Well, I got my high side hose all hooked up, my orifice tube, accumulator and a bunch of O-rings replaced...then I vacuumed the system and found out that my condenser is leaking like crazy up by the top tubes. It only pulls 20" and as soon as the vacuum is turned off it goes to 0 in a split second. I have an inkling that if I JUST try to replace the condenser the a/c pipe/"muffler tube" is going to disintegrate. Is there a good (CHEAP) source to get one of these? Or would I be better off just to get one of the "new and improved" hoses that attaches to the "new and improved" lower condenser pipe? or am I completely out of my mind with all of these internet parts places?

It's absolutely unbearable up here in MN (95+ for the next couple days!)

 

I'm curious as to how you determined the condenser is leaking - in my experience, leaking condensers are not unheard of, but are certainly uncommon. Are you sure it's not one of those O rings you replaced?

Hoses can be rebuilt if you mess up one of yours. As far as that goes, I wouldn't be afraid to try a wreck yard condenser; the odds of it being good are in your favor. "New and Improved" makes me nervous too. Frequently just another way of saying "Made cheap in China".

103 degrees here in Texas today..

 

I determined that the condenser is leaking by...pulling a vacuum on the system....and putting my finger in the massive hissing sound coming from the top of the condenser. And it wasn't one of my o-rings, there aren't any o-rings in the very top right of the condenser, just the pipe that runs up to the top tube. And it's not a hose I'm concerned about, it's a rusty steel pipe that runs from the condenser pipe to the high pressure hose.

 

Well, having been all over the Twin Cities...I scoff at your desire for a/c!! Any place that gets freakin' snow in SEPTEMBER doesn't require a/c! LOL. Seriously, I've seen my share of failed condensors. The secret is to be scrupulous in using backer wrenches to not torque the pipe fittings. PB Blaster is your friend. I too shy from the new and improved versions. I recently priced just the high pressure blow off valve on that muffler...$56 at Volvo!

 

The blow off valve? Could that be the rusty little bugger on the muffler in the bend? It looks like a plug of some kind with a thing in the middle. I got a new condenser from genesis auto parts online for $38...may bee unreputable, but its cheap and looks right.

I disagree on the weather in MN. We may get snow from october til may, but we also get 100+ days like today too, and I work outside. I like a good heater and even better a/c.

 

Oh, I know...I have family in Stillwater and Woodbury. Just yanking your chain! I think y'all beat us by a couple of degrees today. Yup, that's the blow off valve you described...the center portion is the valve orifice. Mine vented when the head pressure got too high but failed to reseal when pressure dropped..I lost every drop of R134a...oh well...

 

So, does that muffler/pipe just connect between the upper and lower condenser pipe and then have a fitting for the high pressure hose off of the compressor? I'll find out soon enough when I start yanking the condenser out. Can I cap that blow-off valve if I can remove it?

 

On my 90, the muffler is removable...a/c systems often have subtle changes within a model run and with the road salt in MN, that which was removable 20 years ago today maybe not so much. Doing away with the hp valve at the muffler is precisely what I plan to do. Stock compressors have a blow off valve at the compressor. Since you're doing the work now, setting the aux over heat fan up to run w/ the a/c compressor is a good thing. Will keep head pressure down and increase efficiency of cooling around town!
TurboBricks | High Performance Volvo Club

 

I had a blown condenser on my 740 and ended up going to a salvage yard to get another one. I had done this about 5 years ago and it is still good. I also replaced all hoses except the lower one with the muffler and pressure relief valve. I understand they don't make this assembly anymore but the replacement is just a hose without the muffler and relief valve. System still does 40* temps.

 

Yeah, condensers, at least here in TX, typically fail as a result of gravel and other debris. My wife tail gates cars and has managed to hole two condensers on the same car in 5 years. Doesn't surprise me Volvo doesn't stock the replacement; in the last 10 years they have dropped thousands of older parts. Hoses can be made at any hydraulic hose shop for dirt cheap. Just take them the old hose and they will whip up a new one. Generally, at least in my experience, they use hose of a better quality than o.e.

 

I thought it was kind of an odd place for a condenser to fail... I've seen thousands of condensers leak on or near the bottom tube from impact/curb-check/and gravel pit, but I've never seen a condenser leak on the top tube that is, logically, most "protected" from gravel. However, here in MN I've come to accept that anything is possible, when it comes to strange things failing on cars.

So, the muffler is removable on your 90'? How so? I haven't looked very deeply into it yet due to not having the new condenser or the motivation, but how would the high pressure hose hook up without the muffler? What goes into the top line on the condenser?

 

Well, I can't say 100% that it's removable; the fittings on either side and the muffler itself are coated in undercoat. But it appears to have hex fittings under all the goo. To take the muffler out of the equation, the simplest and least leak prone method would be to replace the entire hose assembly. Earlier, it was mentioned that that's the way the replacement hose comes from Volvo now anyway. I would take the entire assembly to my local hose maker and have it made for $25. I like that idea better than Volvo prices! Tomorrow I'm going to pull a vacuum on the system and see if the valve is still leaking...before I get too far ahead of my self!