VW Passat AC Fixed!!!

Hi,
I have put up a few queries about AC repairs here in the past so I felt i should really share my experience with getting it fixed.
About 3 years ago my 2007 Passat Tdi 2.0 started taking ages to cool the AC. It gradually got worse. I went to an AC place and they said that it was full of gas but I have my suspicions that they were looking at the system pressure.
Then I went to Fastfit last summer because they were offering €40 AC regas deals. The young lad had a look at the compressor with the engine running and said that the clutch wasn't engaging and it wasn't worth his while regassing it. I recently learned that the Passat has a clutchless compressor.

So a while back a mechanic I know said that there is a known problem with the Refridgerant Control Valve (RCV) in the Sanden compressors. So I decided to do some research online and i found this thread http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=284611
On Page 3 a guy outlines the procedure for replacing this RCV.

So I decided to give it a go...
First I checked my compressor. It is a Sanden PXE16. They come with two different RCV's, one is held into the compressor body with a circlip and the other is held in with a bolt. Mine is the circlip type.
I then went on ebay and bought the new RCV for €50 to €55.
Then I went to a local garage who removed the refrigerant for me. There was very little in it.
I tried changing the RCV myself but access was very tight and I couldn't get the circlip out. Thisd job needs to be done with the car on a lift ideally.
So I dropped the car to my regular garage this morning and they replaced the RCV. They said they had a little bit of trouble getting the RCV out so they removed the compressor. I got them to replace the cabin air filter also.
I picked up the car before lunch and then brought it to get regassed.
The machine they used went thru the cycle of removing, vacuuming and refilling and testing.
So I started the car up and it started blowing cold air almost immediately. I ran the car for a minute or two with slightly higher revs and the air cooled really well. I put a digital temperature gauge into the vent and it was blowing air at 5.6 degree's.
Major result... It's the first time in 3 or 4 years I've had proper AC.

Just thought I'd share this story because most garages and AC specialists only want to fit a new compressor at a cost of €800-1200.

Any questions just ask...