Yep its COOL

Alfa 166 3.2V6 best aircon system in a car I have yet came across,felt as if I froze my face off

What happened to the guide on this thread showing the step by step process of replacing the broken air con pipe?

I'm sure it said to remove the wheel arch liner for access.

I think it also had the part number for the pipe too.

Reason I ask is that I'm thinking of doing this soon as Kwik Fit are currently doing Aircon Recharges for £25

Dave

pieandapint said:

Reason I ask is that I'm thinking of doing this soon as Kwik Fit are currently doing Aircon Recharges for £25

Dave

Click to expand...

I heard about this as well and was thinking about getting mine re gassed while its cheap, heard a few kwik fit horror stories though.

So many thread on this so i won't make a new one. Since the sun has finally decided to come out, my air con has decided to pack up!

When i first bought the car, mid june 07, air con worked fine right through till winter andi stopped using it till the summer 08. It didn't work so i got a top up can and gassed her up and she worked nice and cool all through the summer till winter when she was no longer needed. Its become warm again and the air con went dead so i filled her up and.... PSSSSSSSS! What went in, went straight out again. I don't think the leak is too big but how easy are they to repair and where can it de done?

When i had it serviced at the main dealer, they had 2 prices, one for cars with air con and one without. I don't know the price difference but i'd assume they'd check the air con and suggest repair or something. When the report came back, it just said, "air con inopp".

Very helpful, no explanation why it wasn't working or suggestions to get it working again. Customer service... Aint it great???

If your aircons still sound but lost pressure
Kwik Fit now put it on one of the auto machines
to purge and refill for £45.00

John

sixpotman said:

If your aircons still sound but lost pressure
Kwik Fit now put it on one of the auto machines
to purge and refill for £45.00

John

Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure its got a leak. I tried refilling it the other day and the pressure wouldn't hold. Where's the best place to get it fixed?

Suspect the flexible pipe, oil ring, or condensor
then. If your thinking of doing it yourself then
NEVER test a 134a system with compressed air
IT EXPLODES with R134a under pressure.

If your previous charge has a leak detector fluid
in it you can check the pipes and unions with a UV
light. It's also illegal to vent R134a to atmosphere unless
it's leaked from the system.

Check yellow pages for aircon repairs then ask around
to see if they are ok blokes. They can test for leaks
you have a choice then let them repair or if you feel
capable repair it yourself, if there is no pressure at
all in the system then you will need to look at the
reciever dryer and see if that needs replacing too.

John

sixpotman said:

Suspect the flexible pipe, oil ring, or condensor
then. If your thinking of doing it yourself then
NEVER test a 134a system with compressed air
IT EXPLODES with R134a under pressure.

If your previous charge has a leak detector fluid
in it you can check the pipes and unions with a UV
light. It's also illegal to vent R134a to atmosphere unless
it's leaked from the system.

Check yellow pages for aircon repairs then ask around
to see if they are ok blokes. They can test for leaks
you have a choice then let them repair or if you feel
capable repair it yourself, if there is no pressure at
all in the system then you will need to look at the
reciever dryer and see if that needs replacing too.

John

Click to expand...

I have no idea what any of that means so i'll leave it to the professionals! Thank You anyways.

Looks like I have the dredded stilo pipe leak as well
lots of aircon lube on the pipe under the radiator
plus it's the older pipe too

Looks like new pipe and reciever dryer and refill

Does anyone have the correct part number for the
compressor to condensor pipe for a 1.8 stilo please?

Cheers John

My aircon failed before the car made its second summer. I had a new compressor under warranty. Since then the system has been recharged once more (a couple of years ago)but now needs doing again (at coming up to 7 yrs old).

Could do with some advice on this one.
The link to the ePER dosn't work on my computer,
So I phoned my local fiat dealer gave them my chassis
number and requested a price for the broken pipe
cars a 1.8 petrol stilo 03

They said the number highlighted for my car was
46840061 price over £90 I fell off my chair

I then asked what 46841699 fitted and how much
it cost answer it's not listed for your car and the price
is £57 Is this correct it won't fit.

or has anyone found an alternative aftermarket hose to fit
or a cheaper source.

John

The pipe you mentioned (46840061) is number 1 in this diagram and ePer shows it as being £67 including taxes... not sure how old the ePer is though.

46841699 is pipe number 10 and is listed as £41. Both pipes are listed for the M20 engine, which I assume is the 1.8 lump As for their compatibility, I'm afraid that I couldn't say

Here's another ePer link for you:

http://212.187.114.126:7080/navi?CO...&EPER_CAT=SP&WINDOW_ID=1&GUI_LANG=3&DRW_NUM=6

Good and bad news.

So the good news is that my air con no longer leaks. The bad news is that it POURS! I left it since i last posted here and the cracked pipe has now become a broken pipe. I only realised when i bought a can of air con sealant, i put it in and then i realised there was no pipe attached and the sealant went straight out.



You can see where its supposed to be attached. My bro is suggesting a DIY fix whereby we cut off the ends and attach this and that to it and put it together and hold it in place with jubilee clips... Is it easier to get a new pipe and if so, how easy would it be to change it?

Re: Good and bad news.

chicken_chau_mein said:

So the good news is that my air con no longer leaks. The bad news is that it POURS! I left it since i last posted here and the cracked pipe has now become a broken pipe. I only realised when i bought a can of air con sealant, i put it in and then i realised there was no pipe attached and the sealant went straight out.

You can see where its supposed to be attached. My bro is suggesting a DIY fix whereby we cut off the ends and attach this and that to it and put it together and hold it in place with jubilee clips... Is it easier to get a new pipe and if so, how easy would it be to change it?

Click to expand...

Where is this? I've got the 1.6, but the gas only works for 2 months - then vanishes into thin air... Going to FIAT next Tuesday for cambelt change and aircon mystery search, so I'd be happy for any directions and price-pressing propositions.

M.

Its just behind the engine cover, where the low tap in point is. You can see where the cover is removed to recharge the gas. The broken pipe is just below it. Initially, the pipe only had a leak but i came to look at it today and it was broken clean off! Must of been too much vibration from the engine and driving, and slowly the crack got bigger till it eventually snapped.

Okay, I have now got the car back from the dealer. They have checked every joint and pipe, but can't find any cracks. Still, the gas disappears after some months. He told me about some fancy UV glasses...

The aircon was drained for 70 grams of gas, pressure tested and refilled with 430+70 grams of UV-dyed gas and oil. So max of the system was 500 grams. Anyway, he told me the fault could be in the compressor itself or in the heater matrix. I didn't quite get the idea, but he also said it would be cheaper to refill for many years instead of getting a new compressor for about 700 GBP. Working their way down to the heater matrix would also take a day, as the Stilo propably was built around it, making it the first part on the assembly line.

So back to the drawing table (which I do every day though).

But I'm scheduled back in 3 weeks to run the UV test again.

Hmpf! :bang:

M.

2 months to lose pressure means a really very small leak and they're quite right it could be the devil to find it. Could well be behind the centre console and that would be very difficult, time consuming and overly expensive to find. Sometimes the leak will only be appear when the air con is on and parts expand or contract enough for a leak to show

That would be quite annoying always having to recharge your air con. Still, better than having no air con at all! Would anyone recommend me take the stilo to the fiat dealer to get a price to replace the broken pipe...

Or would any competant air con place be able to do the job just as well?

Broken pipe? Any decent air con specialist will be able to deal with that easily but a good Fiat garage might still give a better price as they'll get the Fiat only parts cheaper. Keep away from these places that simply offer "air con top ups" though