Okay i have a 97 5.0 that has the infamous rusty accumulator. It finally rusted through as far as i can tell because the compressor cycles on and off very frequently and i dont have any cold air
From what you have told here, I couldn't say for sure it's a rusted accumulator. Based on my experience it's hard to spot. I had to remove my accumulator, put it in a water bath and pressurize it (with air) checking for bubbles before I could tell I had a pin hole leak and not just surface rust. If I had put more trust in the dye that showed up under black light on the inside of the insulation blanket after it was removed I wouldn't have needed to test it in a water bath.
My compressor wouldn't run at all due to the low pressure cycling switch. This was two weeks after a shop had refilled the system. Since your compressor runs you must have some charge left unless someone has "adjusted" the low pressure cycling switch. I can not advise opening a system while it still has pressure in it.
im not sure if the oil content is okay..
This is what my CD (for '93-'94 Explorers) says about oil content when replacing the accumulator:
Adding Refrigerant Oil
R-134a A/C System
The R-134a A/C system FS-10 compressor uses a unique high-quality refrigerant oil (F2AZ-19577-AA), Motorcraft Part Number YN-12 or an equivalent refrigerant oil meeting Ford specification WSH-M1C231-B. An oil charge of 207 ml (7 oz) is used in a new system. It is extremely important that only the specified type and quantity of refrigerant oil be used in the FS-10 compressor. If there is a surplus of oil in the system, it will circulate with the refrigerant, reducing the cooling capacity of the system. Using too little oil or oil not meeting the Ford specification will result in poor lubrication of the compressor.
When replacing a component of the refrigerant system, the procedures in this section must be followed to make sure that the total oil charge in the system is correct after the new part is installed.
When the compressor is operated, oil gradually leaves the compressor and is circulated through the system with the refrigerant. Eventually, a balanced condition is reached in which a certain amount of oil is retained in the compressor and a certain amount is continually circulated. If a component of the system is removed after the system has been operated, some oil will go with it. To maintain the original total oil charge add oil as required to the new replacement part.
The procedures for replacing oil are as follows:
During Component Replacement
When replacing other components of the air conditioning system, measured quantities of the specified refrigerant oil should be added to the component to make sure that the total oil charge in the system is correct before the system is operated.
Clean refrigerant oil should be poured directly into the replacement components as follows:
l A/C evaporator core (19860): add 90 ml (3 oz).
l A/C condenser core (19712): add 30 ml (1 oz).
l Accumulator: drain oil from removed accumulator/drier. Add same amount plus 60 ml (2 oz) of clean refrigerant oil to new accumulator.
And:
8. Drain the oil from the removed suction accumulator/drier into a suitable measuring container. It may be necessary to drill one or two 1/2-inch holes in the bottom of the old suction accumulator/drier to ensure that all the oil has drained out.
9. Add the same amount of refrigerant oil plus two fluid ounces to the new suction accumulator/drier. Use only the oil specified for the specific vehicle being serviced (Motorcraft YN-12 or equivalent oil containing the same additives).
I know that after i open the system and fix everything i have to get it evacuated.... What is the cheapest way to do this
Since you have pressure in the system you really need to do this BEFORE opening the system. An evacuation shouldn't be too expensive. Before I bought my vacuum pump I had a shop do it when it was in for an alignment. They charged me $18.00 for it. Another place you can try is a junk yard since they are required by law to evacuate all systems they get in.
