air con refrigerant leak, how to locate leak?

[01 BMW_X5]

Originally Posted by omodos

local air con person and they put it on the machine and told me it was all out of refrigerant, so they pumped some in an told me if there is a major leak our machine will show drop in pressure, if not and you find it empties out soon then you need to go get it checked elsewhere....hmmmm cost me 40 euros

ps good luck to the u.s soccer team

Take it to a place that knows what they are doing NOT to a Gas & Go.
A place with the expertise will know what leak detection methods to use.

PS. I'm enjoying the 2010 WC here in sunny Durban, South Africa.

[omodos]

out here nobody knows what they are doing.....i am just going live with leak as long as it needs a refill only every 5 years i am happy with that.....car is a nov 2004 build and not had he refrigerant filled since(not that it shouldneed filling) luck w.c in s.africa, looks pretty wet though at some matches, but must be great....cheers

[X5Sport]

I read an article in the motoring press a few weeks back which suggested that A/C systems can lose 10% of their gas every year.

Mine had not been done in 5 years so I took it to a local firm (Halfords for those in the UK) who checked and found it was right on the minimum limit on their test guage (they put a guage on the low pressure side and run the system at its lowest temp) charged me £50 in all to check and regas it (gas was £40). Took about ten minutes. You can do it yourself very easily too with the parts they sell (gas cylinder plus guage and valves) System works much better now.

[omodos]

aha another diesel owner thanks for the reply, if it weren't so hot here i would not bother, but the summer with leather seats and no air con is hell! hmm interesting comments re coolant loss, ta.....

[X5Sport]

If you can find someone who sells this kit - it might do whjat you need.........

Air Conditioning Measure & Charge from Halfords Price £49.99 Free Comma Air Con Cleaner When You Buy Interdynamics Air Con Measure and Charge

[omodos]

wow that is handy will get my brother to bring one over, in - laws offroader always leaks year after year......cheers for the input....

[X5Sport]

As you have the diesel version, the low pressure valve is the lower one of the two to the LHS of the engine as you look from the front.

[omodos]

ah yup diesel sport, thanks for that i checked the website of the company and cannot find bmw x5 in the drop down list of the vehicles that the product supports...and are there are any gurus out there who know if this type of sealant/air con top up can do damage?read in the reviews and online that there is a 50 50 chance of repair success depending on which part of the aircon system the leak is....x5 diesel is suited to this place, great up mountains much better than doing short runs on the m25 in london....although it is very dusty here due to sand from the sahara blowing across! and the air filter change on the diesel is near impossible i have read and seen...oh well