Nice video. I do both my 380SL and 560SL with Enviro-Safe freon. Gonna redo my 560SL using the industrial version of Enviro-Safe and use Scotty Kimmer's suggestion to not even make a connection on the High Side, he suggests just vacuum and go by weight of the Freon ... i.e. 1kg = 2.205lbs = 35.28oz. Enviro-Safe 6oz can is equivalent to 18oz R12, so need 2 cans, but going to weigh the cans first. Your AC guy is very informative.
Thank you for your videos on the AC system. Mine is not working on my 85 380SL. It’s still R12. I don’t have the equipment to service the system, so it’s a little low on my list of things to do. Your videos definitely took some of the mystery out of doing this though, and gave me some confidence to attempt it myself. I may take it somewhere to have the R12 extracted, and will then have to decide if I have it refilled with R12, convert to R134, or go with envirosafe. Thanks again!
Sounds good. I’ll be posting Vic’s presentations as well in a week or two. He’ll explain some more of the technical components. I think in California, we no longer have R12.
Also, my system had a leak so there was nothing in the system to extract. Yours may be the same. Push down on the low and high side and see if you have any pressure. It’s like the tire valves. Mine barely had anything. If there is good pressure then it’ll sound like the air coming out of a tire.
Amazing video! So happy you both tackle this project updated the o rings and refilled with proper gas! Mine had the compressor leaking and ended up delaying the process of replacing
Thank you. I had remembered that yours leaked from the compressor. That’s why I asked Vic to use the sniffer in that area. Luckily, it didn’t beep. Thanks.
I watched both 1 and 2 here of your ac project your buddy Vic was very knowledgeable and you made great video of the steps needed to straighten and repair Mercedes ac system. This helped me to dial in what to look at and replace to retrofit my 90 Mercedes 300sel as this will be one of my summer projects😊😊 Great 380sl by the way!
I’d guess a service would be about 500 but that’s a random guess. At one point, I found a place that would diagnose for 80 bucks. You can try that to see the cause. Vic doesn’t have a place. Are you in LA?
Thanks so much for your videos on the changeout of your AC system, as it was very helpful, as I’m in the same process with my ‘83 380sl. One question that I cannot find a solution is the removal of all the mineral oil before adding the PAG oil. This wasn’t seen on your videos. Can you explain what you and Vic did? This is the missing link to my conversion project. Thanks again, keep the videos coming!
Thanks for watching! Glad you find them helpful… We didn’t remove any mineral oil. Does some get sucked up by the vacuum? Don’t know but we didn’t remove any. Vic did put down a little PAG oil in the system. It was added to the left hose of the receiver dryer. That’s left side when looking straight at it. I think he added maybe a tablespoon or so. I hope that helps.
Hi,you don't have to remove all the mineral oil from the system. You can open up the drain plug on the compressor, but it is very hard to reach. I added 150 MLS of pag oil,as the new receiver drier was dry.
I just purchased a 1983 380SL. I think I got a good deal (maybe not) $4,800 for 147K miles. a lot of miles but these cars run forever...Hope so. after bringing home, I noticed the gas was leaking from the rear fuel system. So I ordered the filter, pump, and some hoses. And my Gear shift is rattling or lose + when I shift the gears from P to D or R, it takes few seconds to engage... not sure where to start? For rattling maybe I'll start with bushings but for gear change delay, I don't know what's going on. Any advice or help is appreciated.
I'll be changing the transmission fluid, transmission filter, oil change, oil filter.. just usual suspects first. the car drives good when gears are engaged but takes few seconds to engage.
@@MK-xn6qx congrats on your purchase. First, I want to tell you that I’m not a mechanic so I shouldn’t be giving any advise. With that, I’d go back and watch my videos. I’ve done the fuel delivery in the back as well as many fluid changes in the car.
@@sophiathe380sl yes, based on what I saw in that video, I'll change the rear fuel system, thanks for that! I understand you are not a mechanic but I guess a year with the car will give you an idea about delay in gear engagement?
