jharkin, i am with Peter here, and would like to give a little help re my experiance with
A/C in old classic cars, also you live in AZ, i think you would really love to have your s working properly,
and you can,and if your reasonably handy with doing work on your car,it does not cost to much to do this.
no 1, Fit all factory parts ,except Compressor,new better blower fan, like Peter said,buy a new Sanden,or in the last about 10 years 10cylinder,
rotary made in china compressor ,yes china,there compressors are great,these rotary examples .,you can spin the clutch
with your small finger,and the weight is a third less, i have fitted about 3 or 4 in other classics, mainly Cadillac, Buick,
and Porsche 911,after doing these cars i never had to touch them.
A must when fitting , buy new Barrier hoses, new receiver dryer,good working expansion valve,new green orings,and the most important
restore your Condensor and Evaporator, i mean no leaks flush out,and reseal all areas ,will show you a few photos of last Porsch11 i did.
I understand you may say i have not worked on a Pagoda,but yes the Principal is the same ,,if you do what i say ,you will have really cold air around
42--46 degress,If you go ahead i can guide you doing this,its not hard to do, how to re oil,and to charge the system.flush system
In USA you have all the items available,-Example a good Refridgerant you have in most parts store is EZ Chill 18 oz cans-134a,i actually still have new dryer ,and good working expansion valve,if you want for minimum price,plus shipping.
--Also will say like Gary said perhaps --no-- for 230SL, because of less bearings,but with these newer Compressors
there hardly any drain or drag,similiar to our new cars of today.----go do it---.---ps my Pagoda does not have A/C.
