Good afternoon, I have a few questions regarding my A/C system so I can do a professional job. I purchased my car about 4 months ago, the only problems it had were the exhaust system and the A/C. The couple I purchased it from stated the A/C worked great when they owned it, the system has always been R12 and has NEVER been converted. I am keeping it this way. They purchased it in 1993. Here is the last email from them regarding the A/C system.

"Hi Marco...regarding the history of the AC on the car... When we purchased it the air was working very well and on max created very cold air. My wife has never been a lover of air conditioning and seldom used it...As the years passed I used to activate it every year just to keep the seals from drying out. About the time it was in need of a recharge the type of freon used was changed and to reactivate it we would have to have the system purged and new type installed. We just didn't have it done. I beleive that if it was reactivated it should work . I hope this is helpful. Regards Terry."

The parts I will be replacing are:

A/C Compressor (this part seems to be good on the current system, would I gain anything if I replaced it?)
A/C Dryer
Expansion Valve
O-Rings
Condenser
Oil in compressor
R12 Refrigerant (I have enough to last two lifetimes)

I will also be following this DIY while I do the job.

How to Repair Your A

Here are my questions:

Question 1:

Where can I find a new condenser? I can not find any except EBAY and Mercedes Dealership. The current one is original and should be replaced. Dealership is very expensive.

Question 2:

In the above link he states "I added 4 ozs of Frigi Quiet to the suction side of the compressor. I also put 4 ozs of the same oil in the new drier."

So I dump 4 oz of oil in the compressor and 4 into the drier? Is this correct? 8 OZ seems a bit much. Need a professionals opinion here. Also this frigi oil does not seem to be R4 oil?!

Question 3:

Where can I buy "Frigi Quiet synthetic compressor oil from BG" or other synthetic top of the line A/C oil?

Question 4:

Mostly adding oil to the system. I am unsure about what amounts should be added and if I should just tear everything apart from scratch. If I am not replacing the compressor, should I remove it and dump the old oil out and replace with new to be 100%?

Question 5:

What are the amounts of oil and refrigerant I should be adding according to the original benz spec?

I would suggest if you a re replacing this much you should go ahead and flush the whole system out and add your oil based on the compressor manufacturers suggestion. (Since you are replacing the compressor.)

My question is why replace the condenser?

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1978 Mercedes 240D
1981 Mercedes 240D
1982 Mercedes 240D

It looks original. I guess I should have it tested for leaks before just replacing it, however there are small dents on it.

From what I've been told at this point I will keep the current compressor but take it off and drain the oil/replace with synthetic. I'm just not sure what oil is best for r12.