AC doesnt work again

Looking for a little help.
Had Toyota charge me 1000.00$ last july to do the ac clutch. They said it was a year warranty on thier parts and labour.
It hasnt been quite a year and now the AC is blowing warm air. NOT even cool.
Toyota wants 150.00 for the diagnostic test. THey said its probably not the ac clutch and I would have to pay for the diagnostcis.

Any chance its the freeon or whatever they put in the system? Maybe its empty?

It sucks they wont warrenty the gas as they took it out and put it back in, maybe left a valve particall open or somthing.

After much deliberation with the manager he finally agreed to check the warranty work but if they find anything wrong they wont tell me what it is.
Awesome customer service!!

 

I first got my tacoma in May 2012. First time the ac was used that summer it blew warm air. Straightened out later that summer. I can't remember if there were issues last year, but this summer it acted up.

I would just try the dial on a cool air setting and pushing the ac button. If it comes out cold let it run for awhile. Don't use the max ac setting or the circulate setting the first time you run the ac. Long explanation below.

This summer I put the ac on max the first time I used it and it blew warm air. Shut it off and put the dial just above the max ac and just pushed the ac button. Real cold air came out, not cool air like there was something wrong. Then I pushed the circulate button and the cold air stopped. Shut the whole system off made sure the dial wasn't set to max ac, and pushed the ac button. Cold air again. Put the dial to max ac and got warm air again. Started the whole process over again with the dial above max ac and pushing the ac button. Cold air. Left it that way for awhile. Then pushed the circulate button and had cold air still. Left it that war for awhile again and then put the dial to max ac. Stayed cold.

Seems like the ac acts weird after not being used all winter. It does blow cold air now no matter how I start it.

Don't know if this will help you, but it has worked for me. Anyone know what could cause this.

 

First you just need to move on to another dealer or repair shop. Write your gripes about this dealer in some review and also write the owner.

Second 1000 dollars for a compressor clutch is a total rip off. They could have replaced the compressor itself with a new one for less than that.

As to it not cooling it could be many things, but most likely it is low on Freon due to a leak. It is a simple thing to put some in yourself with just a little instruction. As for a leak and fixing it that depends on what is leaking. Many times it is a schrader valve which is usually simple to replace. They usually cost under 5 dollars. I asked the dealer about the cost to replace one on my Ford ranger and they wanted 175 dollars so I did it myself and it cost me about 30 dollars with the refrigerant and gage that comes with the kit from walmart. I will include a link and there are many others you can look at and learn how to do this. Other than this you need to take it to someone else and have them look at it. I wish you the best.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCd9Bx36BU8

 

Thank you so much for your help. First I took it to another mechanic with alot of knowledge. He had it pin pointed in two minuets and didnt charge me. He took a black light with yellow safety glasses and you can see the green streaks coming form the condensor, thats were its leaking, at least one of the leaks.
Mechanic qouted 600.00 for repairs but wont charge me the three hours if it doesnt take that long. Thats what I want.. tobe treated fairly.
So why couldnt the toyota dealer do the same check with out wanting to charge me 150 for diagnostics? Poor customer service.
Also he said the same, buy the AC compressor its cheaper than doing the ac clutch, makes sense. I feel ripped off by the dealer.
So before using the freeon kit check for leaks with the black light.

Still disapointing to drop 1600.00 on ac when the truck is 7 years old.
Can anyone tell me if there is a law suit against toyota for such crappy parts and service?

I wont be going to the dealer ever. I actually have permision to take my company ford to toyota for oil changes ect and we have alot of trucks. I will never use their services. Too bad for them as I see they are not busy and mechanics standing around smoking outside. Thank you all for your advise!!

 

I am glad that you found someone who figured out the problem. Labor is so expensive today. As for a lawsuit against Toyota on something like this, no. Each dealership is independent of Toyota on such issues. That being said you could contact Toyota Corporate with a complaint against that particular dealership and they can lean on them some if enough complaints come in.

Also you could write the owners of that dealership directly, which I would do first, and tell them your story. Many times the owners do not know what is going on at lower levels and will offer some relief to a customer.

I hope that you are driving cool again and soon.

 

What I've found about schrader valves, is that they do tend to leak; when I've done a/c service on my old toyotas, taking off the valve cover results in a slight 'pop' of pressure built up between a slightly leaky valve and the sealed cap. It can be 'fixed' by a good schrader valve cover with a proper o-ring. Maybe brass ones are better than the plastic. Make sure they're tight and the o-ring is in place will go a long way.

