1995 944, 85k miles

I have been chasing a leak in the AC system for some time now. I have used dies, UV light and R134 refills and still cannot find the leak.

I then took the car to a gold plated Volvo independent for a diagnosis and they could not find the leak either. This cost $240.00 and they said it may run into quite a bit to find and repair the leak.

No indication at the condensation drain when operating for the short period of time, a day or two before it gives out, but now closer to an hour or two. No leaks, oil and die found anywhere. Also there is no sprayed die from the compressor front seal. I can press on the low pressure schrader valve and get a good to meager burst Freon and die.

Is there any place the R134 can leak out without tall tale signs such as the top of the evaporator? Will the evaporator drain always show the leak? One shop says no, not always.

My only next step would be to replace the evaporator unless there are any other ideas.


Tom

Edit, what compounds the problem is this is my wife's car. Time is on my side for a short time. She is using my 1993.

You've probably already looked there, but.......

Mine started to leak like your's, the amount of time it would stay charged got quite short. It turned out to be the low pressure line that runs from the accumulator back to the compressor. Right at the lowest point of the line where it loops down and back up to connect to the compressor, the years of collecting moisture at that low spot finally corroded through the tubing.

How did you find the leak? Die indication? I am refilling and rechecking.

Tom

A local repair shop found the leak. I believe they found it with UV detection.

I watched AC techs locate leaks on my '89 760GLE and '92 245 by pressurizing the systems with nitrogen and then using soapy water in a spray bottle and looking for bubbles. These were two separate shops-- both started with chemical "sniffers", moved on to dye, and both cases ended with them finding the leaks with the soapy water. Obviously this won't work very well if you have an evaporator leak, but it does the trick for virtually everything else...

Good luck!

I found some oil on the bottom hose that Chris mentioned. It may be from motor oil but I do not see any apparent engine oil leaks. Front seals are not leaking and neither is the valve cover gasket and I hope they stay that way, knock Volvo steel.

As for pressure, I have the more expensive freon and it can only take so much on its own. I will try the soapy water, like finding a leak in a tire although I may not have enough pressure.

After winter, the system still held some pressure as seen when I pressed the shrader valve.

If I have to take the car in, there is a do it all garage I can take it to that allows good contact with the mechanics.

Tom