Hi

I have an 07 Spec D and whilst the air con works it has never been as cold as my old 99 WRX.

Does anyone know if there is a way of checking the gas? On my WRX there used to be a sight glass. There are two blue screw caps one H and one L and when unscrewing them I get a small hiss suggesting the gas is slowly leaking.

The car is now over a year old (on the road) and I wonder if it maybe needs a gas topup. I recall reading on here that some people had used a product from Halfords to do this but I cannot find any of the threads.

Has anyone used this product and was it any good or shall I get a specialist to check it out and/or do it?

 

In your case i'd get the system checked professionally because you suggest you might have a leak.
With regard to the Halfords kit, i've used this for a couple of years now to good effect. If you buy the large kit, you get a gauge with it, but it only really gives an idea what sort of pressure is in the system, not definitive.
When the can runs out, you can still keep the gauge to check what pressure is in the system, so quite handy to have as a quick check.
Additional cans are about 20 quid or thereabouts and if you're topping up, it can last for a fair bit of time.

 

When I mentioned a small hiss it is more of a pssst. ie not continuous and is being controlled a little by the screw caps. I can't believe it is that serious because after a year I am still getting some cooling just not "arctic cooling" like my previous car.

 

If there was any leak there would'nt be any hissing as should be empty due to the pressure. When I had mine re-filled (Halford) it was very apparent there was a leak, there was a small crack in the pipe and it came out like a fire extinguisher going off!!

simb

 

To answer your original question then, i've used the Halfords kit for top ups and worked fine in all my cars. Takes less than 10 minutes to do.

 

Thanks AlanG I shall check it out.

Anyone else out there with an 06/07 STi (Hawkeye) who are happy/unhappy with their air con compared with previous models?

 

More to the point do those from Halfords work on 06 models ... tried my mates and the thread was different ???

 

I've just bought said kit from Halfords and it is a push on fit with locking sleeve and appears to connect withou problems.

A quick check on the pressure indicates everything is OK so maybe the a/c system is not as efficient as my original car.