[nsaikia]

My A/C was not cooling at all. The Ford Dealership diagnosed the problem as a hole in the manifold hose that runs from the "compressor to the collector".

Since their quote was quite high for me, I decided to go ahead and give it a try myself and that leads to a few questions:

1) Since I have a hole in the hose, does this means that I lost all my freon?
2) Is the fix a PITA or is it fairly simple? I want to first find out if it is within my league. I am not bad wrenching and have taken courses on engine rebuilt and general diagnosis - of course all my experiments are limited to my 1979 F100 for now.
3) Well, I am going to buy a manual on the car, but considering how vague they are, will you let me know the location of the collector?

My car: 2002 Mustang convertible with 3.8L Engine.

Thanks,
Nayan.

[GTRaptor]

You can buy a sealant and R134 kit at most Walmarts..i used that on my 95 which developed a leak in the low pressure side hose. All is fine now and has been working for over a year.

You need to start the AC and pour a complete can of AC sealant, then finish by filling up with R134.

Price is under 40 so its worth a try.

[Tominator]

The hose is easy to replace, BUT.....you lost the freon and will need to draw a vacuum while watching a set of guages to see if there are no leaks. The vacuum boils away any moisture in the system as well and all this is a MUST before you add the freon. Then you MUST only add the recommended amount.....this is your mission if you decide to accept it....this message will self destruct in ????