For HARTFORD: It sounds like your heater module doors are slipping/binding, or something. Putting it on Max AC should only put it to recirculate w/o you having to push the recirc button-otherwise the same as a bit above Max ac with you manually pushing the buttons.
But it's also possible the doors will loosen up after awhile, if there's debris to be worked through [maybe road crud collecting during the winter). The Max AC - hot air combo sounds like the system is either shutting off, or the system heater door is intermittently jamming open to allow heat in which will overcome the ac.

 

Two things if they did the clutch they probably damaged the seal if they put a compressor on it its warranty any way they are trying to stiff you. How can they say it's not their problem if they haven't even looked at it? It’s up to them to tell you what’s wrong and then start the argument. Putting R134 in it will not fix a leak putting R134 in it without knowing if it's full or not will cause issues also the pressure is temperature dependent and requires a gauge that costs more than 29 cents. It's leaking they did not repair it properly or it would still be full. Modern systems hold refrigerant for year’s even decades it was full when they saved your R134 so where did it go?

 

Condensers usually get hit by small rocks or debris and leak or they corrode and leak at the welds.The service valves leak on all makes and models.Some you can tighten or service like a valve stem on a tire.Over 5 years old A/C repairs get expensive quick.Most manufacturers require changing the receiver/drier any time there is a leak or the system is open.Also with the empty open system depending on the type of A/C, if it has an orifice tube you will want the change that.Expansion valve systems seem to hold up better to leaks and exposure.A/C is simple but like I explained one repair usually leads to another.Sucks but I've been working on these things for far too long.

 

Question to the HVAC guy... I thought the system has to be sucked down to remove all moisture (in the event of the schrader valve replacement) before filling with new refrigerant??

 

I am not the HVAC guy but I can explain some. While it is normally recommended when using most refrigerants it is not always required if only a short time has expired for the system to be open. The short time to change out something like a schrader valve really does not require it although many do it anyway. Also if something like enviro-safe is used no vacuum or only a partial one is called for and even if a vacuum is pulled the system with the envior-safe is not to be charged under a vacuum. You can read about that refrigerant here. http://autorefrigerants.com/Envirotechnical.htm

The reason for the removal of the moisture with regular refrigerant is because mixing the 134a with moisture causes an acid base which corrodes the system causing leaks. That does not happen with enviro-safe refrigerant.

 

I had a compressor lock up on my truck (probably too many full throttle runs across the dry lake in 110F weather). I took it apart just because, and I can tell you with 100% assurance that there is no way that AC clutch would wear out in three lifetimes. It's two thick metal plates that get stuck together with an electro-magnet. I got a new condenser, pag oil, and compressor off ebay for a few hundred bucks. Took it to a shop and got it charged for $50, so for under $500 a whole new AC system. It works fine years later.

 

False. Would you let a tech fill your home's empty AC compressor without vac'ing down the lineset?

 

Believe what you want.

 

Agree: There is no absolute requirement to vacuum out a system which has been KNOWN to be in an open state for a very short period of time-e.g. a few seconds. Always keep the system capped. The vaccuum process serves to :
Verify there are no leaks and
Reduce any moisture to a vapor which can be pulled out. If there's much liquid moisture or a leak, it's impossible to pull a vac that holds but that's a different problem.
So if you change a schrader valve QUICKLY and are sure this is the problem, there's still pressure in the system of some amount when you start, and immediately fill the system with no known leaks, it's probably ok and not contaminated internally. The receiver/dryer will likely will trap any small amount of moisture.

The big problem is if the system isn't KNOWN to be leak free, has some pressure in it, AND not questionable as to lost refrigerant Oil; then the problems escalate with concerns about too much water in the system, too much oil loss, etc. and is a pro fix only.

Minor schrader valve leaks can be stopped with a proper cap w/ o-ring seal.

Home systems are different process and hold much more refrigerant. I'd expect a pro to vac it always.

WRT to clutch failures, they probably fail due to the magnetic coil pull-in being shorted/weakened in some way allowing the clutch plates to slip and burn out. The plates will proably never fail all by themselves.

 

So $200.00 for the condersor and 3 hours labour....after all said and done after taxes 692.00$
Boy the ac system is expensive. He refilled it with R134A.
Thanks to the dealership for being so inefficient. NOt getting my buisness.
cheers