AC 1983 911 SC

[DonS]

I have an all original 1983 911 SC with factory air. This car has 60,000 miles. The AC worked last year but this season, no cooling. I did some reading and learned that the R12 refrigerant is banned. (for good reason). The compressor identification plate shows (R12) on it.
-Can I assume that it was R12 refrigerant?
-Is there any solution other than replacing the whole AC system? I understand that R12 is not compatible with the newer R134a?

[cjbcpa]

The two refrigerants are different from one another and can't be mixed. However, the A/C system itself can be converted to use R134 after the R12 is removed (if it hasn't leaked out already). It requires some modest changes that aren't too expensive and will at least get you some cooling.

The downside is, R134 is not as effective as R12 at cooling and the A/C system on an SC is not great to begin with. If your budget allows there are aftermarket conversion kits that beef up the system along with the conversion. Try Griffiths.com and Rennaire.com

[DonS]

Chris, Thanks for the links and info.