Location of A/C Charging Port?

[EricHaven]

I have a 2000 Chevy Prizm that I bought used, and the Air Conditioning needs to be recharged. I've done this on other vehicles, but I want to be sure I do it right on this one. I've attached a picture of my car showing what I think are the A/C lines, and I've heard that I want to use the low side. Can someone tell me for certain which of the two I need to use? 1 or 2?

Thanks!

[AlaricD]

The high pressure port is larger than the low pressure port; the quick connect coupler shouldn't even fit on it.

Typically, it's on the larger-diameter A/C line, and has a smaller diameter port, and the high pressure port is on the smaller diameter A/C line (but its port is larger than that of the low pressure side).

Also, the low pressure side connects from the evaporator (which is inside the cabin) to the compressor, the high pressure side goes from the compressor to the condensor (which is mounted on the radiator), so tracing the lines may be an easy way to find which one it is.

And yes, you DO want to use only the low side!

It's probably not much different from my '01 Corolla-- when my wife gets home I'll check mine (as I believe my car has different colors on the caps to help speed identification).

[EricHaven]

Cool, thanks! So based upon what you said about the diameter of the line, can I assume that it's the coupler on line # 2?

[AlaricD]

Originally Posted by EricHaven

Cool, thanks! So based upon what you said about the diameter of the line, can I assume that it's the coupler on line # 2?

Possibly, but it should be that the quick connect of the kit (if it's one of those things with the single bottle with a hose on it) should only fit on the low side.

Did you get something like this http://www.id-usa.com/product.asp?CID=27&PID=219?

[EricHaven]

I haven't bought the new charging kit yet, but I still have the hose and valve assembly from kit I used on another car. It comes with the pressure dial on the top, and I was told by the guy who sold it to me to hang onto the assembly, as it can be used over again with new cans of refrigerant. So sometime in the next week, I'm going to grab another can of the refrigerant, and give it a go.

So, you're saying that the valve attachment should only fit on the low side, right?

[AlaricD]

Originally Posted by EricHaven

So, you're saying that the valve attachment should only fit on the low side, right?

Should! The ports should be different sizes on the car.

You may also look closely at the ports, one may be marked H on the cap, and the other L (on my Corolla, they are labeled that way). The hose routing on my '01 differs greatly from that of your 2000, though. The low pressure hose is still to the left of the engine, but the high pressure hose is on the right side of the engine.