking shaft seal.

 

When you say the A/C is working, is it blowing cold? Or just blowing ambient air.

Do you have a flashing LED on the A/C control head if you have the C68 automatic system and get code #9?

 

my fault, when I was having my alignment done, I asked the mechanic to do a pressure test. He found no sign of leaks and was going to charge me $165 to recharge the system. I thought that I could do it myself, not only to save money, but to learn more about my car.

 

No codes, just simply room temperature air at the highest setting on the control panel. the compressor kicks in for a second the cuts out. I was told that this is because it needs to be recharged

 

You might be able to buy a can of Freon from a parts store with a fitting and put it in. But you will have no idea of where you are and not be learning anything either. A $165 sounds high just to add one or two cans of Freon. I believe an A/C shop would be a lot less.

There is always the possibility the low pressure switch could be a problem causing the compressor not to stay on. A set of gauges would be a help in determining this if you had your own. You could always jump out the low pressure switch and if everything else is working normally that will run the compressor and you can see if anything is getting cold. If you check the pressure on the low side before you start the engine with the system equalized, the normal pressure should be about 85-100 psi. Below that the system will still work but if it's down maybe below 60 the compressor will not stay on. Hard to say what the exact number might be and is dependent on the particular system and ambient air temperature. But offhand sounds like it is very low on Freon.

For the $165 you can buy a set of gauges (i.e. Harbor Freight), can adaptor and Freon to do the job. Then get some additional specific knowledge (from Forum and other sources) of how to perform the work. Then you will be set to take care of you own.

What bothers me is how did he check for leaks. Did he use a Freon sniffer. And if there is a leak, it may not show up until there is proper pressure in there with a full charge. But before doing any repairs or going off on a tangent, I would get the Freon added into the system.

 

What does the flashing LED mean?

 

A flashing LED means there is a code set in the controller head. Check this link with the procedure to retrive the codes.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/techti...=193&TopicID=2

http://www.corvetteactioncenter.com/...agnostic+Codes

 

Great, I'll check this out tonight. its supposed to snow here is WI so this will give me something to try. Thanks again

 

Checked the code it was #9 low freon, so I took it to the ac shop and he checked it and said not low at all, had 90 lbs. of pressure!
He was able to jump it and it blew cold. Is it more likely the relay under drivers dash, head unit or something else? All fuses were good, including ones under passenger side dash, clutch switch good also. Thanks for any help.

 

What does the 90 lbs represent? If it is the static pressure (not running and equalized), that is a good number. If it is a pressure reading from the high side, then it is way too low. And that would make the low side pressure low as well, the cycling switch may not make contact and may also set the code in the A/C controller head.

If he jumped the cycling switch in may make cold air anyway but low side may be too low to activate cycling switch. Maybe the cycling switch is just bad, it is a common problem.

In any case your data is a bit confusing and not specific enough. What's the bottom line in his diagnosis, did he get it working?

If your still learning about how A/C systems work, and have any doubt on what work was performed, get second opinion and from someone who has a knowledge of corvettes. If the freon is not low, then the system need to be troubleshoot and repaired.

When you get your A/C system fixed and if you still have the flashing LED, you might have to disconnect your battery to reset the controller head.

 

Disconnected the negative cable, reconnected, started up and ac kicked in blowing cold! Not sure what caused it to throw the code, hope it doesn't happen again.

 

It sounds like with the code 9 the controller prevents the compressor form engaging. When you cleared the code, the controller was happy because the Freon was not low just like you’re A/C person said. Possibly a sensor for "low Freon" is going bad.

It all makes sense now as how the controller works.

I once had a code 1 but it did not shut down my compressor.