Site News - 7/11: No New News Today | 5/10: Members: Log In to See Fewer Ads!
[General | Members | C900 | 9000 | NG900 & OG93 | 93 | 95 | NG95 | 99 | Sonett | Vintage Models | Clubs | Other Cars | FAQs | Gifts | Member Photo Galleries | Member Directory | Classifieds | Manuals | *Buddy Registry | *Mileage Registry | Polls | What's New | Raffle | Photo of the Month | Sponsors]

C900 Bulletin Board
1979-1993 & 94 Conv [Subscribe to Daily Digest]
(Search Author's Posts: e.g. Keyword:username)*Members Only

[Main C900 Bulletin Board | BBFAQ | Prev by Date | Next by Date | Post Followup ] Member Login / Signup - Members see fewer ads. - Latest Member Gallery Photos
Jefff's DIY De-AC procedure!
Like This Post: - Subscribe to Daily Digest for this Bulletin Board
Posted by Saana88 [Email] (#207) [Profile/Gallery] (more from Saana88) on Fri, 24 Feb 2006 16:34:59 Share Post by Email
In Reply to: AC Removal Issues?, House, Fri, 24 Feb 2006 10:13:22
Alert me when someone posts in this thread:
Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup

Here are my pics from last May when I ripped the AC out of my convertible. The 900 defroster is one of the best on the market, so who needs air con? If your defroster fogs your windows, it's time for a heater core (drying off your floormats and carpets helps here too). Pay attention to the photos and you can tell just where to make the necessary incision, I think in the line that goes from the evaporator to the condenser? Either way, I've calculated it all (compressor, evaporator, condenser, lines, reciever-drier, belt, pulley, tensioner, hardware, bracket, anti-frost switch) to be around 85 pounds.
Out roll the hints:
Be sure the system is depressurized first. Check for continuity at the high/low pressure switch which has two blue wires connected to it at the reciever-drier canister. If you've got continuity there, there is still pressure in the AC system and you should get it evacuated first.
If not, start pulling connections. You'll need an unusually large set of wrenches for some of these; a twelve-inch adjustable wrench or two will do if you don't have them. Grab a hacksaw and tin snips if you've got them. Aluminum and light brass abound and that's all you'll be cutting through.
Disconnect the recirculation dashpot from the air intake to clear up some space. You can leave the vacuum hose attached if you want. Don't lose the disc-shaped thingy that connects the dashpot to the recirculation flap. After removing the hoses on the evaporator, remove the four Torx machine screws (I think they're T-25 or 28) and pull the capillary tube for the anti-frost switch out of the evaporator by reaching into the air intake. It will also help to remove your oxygen sensor connectors from the clip on the firewall and swing them out of the way. If you're working in an 8 valve car, the PS pump and reservoir are going to get in the way. Either remove it or grab the hacksaw. On 16 valve cars, the head will probably get in the way, so grab the hacksaw. There will be refrigerant oil left in the tubes, so you'll even be nice to your hacksaw blade! Slide the evaporator out as far as you want to, then hack away (see pictures in my gallery). You're cutting aluminum fins and light brass tubing (good for thermal expansion, and cuts easily). There should be a drain tube at the forward edge of the air intake box- make sure it's clear of debris. It either goes into the RF wheel well or the engine compartment.
If you've got a friend helping, they can pull the bolts holding the compressor in place. If not, it's up to you. Yes, the left front bolt is trapped by the intake manifold. Get at least three of them off (and the fourth loose) and either finish off the fourth bolt or pull the three bolts holding the bracket to the head and block; two at the top and one at the bottom. The bottom of the bracket is slotted, just like your alternator bracket. Also notice that the mounting bracket functions as the rear engine lifting lug. Keep the bracket and bolts around if you envision pulling the motor anytime soon. Disconnect the red and blue wires going to the compressor clutch. The red wire just sits under the intake manifold on my 8 valve car, and I wrapped it back into the engine wiring harness loom on the 16 valve car. Remove the 10 mm bolts holding the AC pulley on the crank pulley, and pull the necessary bolts holding the tensioner pulley in place (12 or 14 mm, I think). Look, space! That's what your water pump housing looks like. That's where your heater hoses go.
After the compressor and evaporator are out of there, grab the wrenches and tin snips. Remove the two blue wires from the switch on the reciever-drier canister and leave them for now. Do not destroy them; they're staying in the car. Next you remove the rear AC line from the canister; it's easily accessible with a wrench. The other one is not so easy to do, so either remove it or using the tin snips (or the hack or diagonal cutters or whatever implement of destruction makes you happy) cut the hose that goes to the condenser (see picture in gallery). It's brute force, and it's fun. When this is done, the lines and canister come out except for the two lines leading to the condenser. The compressor will also come out since its hoses have been freed.
The bumper and towing eyelet and fog light wiring and horn get in the way here; just take a few stabs at it and get the binder nuts moving. I had better luck on the lower one from underneath. Once the hoses are off the condenser, it is removed out the bottom if I remember right. The other way to do it is to wait until the next time you change your radiator and get it then. If you feel the need to remove the front bumper, disconnect the two wiring connectors for the fog lights (if factory-equipped) and remove the two hex bolts from underneath that hold the bumper on. If you can't find the bolts, look for two half-moon cutouts in the air fins and look straight up. You guessed it, that's why the cutouts are there.
You're almost finished now, and you've already done the brunt of the work. The next step is fitting the cabin filter, a first for production cars. You can read the part number off the pic in the gallery and try and track one down, or fabricate a piece of plastic to cover the hole, or use duct tape. The air filter surround has lines cast in it so it can fold like an accordion to slide in easier. This really comes into play on 8 valve cars. I just picked up replacement filters today; there are now two left in the country, so act fast. I'm still working on another source for that- a certain site sponsor has just discontinued them. Either way, seal off the hole in the front side of the air intake so the air is still drawn from the vent and not from the engine compartment. If you're concerned about the anti-frost switch, I haven't yet found out how to get that out of there. I'm trying though, and my convertible is going to hit the road in another month or so. I'll keep you posted. The last step is to enable your AC switch to do something. Specifically, it'll turn on your engine cooling fan (Passenger side only on most cars, the driver's side still functions with the thermoswitch.) All you have to do is cut the connectors off those two blue wires that used to connect to the pressure switch- remember those? Cut the connectors off, strip the ends, and crimp or solder them together. If you are not interested in this modification, put a blank where the AC switch is, pull the AC relay, and leave the connectors where they are.
That's it; your Saab has been on a diet. Next time you have to work on your alternator, crank pulley, water pump, heater hoses, wiper motor/linkage, or timing chain tensioner (just to name a few) you'll thank yourself.
Total time elapsed: Around 1.5 hours the first time you do it. You can recycle the mounting bits (pulley, bolts, clamps) as steel and the evaporator (or evaporator halves or pieces) as light metal. The condenser is aluminum, I think. Be sure you've reconnected anything you took apart (horn connectors, fog lights, et cetera) and take her for a test drive! (convertibles: top down to enjoy the environmentally-friendly air conditioning.) I usually get around two years out of a cabin filter.

