I have a 1997 ford taurus with a 3.0. Never had a minutes problem with the a/c until today. With a/c on max, fan on max, Thermostat on max. I can feel slight cool air. Back of the Manual Thermostat just a tad and it blows hot air.

Any suggestions on some test I can perform to point me to the problem. Can I convert this a/c with the readily available conversion kits out there? I know the orginial freon is very expensive.

Thanks

 

It's already outfitted with R134a. You've probably got a refrigerant leak. You should be able to find it with a blacklight, but even then recovering the refrigerant to gain access to the system to repair the leak takes some specialized equipment. Might be best left to an A/C shop.

 

You won't find it with a black light unless you put the dye in the gas. If it all leaked out, there's no gas to recover. Buy a can of 134a at the auto parts shop and charge it up. Buy one with a guage on it, and follow the instructions on the can. If its a small leak, and it lasts you all summer you're golden. spend $15-$20 a year to recharge it rather than 300 or so to have it fixed. It may seal up too, alot of times the seal may dry up a little and leak out through the winter. Thats what I did with my old sonoma when it quit working and it worked fine. FYI, im an a/c mechanic.

 

Ford puts A/C dye in everything from the factory, they always have since '95 or so.