@@MK-xn6qx you’re welcome! Glad it helps. I’ve never had that issue so I’m not sure. I’ve seen a few videos about the shifter rattling and a rubber piece needs to be changed. Not sure if that’s related to your issue.
@@MK-xn6qx Hi, carefully check your transmission fluid level on level ground with the engine running and vehicle in neutral. it sounds like your not building fluid pressure. most common cause for this is low fluid level. Good luck, Vic.
I watched part 1 and part 2. The way this was diagnosed and approached was not really correct. 1) First, nothing was done in part 1 to find where the leaks were. There could be leaks in countless places. 2) It's not completely clear, but it seems the system had R12 in it as it was originally designed and that you just replaced the receive dryer and put in R132. If this is the case, this was a fatal mistake. All the mineral oil must be flushed out of the system and this is no minor project. If PAG oil and mineral oil mix you will have a gooey mess inside and if that is the case, your compressor will fail and you will have to replace every component in the system. 3) In part 2, the system should have been filled with dry nitrogen and then you check for leaks. Only when you have no leaks with this do you then evacuate and then add new refrigerant. 4) The quick, unprecise and kind of useless process he took for checking leaks will find only large leaks. That tester is a piece of junk. 5) With a system this old, you really have no idea how much oil is in the system on top of item 2 being a huge potential issue. The only way to know the correct amount of oil is to remove the compressor and measure the amount of oil. I would be curious about item 2 and now almost a year later, did it hold a charge or did the compressor fail.
Excellent video. That measuring tool is awesome! Vic knows his stuff! I may now decide to look at my 300TD system at some point. I has never worked.
Vic sounds like Albert Brooks. All I can hear is Marlin from Finding Nemo talking about HVAC
Nice video. I do both my 380SL and 560SL with Enviro-Safe freon. Gonna redo my 560SL using the industrial version of Enviro-Safe and use Scotty Kimmer's suggestion to not even make a connection on the High Side, he suggests just vacuum and go by weight of the Freon ... i.e. 1kg = 2.205lbs = 35.28oz. Enviro-Safe 6oz can is equivalent to 18oz R12, so need 2 cans, but going to weigh the cans first. Your AC guy is very informative.
Thank you for your videos on the AC system. Mine is not working on my 85 380SL. It’s still R12. I don’t have the equipment to service the system, so it’s a little low on my list of things to do. Your videos definitely took some of the mystery out of doing this though, and gave me some confidence to attempt it myself. I may take it somewhere to have the R12 extracted, and will then have to decide if I have it refilled with R12, convert to R134, or go with envirosafe. Thanks again!
Sounds good. I’ll be posting Vic’s presentations as well in a week or two. He’ll explain some more of the technical components. I think in California, we no longer have R12.
Also, my system had a leak so there was nothing in the system to extract. Yours may be the same. Push down on the low and high side and see if you have any pressure. It’s like the tire valves. Mine barely had anything. If there is good pressure then it’ll sound like the air coming out of a tire.
Amazing video! So happy you both tackle this project updated the o rings and refilled with proper gas! Mine had the compressor leaking and ended up delaying the process of replacing
Thank you. I had remembered that yours leaked from the compressor. That’s why I asked Vic to use the sniffer in that area. Luckily, it didn’t beep. Thanks.
I watched both 1 and 2 here of your ac project your buddy Vic was very knowledgeable and you made great video of the steps needed to straighten and repair Mercedes ac system. This helped me to dial in what to look at and replace to retrofit my 90 Mercedes 300sel as this will be one of my summer projects😊😊
Great 380sl by the way!
That’s great! I’m glad they are helping. Vic is awesome. Mine is still going strong. Thanks for watching and commenting.
How much would this service cost? Does Vic have a shop? Looking at a 560SL that blows air from all vents but it doesn’t get cold. Thanks!
I’d guess a service would be about 500 but that’s a random guess. At one point, I found a place that would diagnose for 80 bucks. You can try that to see the cause. Vic doesn’t have a place. Are you in LA?