Ex-AC gallery

Posts in this Thread:
Alert me when someone posts in this thread:
Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup
Post a Followup

No Site Registration is Required to Post - Site Membership is optional (Member Features List), but helps to keep the site online
for all Saabers. If the site helps you, please consider helping the site by becoming a member.

Name: Member Login / Signup - Members see fewer ads. - Latest Member Gallery Photos
E-Mail: (Optional)
Re-Enter E-Mail: (Confidential & Secure - Not revealed to other users!)
Note: Please check your spam folder for BB responses.

Subject:

Posting rules are simple - No for sale/wanted ads may be posted here - use the site classifieds.
You may not cross-post your message to multiple BBs.
Not permitted: political/religious topics and being disrespectful (personal attacks, insults, etc...).
 Site Members do not see any red text, inline ad links, bottom of page anchor ads, box ads, or anti-spam check.

Message: (please no for sale/wanted classifieds - post those in the Saabnet.com Classifieds)
Links are now automatically made active, no need for any special code (or use the Option Link field below) - don't put links in () or end with a '.'
To add inline images to your post, use [img]http://www.domain.com/img.jpg[endimg] (or use the Optional Image Link field below).

Links are now automatically made active, no need for any special code (or use the Option Link field below) - don't put links in () or end with a '.'
To add inline images to your post above, use [img]http://www.domain.com/img.jpg[endimg] (or use the Optional Image Link field below).
Optional Link: (e.g. http://www.saabnet.com/)
Link Title: (Optional)
Optional Photo/Image Link: (e.g. http://www.saabnet.com/img.jpg)
Photo/Image to Upload: (Please be patient while file uploads)



StateOfNine.com
SaabClub.com
Jak Stoll Performance
M Car Covers
Ad Available

The content on this site may not be republished without permission. Copyright © 1988-2025 - The Saab Network - saabnet.com.
For usage guidelines, see the Mission & Privacy Notice.
[Contact | Site Map | Saabnet.com on Facebook | Saabnet.com on Twitter | Shop Amazon via TSN | Site Donations]

Random Saabnet.com Member Gallery Photos (Click Image)
This is a moderated bulletin board - Posting is a privilege, not a right. Unsolicited commercial postings are not allowed (no spam). Please, no For Sale or Wanted postings, SERIOUSLY. Classifieds are to be listed in The Saab Network Classifieds pages. This is a problem solving forum for over 250,000 Saab owners, so expect to see problems discussed here even though our cars are generally very reliable. This is not an anything goes type of forum. Saabnet.com has been a moderated forum since 1988. For usage guidelines, see the Saabnet.com Mission and Purpose Page. Please remember that you are not anonymous. Site Contact | Site Donations | Other Sites by SP - Poverty2Prosperity.org | Run Club Menlo Park | ScreenBot


Site Members do not see red text instructions, bottom of the page anchor ads, or box ads.
Click here to see all the Site Membership Benefits!