Hey, long time no post. Recently purchased this wonderful 1982 240D, 247k milles, stick shift. It is the third that I have had. The question is that I was told that the "evaporator" for the A/C was leaking and needed to be replaced. I hope that I said that right as I am yet to be able to get with the cars lifetime mechanic to verify.

1. is there an evaporator somewhere under the dash?
2. is this something that a marginally mechanical person can logic through?
3. from someone who has done this repair, would you do it again or let a shop do it?
4. anyone have a picture of what this thing looks like so I can get dirty and bond with the current one and make the final determination?

Thanks in advance....

I think it is under the dash and that its a pain to get to. You might do a search on the subject, I recall reading that some have had success running a "stop leak" type of chemical through the system.

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2001 Dodge Ram 2500 Cummins Turbo Diesel - 4x4, auto, 3.54 gears, long bed
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'92 300D 2.5 Turbodiesel - sold
'83 300D Turbodiesel - 4 speed manual/2.88 diff - sold
'87 300D Turbodiesel - sold
'82 300D Turbodiesel - sold

Evaportator is definately under the dash. It is really the 'radiator' where the air is cooled. Refrigerant passing through the evaporator absorbs heat from the air and carries the heat out to the condensor where it is transferred to the outside air.

Evaporator failures are common on some later models, particularly 124 & 140 chassis cars. I don't think I've ever heard of such a problem on a 123 chassis car - I'd investigate carefully before spending money to replace it. The part is typically ~$200. Labor is about 10 hours on a 124, 20 hours on a 140. I'd bet a 123 is less.

There are three sealer products available: cryo-chem, keep-it-cool, and cliplight. You can use Google to find their repsective websites. All three work more or less alike. They are moisture activated epoxies. Because the inside of your a/c system is extremely well dehydrated, the epoxy does not cure, but rather circulates with the lubricating oil. Condensation which forms at the site of refrigerant leaks causes the epoxy to cure, sealing or slowing the leak.

I've used the cryo-chem product once, with great success. At the time it was the only sealer available and cost $150 for the treatment - about 10% of the cost of replacing the evaporator in my 124 car. The other two products run about $50/treatment - don't know if that reality has affected the cost of cryo-chem or not.

Good luck.

Thanks for the lesson and direction. I will continue to move forward and try and track this down. Very much appreciate the help.

Marc