@@sophiathe380sl I am. Still haven’t purchased the 560sl but two that I’ve looked at in my price range both have the same AC issue.
@@canonassasin yes, very common issue when I was searching as well.
My shop says $400 if this is the only issue.
@@canonassasin As I understand it, it wasn't something MB did well at the time.
Thanks so much for your videos on the changeout of your AC system, as it was very helpful, as I’m in the same process with my ‘83 380sl. One question that I cannot find a solution is the removal of all the mineral oil before adding the PAG oil. This wasn’t seen on your videos. Can you explain what you and Vic did? This is the missing link to my conversion project. Thanks again, keep the videos coming!
Thanks for watching! Glad you find them helpful… We didn’t remove any mineral oil. Does some get sucked up by the vacuum? Don’t know but we didn’t remove any. Vic did put down a little PAG oil in the system. It was added to the left hose of the receiver dryer. That’s left side when looking straight at it. I think he added maybe a tablespoon or so. I hope that helps.
Hi,you don't have to remove all the mineral oil from the system.
You can open up the drain plug on the compressor, but it is very hard to reach.
I added 150 MLS of pag oil,as the new receiver drier was dry.
WAIT - is it 1.82 or 1lb and 8.2 oz - I'm THOROUGHLY confused - BUT ... I think the right answer is 14lb 8.9oz left on the scale
I just purchased a 1983 380SL. I think I got a good deal (maybe not) $4,800 for 147K miles. a lot of miles but these cars run forever...Hope so.
after bringing home, I noticed the gas was leaking from the rear fuel system. So I ordered the filter, pump, and some hoses.
And my Gear shift is rattling or lose + when I shift the gears from P to D or R, it takes few seconds to engage... not sure where to start?
For rattling maybe I'll start with bushings but for gear change delay, I don't know what's going on.
Any advice or help is appreciated.
I'll be changing the transmission fluid, transmission filter, oil change, oil filter.. just usual suspects first.
the car drives good when gears are engaged but takes few seconds to engage.
@@MK-xn6qx congrats on your purchase. First, I want to tell you that I’m not a mechanic so I shouldn’t be giving any advise. With that, I’d go back and watch my videos. I’ve done the fuel delivery in the back as well as many fluid changes in the car.
@@sophiathe380sl yes, based on what I saw in that video, I'll change the rear fuel system, thanks for that!
I understand you are not a mechanic but I guess a year with the car will give you an idea about delay in gear engagement?
@@MK-xn6qx you’re welcome! Glad it helps. I’ve never had that issue so I’m not sure. I’ve seen a few videos about the shifter rattling and a rubber piece needs to be changed. Not sure if that’s related to your issue.
@@MK-xn6qx Hi, carefully check your transmission fluid level on level ground with the engine running and vehicle in neutral.
it sounds like your not building fluid pressure. most common cause for this is low fluid level.
Good luck, Vic.
I watched part 1 and part 2. The way this was diagnosed and approached was not really correct.
1) First, nothing was done in part 1 to find where the leaks were. There could be leaks in countless places.
2) It's not completely clear, but it seems the system had R12 in it as it was originally designed and that you just replaced the receive dryer and put in R132. If this is the case, this was a fatal mistake. All the mineral oil must be flushed out of the system and this is no minor project. If PAG oil and mineral oil mix you will have a gooey mess inside and if that is the case, your compressor will fail and you will have to replace every component in the system.
3) In part 2, the system should have been filled with dry nitrogen and then you check for leaks. Only when you have no leaks with this do you then evacuate and then add new refrigerant.
4) The quick, unprecise and kind of useless process he took for checking leaks will find only large leaks. That tester is a piece of junk.
5) With a system this old, you really have no idea how much oil is in the system on top of item 2 being a huge potential issue. The only way to know the correct amount of oil is to remove the compressor and measure the amount of oil.
I would be curious about item 2 and now almost a year later, did it hold a charge or did the compressor fail.
Thanks for the comment. I’ll share this with Vic. All I know is that I still have cold air.