A/C Compressor Refrigerant Oil

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TxGreaseMonkey

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I will be replacing the A/C compressor on my 2000 Taurus, with the 3.0L Duratec engine, this week. I've emptied 5 oz. of shipping oil from the new compressor. I'm looking to refill it with BG Universal Frigi-Quiet (Part No. 7018E) Refrigerant Oil, which is a synthetic. Ford specifies YN12B PAG (Polyalkylente Glycol) Refrigerant Oil.

Does anyone have any thoughts on the BG product or what may be a superior refrigerant oil for this application?
 
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I used NAPA's Ester 100 oil for my conversion this week, I'm not sure if that's the correct oil for your application though.
 
Compressors are USUALLY (not always) shipped with a full charge of oil. It's something that you need to double-check, but pretty often, you can just bolt a compressor onto a flushed system, evacuate & charge without adding any oil... 'cause it's already in the compressor, and will distribute throughout the system as the a/c runs.

So sorry to break it to ya' TX, but you just dumped out what was likely a full charge of perfectly good refrigerant oil (not 'shipping oil'), and now you're replacing it with some 'universal' stuff that may or may not be right for the application.

Automotive refrigerant oils come not only in PAG, esther, and mineral oils... but also in different viscosities- which vary depending on make & model. If I was you, I'd find access to some proper service information and find out exactly what oil the application calls for, and how much. Find out what kind of oil the compressor was shipped with, and how much. And correct from there. IMO, this 'universal' oil stuff is asking for trouble.
 
Sorry, onion, it was shipping oil. You likely believe that the "grease" that comes in new idler arms and universal joints is safe to use, too. Such arrogance.
 
Originally Posted By: TxGreaseMonkey
Sorry, onion, it was shipping oil. You likely believe that the "grease" that comes in new idler arms and universal joints is safe to use, too. Such arrogance.


Off topic, but the grease that comes in suspension parts is not safe to use?
shocked2.gif


I installed some suspension parts about 10k ago and they already came greased so I did not grease them.
 
Correct. It is often just "shipping grease," provided to prevent rust--it should normally be pumped out and replaced with NLGI #2 grease.
 
Originally Posted By: TxGreaseMonkey
Sorry, onion, it was shipping oil. You likely believe that the "grease" that comes in new idler arms and universal joints is safe to use, too. Such arrogance.


I won't deny the 'arrogance' charge... it's true enough. But it's pretty easy to be confident about this sort of thing when you've installed dozens- maybe hundreds- of a/c compressors. Nobody is going to put 6 oz. of "shipping oil" in a compressor. That's ridiculous. But a/c compressors are commonly shipped with a full charge of refrigerant oil (maybe 6 oz or do, depending on application).

I'd suggest that you look in the box that the compressor came in, or on the compressor itself. There's fair chance (depending on who made it) that you'll find a tag or sticker describing just what sort of refrigerant oil you dumped out. Regardless, you'd do well to find out exactly what oil your system calls for (even within the same type of refrigerant oil, viscosities can vary A LOT) and how much it takes.

Or take your chances with that 'universal' stuff. It might work. For a while.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: TxGreaseMonkey
Sorry, onion, it was shipping oil. You likely believe that the "grease" that comes in new idler arms and universal joints is safe to use, too. Such arrogance.


Off topic, but the grease that comes in suspension parts is not safe to use?
shocked2.gif


I installed some suspension parts about 10k ago and they already came greased so I did not grease them.


Well, suspension and driveline components have little to do with this topic... but yes- the grease that comes in suspension components and universal joints IS perfectly ok to use. Matter of fact, some u-joints used in heavy trucks come with paperwork that specifically says NOT to grease them for the first 100k miles.
 
BTW, Tex- PAG oil is synthetic. All of it. By definition. I don't know about this fridgiquiet oil and don't care to look it up... but if it's a PAG oil and they're claiming 'synthetic' in addition to PAG- then that's purely a marketing gimmick.
 
Ford calls for PAG 46 - I recommend double-end capped PAG oils as they are a hair less hygroscopic. Johnsen's sells one, the Ford stuff is $30/7oz while the Johnsen's is less than $10 for 8 oz. BG/MOC's "AC quiet" is a POE oil which is fine in a retrofit application and topping off. The family beater Quest uses an identical Visteon compressor as your Taurus and I did the hose assembly and drier/accumulator a month ago.
 
Originally Posted By: TxGreaseMonkey
I've emptied 5 oz. of shipping oil from the new compressor.


You jumped the gun on April 1st a bit....
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Replaced the compressor (with 6 oz. of BG Universal Frigi-Quiet Refrigerant Oil) and accumulator today. Center vent temperature was a cool 30 degrees.
 
nthach, BG Universal Frigi-Quiet is a di-capped Polyalkylene Glycol (PAG) oil. This product was strongly recommended to me by several Texas A/C technicians, who I know personally and who have worked many years servicing auto air conditioners. BG Universal Frigi-Quiet is the only refrigerant oil they all recommended. It doesn't get much hotter than Texas, in the summer, so I went with what they say is the best product on the market.
 
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