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Thanks for that bignev. I am not a fridge engineer but have spent time around -80 degree freezers so I had a distinct smell of BS when this was being explained to me. I think that you thoughts are very similar to mine and I thank you for taking the time to respond. Cheers matey Keith

Hiya Keith, not sure where on the diesel the valve is located, on the petrol it is on the bulk head low down as the AC pipes pass through it to the evaporator coil in the car, but I would have to think that it's VERY VERY unlikely the engine has really got to be dropped to get at it. And from my knowledge of air conditioning and refrigeration, it would not be screeching, that sounds like a compressor fault, but if it had lost gas the pressure switch should have prevented it from pulling in the magnetic clutch pulley on the compressor. A failed valve usually manifests in either icing up of the evaporator coil (in the car) - too much cooling, or not enough cooling. It essentially very cleverly meters the correct flow of refrigerant to the coil. And they can fail if the dryer isn't doing it's job properly. Not sure how it could damage the compressor, I'm not THAT good :-) If it took a while to "pull down to zero" or to get to a vacuum state, then there is a leak. And if the pressure started to go up - there is a leak because if there wasn't it would stay at the vacuum it's pulled down to. It should not take anything like 45 minutes to get to the required negative pressure. On commercial that is done because moisture will boil off at negative pressures, and we don't want moisture in the fridge gas. I've just had a quick look on the Town & Country, and there are various U.S. sites offering to do that job for between $100 and $400, yes Dollars, at your place of work or at home - so I don't reckon they're dropping the engine, do you? Sounds like these guys, sadly, are talking poo. And it actually is as you suspected the compressor.