Rear A/C
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Rookie
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 34
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Rear A/C
My GX was taken in a couple months ago for a weak A/C, it was recharged and filled with dye so that the techs could figure out where the leak was coming from, turns out it wasn't a quick valve or hose, but the "entire rear A/C system" which would cost me $2600. I don't know what to do, should I take it somewhere else so I don't get entirely ripped off, have Lexus do it, do it myself, or just get rid of the car which I really don't want to do? Thanks for the help.
Racer
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 1,761
Likes: 248
From: AZ
I feel like a broken record, but I'll go through my experience.
I had basically the same thing happen, and it turned out it was low on refrigerant.
The rear started to get lukewarm.
I believe it's a "known" issue on these cars where the rear evaporator has a slow leak on many of these cars. The dealer I took it to said it wasn't worth addressing such a slow leak and advised that I simply top off when needed, you're looking at thousands of dollars to dig out the rear evaporator. They couldn't find the leak with dye, so even then, they were just assuming it was the rear evaporator since that was the area they couldn't inspect and it would be a guess to dig it out.
So once every 2 years or so, I put a can of R-134 in myself and it blows ice cubes.
My advice? Top off every year yourself for about $6 for a can of refrigerant. Or pay an AC shop (not a Lexus dealer) like a $100 for them to refill it properly. Or you can drop like $2k-$3k at a dealership and have them tear the car up, but even mine said that would basically be stupid and it made more sense just to add when needed.
I had basically the same thing happen, and it turned out it was low on refrigerant.
The rear started to get lukewarm.
I believe it's a "known" issue on these cars where the rear evaporator has a slow leak on many of these cars. The dealer I took it to said it wasn't worth addressing such a slow leak and advised that I simply top off when needed, you're looking at thousands of dollars to dig out the rear evaporator. They couldn't find the leak with dye, so even then, they were just assuming it was the rear evaporator since that was the area they couldn't inspect and it would be a guess to dig it out.
So once every 2 years or so, I put a can of R-134 in myself and it blows ice cubes.
My advice? Top off every year yourself for about $6 for a can of refrigerant. Or pay an AC shop (not a Lexus dealer) like a $100 for them to refill it properly. Or you can drop like $2k-$3k at a dealership and have them tear the car up, but even mine said that would basically be stupid and it made more sense just to add when needed.
Thread Starter
Rookie
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 34
Likes: 2
Lexus said it was the expansion valve or something like that. When I popped my head under there i noticed it was leaking. But the A/C still works fine.
Thread Starter
Rookie
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 34
Likes: 2
I feel like a broken record, but I'll go through my experience.
I had basically the same thing happen, and it turned out it was low on refrigerant.
The rear started to get lukewarm.
I believe it's a "known" issue on these cars where the rear evaporator has a slow leak on many of these cars. The dealer I took it to said it wasn't worth addressing such a slow leak and advised that I simply top off when needed, you're looking at thousands of dollars to dig out the rear evaporator. They couldn't find the leak with dye, so even then, they were just assuming it was the rear evaporator since that was the area they couldn't inspect and it would be a guess to dig it out.
So once every 2 years or so, I put a can of R-134 in myself and it blows ice cubes.
My advice? Top off every year yourself for about $6 for a can of refrigerant. Or pay an AC shop (not a Lexus dealer) like a $100 for them to refill it properly. Or you can drop like $2k-$3k at a dealership and have them tear the car up, but even mine said that would basically be stupid and it made more sense just to add when needed.
I had basically the same thing happen, and it turned out it was low on refrigerant.
The rear started to get lukewarm.
I believe it's a "known" issue on these cars where the rear evaporator has a slow leak on many of these cars. The dealer I took it to said it wasn't worth addressing such a slow leak and advised that I simply top off when needed, you're looking at thousands of dollars to dig out the rear evaporator. They couldn't find the leak with dye, so even then, they were just assuming it was the rear evaporator since that was the area they couldn't inspect and it would be a guess to dig it out.
So once every 2 years or so, I put a can of R-134 in myself and it blows ice cubes.
My advice? Top off every year yourself for about $6 for a can of refrigerant. Or pay an AC shop (not a Lexus dealer) like a $100 for them to refill it properly. Or you can drop like $2k-$3k at a dealership and have them tear the car up, but even mine said that would basically be stupid and it made more sense just to add when needed.
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Racer
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 1,761
Likes: 248
From: AZ
I guess I'm a bit confused, are you able to "see" the leak and have access to it?
My understanding was it was where the rear evaporator is located, which the main issue is getting access to it takes a lot of labour hours (and then putting it all back)
There are products out there that are like an epoxy for refrigerant lines, but I don't think that is the issue here and they are hit and miss. They also have to be drawn down first with the refrigerant removed.
If your AC is working fine and is cold, it has to be a very slow leak, which what a number of other GX's have had including mine.
My advice would be top it off as needed and check the system again in a year.
For mine anyway, it's basically the AC starts to get not quite as cold after about a year. I put a can in, and I'm good until next summer. I was originally alerted to the issue because one side of the car started blowing lukewarm air, but it took like 10 years to get to that point.
Since I've been topping off once a year or so, I haven't had it get that severe ever again.
Last edited by BradTank; Sep 28, 2016 at 02:05 PM.
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Lead Lap
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 4,279
Likes: 1,034
From: Illinois
I can't help with the technical aspects of diagnosing the source of your problem, but I would suggest getting a diagnosis and repair estimate from someone other than the Lexus dealer.
When the AC in my GX began blowing out less than cold air, the Lexus dealer told me that what was needed was to replace the entire refrigerant line, and they quoted me $1800 for the repair. I took the GX to the local Toyota dealer. They found that the leak was a fitting in the line that feeds the rear AC. They quoted me $800 to do the same repair for which the Lexus dealer had quoted me $1800, but they said that they thought that just replacing the fitting where the leak was would work. They replaced the fitting and re-charged the system for under $150. That was 6 years ago, and the AC has worked flawlessly ever since.
I take both of my Lexus vehicles to the Toyota dealer for any service or repair work, and the cost of work done at the Toyota dealer is consistently half or less than half of what the Lexus dealer charges.
When the AC in my GX began blowing out less than cold air, the Lexus dealer told me that what was needed was to replace the entire refrigerant line, and they quoted me $1800 for the repair. I took the GX to the local Toyota dealer. They found that the leak was a fitting in the line that feeds the rear AC. They quoted me $800 to do the same repair for which the Lexus dealer had quoted me $1800, but they said that they thought that just replacing the fitting where the leak was would work. They replaced the fitting and re-charged the system for under $150. That was 6 years ago, and the AC has worked flawlessly ever since.
I take both of my Lexus vehicles to the Toyota dealer for any service or repair work, and the cost of work done at the Toyota dealer is consistently half or less than half of what the Lexus dealer charges.
Lead Lap
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 4,279
Likes: 1,034
From: Illinois
I'm in the northwest corner of the state, and the Toyota dealer that I use is in Dubuque, Iowa. I'm surprised that the Toyota dealers in your area won't work on Lexus vehicles, but, even if you can't find one that will, you should still be able to find a good independent mechanic who will also do work on your vehicle for a fraction of what the Lexus dealers charge.
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