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Replaced the original A/C compressor this weekend with a made in Japan Denso unit. The original developed a leak at the compressor shaft seal and would lose charge in a few days. I removed the belt, fan and fan shroud to gain access to the front of the engine. The hardest part was removing the bolts on the side the compressor holding it to the block as well the high and low lines. A few of them were only accessible by feel and small wrenches and a stubby 1/4" ratchet. I also replaced the dessicant bag in the condenser. After running a vacuum pump for 45 minutes and holding vacuum for 30 minutes I filled the low side with 30 oz of R134a and now have 39F of cold air thru the vents. Also drained the radiator and put new pink coolant in, had the dealer do a flush at 90K but I had an extra jug laying around. Then I degreased and wiped down the engine bay which had 110K miles of dirt and grime. Next project is servicing the brakes.
So far the A/C is working great, Heat index is 110F and the interior stays nice and cool.
I also used techstream to bleed the brakes. Definitely a huge improvement over the spongy brakes. Now the pedal is firm and sensitive and I have much more confidence in braking. I would recommend doing brake bleeding via techstream if you have this issue.
Haven't looked at the A/c comressor on this vehicle. Are you saying that original equipment is not Denso Japan?? I'm positive my alternator is on my 2010 as I bought a take-off unit on ebay as a spare (no rebuilts for me....ugh!)
Even my cummins turbo diesel sources denso japan units for accesories....
Wow 39deg is cold!
I just bought a can of A/C Pro 134a for the mini van, it is blowing cool air, not cold, and probably will give a few squeezes for the GX too see if it helps.
Wow 39deg is cold!
I just bought a can of A/C Pro 134a for the mini van, it is blowing cool air, not cold, and probably will give a few squeezes for the GX too see if it helps.
I personally would not add refrigerant without monitoring the high side pressure. A typical car a/c loses about 2 oz a year but that's only a rough estimate.
2014 GX might still be within the 4 year warranty? Surprised that the ac compressor failed so quick?
Every mechanical part will have wear. Some parts will last longer than others. The good thing about Toyota products is on average their parts outlast the competitors by quite a bit. The guy above just got unlucky with an AC compressor that failed rather quickly.
I personally would not add refrigerant without monitoring the high side pressure. A typical car a/c loses about 2 oz a year but that's only a rough estimate.
Interesting.. I've never noticed any reduced cooling nor had to charge the AC in any of my vehicles.
Even my 21 year old Explorer never showed any signs of reduced cooling.
Aside from the compressor in my G35x that blew the front part of the AC clutch off and vented the rest of the system. Fortunately that was covered by warranty. Kinda surprised I didn't lose the whole serpentine belt but it stayed on.
AC systems do not need full charge to work properly. However, once the charge drops under a certain level the lack of lubrication will destroy the compressor. It is advisable to do a complete evacuate/recharge by a professional (including oil) every 7 years.
A/C Fact: The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) designed the A/C fittings that are on your vehicle. These fittings have a SAE acceptable leakage rate of 1/4 ounce of refrigerant per year per fitting. That does not sound like a lot, but the average vehicle has 8 fittings. This means that you are losing 2 ounces of refrigerant per year. It is recommended that you service your air conditioning every 2 years. This will ensure that your compressor is never “starving” for oil. The older vehicles used to have systems that held upwards of 36 ounces of refrigerant. Today’s vehicles have much smaller systems that require as little as 15 ounces of refrigerant. The need to service your air conditioning has become much more important with these reduced capacities or system damage will occur.
I know my Camry could use a charge, its a 13 with 120K and its not as cool anymore. As for the compressor failure not sure why it did. I've had a starter fail on another car with only 45K miles. A/C still works fine. I got a new windshield put in today.
#HVAC - 2014 GX A/C Compressor replacement
Also drained the radiator and put new pink coolant in, had the dealer do a flush at 90K but I had an extra jug laying around. Then I degreased and wiped down the engine bay which had 110K miles of dirt and grime. Next project is servicing the brakes.
