>From: Ron Lussier <coyote@likeminds.com>
> 
>Question:  If I don't do anything about this for a couple of years, will it
>matter?  Does not being properly charged harm the system?

Yes, without the freon (which also contains mineral oils for lubrication)
in the system, the o-rings will dry out and fail.  If you decide to 
have it recharged at a later time you may find yourself having to 
replace many of components (o-rings and possibly the condenser and
evaporator)

The clutch on my wife's '87 Honda AC compressor failed last spring.  I
decided to just remove the AC belt and fix it later.  That was a mistake.
Some how the system was now open and it ended up contaminating the 
entire AC system.  I was quoted $1500 to pretty much replace everything.

The AC in my '87 VW recently died.  Turned out one of the o-rings had failed.
I try to use it at least once or twice a month, so I guess I can chock it
up to normal wear-and-tear.  The cost to repair was $90 (parts and labor)
plus $100 for freon (system was completely empty).

I'd say, have your system pressure tested.  If it holds OK, have the 
system recharged.  Although if you haven't used your AC much and
you've owned the VW for a while, most likely your due to at least have 
the o-rings replaced.

-Sebastian Hill
'65 Mustang 2+2 '71 Datsun 510 '72 Datsun 510 '87 Prelude '87 Vanagon Wolf.