The 1992 Mazda 220 Pick-up needs an air coolant charge. What coolant does it use and can it be charged with that coolant or does the air conditioner system need to be altered for new type refrigerant? Hate to spend money for old truck when shopping for a newer one. Hot in FL. Thanks for any advice.
The proper term is refrigerant. This truck has either R-12 or R-134a refrigerant in it. There should be a label under the hood that will specify the proper type of refrigerant. If the system is R-134a, you can go to any auto parts store, and buy a can with a gauge attached to put in the proper amount of R-134a to recharge the system.
If you have R-12, you will need to go to a certified A/C repair shop. R-12 was banned from manuacturing because it was a pure CFC, the stuff that damages the ozone layer. Recycled R-12 is still available, but you need a Federal certification to purchase and use it. Hence, it will cost more. Also, if you are low on refrigerant, the shop will have to find and repair the leak first under Federal mandate.
If the system is R-12, and you want to keep the truck, you can get the system converted to R-134a probably for the same cost as getting the R-12 serviced. There are a lot of myths involved, but I converted the system in both my '90 Toyota truck, '88 Ford LTD, and '88 Toyota Supra for less that $100 each.
Another alternative to R12 you may want to consider (if the A/C is R12) is Enviro-Safe. It’s easier to retrofit a R12 system to Enviro-Safe than it is to retrofit it to R134a.