wrote:
> Yes, I manually turned the hub before letting it engage. Both pressures
> appear to be steady. But I agree that the problem could be the
> compressor. What I am afraid I might have done is put too much oil
> into the compressor ports. I put about 3/4 oz of the oil into the
> compressor and distributed the other 2 oz into the condensor and
> evaporator. In any case, it does sound like the compressor has gone
> bad.

I don't think that too much oil is the problem in your case, unless
previous repairs involved the continuous adding of unnecessary oil.
The compressor (a reman unit that you have no previous experience
using) could have had a stuck or bent high side reed valve from the
factory.

I like using Poly ester oil (what you used) in R134a coversions when it
is going to mix with mineral oil. I don't think the quantity or type
of oil is the cause of the problem here. The compressor probably came
with oil in it, but adding less than an ounce shouldn't spell disaster.

Any chance I can dismantle and repair it?

I guess your compressor DOESN'T have a warranty? If it does, then see
if the parts house will honor it -- this also may involve an inspection
for the type of damage -- lack of oil or too much oil for example can
cause compressor failures that are not covered by typical compressor
warranties. Unfortunately, if you got one with a bent reed valve, they
may still blame that on too much oil on startup. Make sure you explain
the preventative steps you took during installation.

If you really put TWO POUNDS of R134a in your system, then that is
dangerous! I'm not sure it would physically take that much liquid
freon on such a tiny system. Are you sure that you put in that much -
32 ounces? Cans are 12 oz each. If there was a rapid leak you would
be able to hear it. Make sure your high side gauge is accurate before
condemning the system. Put it on another working system to check. The
25 lbs low side isn't too far from normal on a mild day; it also
depends on the proximity of the fitting to the compressor.

Toyota MDT in MO