2016 Tacoma A/C Recharge help

OP right now -->

 

Hey a little coolant is good, but a whole lot of coolant and overcharging the system should be ice cold, right? Lol

 

As an HVAC guy I gotta say, you sound like every tech I have ever worked with and every customer I've ever had lol.

 

Seems right to me...

 

Well its Toyota's fault. They moved the beverage holder from in front of the air conditioner vent to down into the console so now you need more cold to keep your drinks cold. Freon makes cold so you need more Freon to do the same job. At least until some one comes up with a beverage holder adapter to put your drinks back in front of the vent again. Hot frosty beverages are just not the same.

 

Pre brief- 2017 TRD OR- yes, it’s under warranty, but this issue is my fault and likely not covered. My steel hidden winch mount and high pressure AC line had a friction problem i failed to notice and over about a year now has worn through the aluminum AC line. Therefore, leaking refrigerant and the compressor oil.. i noticed it via the puddle of green liquid in my pearly white driveway.. - my coolant is red, what in the heck could that be.. whelp there ya have it.

No need to recover the refrigerant- it’s all been leaked into the air.. so i ordered a new hard line and the tools to remove those funky clips near the firewall leading to the evap.. (ordered three different ones on Amazon, due to not knowing correct ones).. after doing some HW, i see online that 2016 Tacoma’s came with this new R1234yf refrigerant (didn’t know was a thing) and have found very little online about 3rd gens and AC DIY.. ran across this thread and thought I’d spool it back up to see if anyone had been in the same position or has any tips for recharging the system with this new (EXPENSIVE) R-1234yf.. on a positive note- i found out it’s way better for the ozone and helped ease the kick in junk that it all leaked out.. i mean i try to Tread Lightly.. i mean as close as my 15mpg will let me..

Any thoughts or tips from the pros out there? Dealer wanted $600 to swap the line and recharge. I ordered the part from the dealer for $76 and should be an easy swap.. the refrigerant is about $50 per small can and i
expect to need two. So $176 over $600 and a little sweat, I’ll take it. The local auto parts store has a loaner program to use AC gauges and a vacuum pump to ensure the system is holding before i charge it up.

Any thoughts would be highly appreciated!

 

my aftermarket bumper did the same thing. i just replaced the line yesterday. to too hard. system is dry/empty. Dealer wants around 700 bucks (labor and that R1234YF at 99 cents a gram x530 grams!)....... no luck finding any other shop with the right machine/equipment.

 

I know this is an old thread, but am curious if much issue with converting to134A is feasable?

 

every tech i have talked to said "sure, then you can replace everything" LOL. cost/benefit ratio is too high to try.

 

Allow me to skeptical.

The same thing was stated when people converted from R12 to 134A.

 

We use to do it on Porsche’s. But required new orings, drier, and a super clean flush. I have yet to see/hear of anyone with tested results with 1234yf /134 swap yet.

 

so I tried to use ac pro R134a on my 2017 OR (not on warranty) (not to worried about the cons) & I simply couldn't . I tried 2 bottles. would R1234yf have a different fitting? I even tried both connections. Am I missing something ?? Any help would be helpful.

 

Yep, it will be a different fitting.

 

Yes. different fittings. so people done put the wrong stuff in it. I ended up having the dealer fill it. 480 bucks. thankfully it was 50 cents a gram and not 1 dollar a gram....

 

So I’m guessing people that’ve put r134a in thier trucks had to get an adapter? Thanks by the way.

 

From the information I found, they had 134 up till mid 2016. My 16 was 1234yf. They oils are different in the YF system along with different pressures. I have not found anything where anyone has converted YF to 134. That could be a expensive messup. That’s why the connectors are different.

 

I would bet you that if you flush the system and use the correct oil, R134A would work fine. (With adjustment in charge) you can simply buy adapters for your manifold gauge set.

Bonus if you swap the TXV with an r134a unit, which could be possible. I have not researched, but it looks like the typical block style valve as is used in many other toyota.

When mine fails out of warranty, I will not hesistate to test a conversion unless this new refrigerant has come down in price.

 

Follow up- i swapped the line with the factory high pressure line. Purchased the items pictured from O’reily Auto Parts -
The 12oz can was $69 and i think the gauge kit was $40. I bought two cans of the refrigerant but only used one. It put me in the green at about 90° ambient temperature. I checked the temp at the vent and i was pushing 39°. I have been running it that way for about two weeks and it’s still pumping cold as ice! Even had a 104 day in the mix.

Before you haters chime in- no i did not run a vacuum on the system. I also did not add additional oil. I didn’t feel i lost enough oil to make a huge difference, obviously only time will tell. As for the vacuum, well.. testing to see if it would hold before adding the refrigerant was a risk. But i took it and it worked.

For less than $200 in parts/supplies and two hours worth of work, i saved over a thousand dollars and the AC runs like a champ!

I’m not advocating for polluting the environment and well any attempt at this is at your own risk. In my opinion it was easy and I’d do it the exact same way if i were in the same situation.

 

Do not mix R-134A and R-1234yf. They are totally different refrigerants and are not compatible (and neither is the oil). You will be without any AC shortly afterwards and replacing the entire system.