Anyone used this stuff? Thinking of topping off my AC for the summer since to my knowledge it has never been done and my MINI's just about 9 years old.

What I like about it is the NASA developed QuickBoost in it - read about it here: http://spinoff.nasa.gov/spinoff1999/ch3.htm

What I don't like about it is it apparently contains trace amounts of sealer. I haven't run across anyone complaining about it making their AC system prematurely fail though.

 

Well, if it needs a fill, it is leaking somewhere. I used this in a 94 honda, and it worked great. Older freon systems have smaller condensers and are not supposed to work well with the new juice, but this helped. I wouldn't hesitate to use it if I needed some.


Last year I had to add some juice to my car, but this year it seems fine, so I must have a multiyear leak.

If the system gets low with any regularity, make sure you get the can with the dye so you can fix the issue once you identify it.

 

As far as I know, it isn't leaking - I don't have to regularly top off. A/C is cold and hasn't ever been serviced to my knowledge. It does seem like it could be colder though. AC is definitely colder in my '08 Mazda3.

I've run across people saying even in a healthy, "non-leaking" system, some refrigerant loss is normal. Here's a 2001 study I found that says the average rate of loss is 6.3%:

http://www.umweltdaten.de/publikationen/fpdf-l/3110.pdf

With the MINI's system having about 415 grams of refrigerant, 6.3% loss over 9 years would leave me with just over half remaining. Might give the Arctic Freeze stuff a try...or take it to a shop with an AC service station machine. Arctic Freeze would certainly be cheaper...

 

DO NOT ADD refrigerant with sealant! There is no faster way of ruining your a/c system short of removing the oil. The sealant gums up in the presence of moisture. If there is any trace of moisture in your system, the sealant will gum up inside there. There are many tiny holes in there, such as in the evaporator, condenser, metering device, and the compressor valves.

Not to mention that shops that do a/c work check cars for sealant before hooking up their expensive machines, which sealant will ruin. If any sealant is found, they send your car out the door and will not even attempt to service it. There is no way of removing all of the sealant without replacing every component and hose.

Do yourself a favor and get the a/c serviced professionally. They can even find and fix the leak. More often than not, it is simply an O-ring gone bad (a/c systems use special o-rings). Plus they will ensure that the amount of oil in there is correct, remove all moisture, and add the exact amount of refrigerant that is needed.

The only way to add cooling capacity to a refrigerant system is to increase the sizes of the condenser, evaporator, compressor, etc. In short, a whole new larger system, which isn't viable.