2010 RX450H - Evaporator coil replacement
#1
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2010 RX450H - Evaporator coil replacement
Hello all
After 8 years of ownership of a 2010 RX450H, I am faced with the first major repair issue: evaporator coil replacement.
Symptoms: No cold air from AC from a couple of weeks, dealership recharged the coolant and added a UV dye as they suspected there was a leak in the coil. In the meantime there has been water discharge pooling on the garage floor, sometimes large amounts, even when the vehicle hasn't been running. It seems to store large amounts of water and then dump it, as if something is clogged up.
The recharge lasted a week. Took it back to the dealership who checked and said the dye shows that the condenser coil needs to be replaced. They said this was an expensive repair as the entire dash would need to come out.
Evaporator coil: $317
Expansion valve: $93
Labor: $990
Total: $1400
I was hoping to get any advice or ideas: if you've had this done, is this a reasonable price? Are there any DIY options or less drastic options I could try myself? I'm quite handy in the garage but removing the entire dash is not something I'm up for.
Any and all comments welcome.
Thank you.
After 8 years of ownership of a 2010 RX450H, I am faced with the first major repair issue: evaporator coil replacement.
Symptoms: No cold air from AC from a couple of weeks, dealership recharged the coolant and added a UV dye as they suspected there was a leak in the coil. In the meantime there has been water discharge pooling on the garage floor, sometimes large amounts, even when the vehicle hasn't been running. It seems to store large amounts of water and then dump it, as if something is clogged up.
The recharge lasted a week. Took it back to the dealership who checked and said the dye shows that the condenser coil needs to be replaced. They said this was an expensive repair as the entire dash would need to come out.
Evaporator coil: $317
Expansion valve: $93
Labor: $990
Total: $1400
I was hoping to get any advice or ideas: if you've had this done, is this a reasonable price? Are there any DIY options or less drastic options I could try myself? I'm quite handy in the garage but removing the entire dash is not something I'm up for.
Any and all comments welcome.
Thank you.
#2
Moderator
You cannot do air conditioner repairs at home. It requires specialized equipment to purge and recharge the system. Plus you have to be trained. Also taking the dash apart is not easily done, especially putting it all back together. There is no easy way around this repair. Sorry to hear about it. You could try to get a second estimate from another shop.
#3
Hello all
After 8 years of ownership of a 2010 RX450H, I am faced with the first major repair issue: evaporator coil replacement.
Symptoms: No cold air from AC from a couple of weeks, dealership recharged the coolant and added a UV dye as they suspected there was a leak in the coil. In the meantime there has been water discharge pooling on the garage floor, sometimes large amounts, even when the vehicle hasn't been running. It seems to store large amounts of water and then dump it, as if something is clogged up.
The recharge lasted a week. Took it back to the dealership who checked and said the dye shows that the condenser coil needs to be replaced. They said this was an expensive repair as the entire dash would need to come out.
Evaporator coil: $317
Expansion valve: $93
Labor: $990
Total: $1400
I was hoping to get any advice or ideas: if you've had this done, is this a reasonable price? Are there any DIY options or less drastic options I could try myself? I'm quite handy in the garage but removing the entire dash is not something I'm up for.
Any and all comments welcome.
Thank you.
After 8 years of ownership of a 2010 RX450H, I am faced with the first major repair issue: evaporator coil replacement.
Symptoms: No cold air from AC from a couple of weeks, dealership recharged the coolant and added a UV dye as they suspected there was a leak in the coil. In the meantime there has been water discharge pooling on the garage floor, sometimes large amounts, even when the vehicle hasn't been running. It seems to store large amounts of water and then dump it, as if something is clogged up.
The recharge lasted a week. Took it back to the dealership who checked and said the dye shows that the condenser coil needs to be replaced. They said this was an expensive repair as the entire dash would need to come out.
Evaporator coil: $317
Expansion valve: $93
Labor: $990
Total: $1400
I was hoping to get any advice or ideas: if you've had this done, is this a reasonable price? Are there any DIY options or less drastic options I could try myself? I'm quite handy in the garage but removing the entire dash is not something I'm up for.
Any and all comments welcome.
Thank you.
The estimate from the dealer looks okay. I'm assuming the $990 for labor would also include consumables such as refrigerant.
The water that is getting dumped out of the thing is actually melting ice from the evaporator coil. It's kind of counter intuitive, but as an AC system gets low on refrigerant the evaporator actually gets colder. The condensation on the coil is freezing it into a block of ice because you are low on refrigerant.
#4
Driver School Candidate
I do my own A/C repair and have the equipment. There is a lot to know in order to do it correctly and it’s not something for an inexperienced person to attempt. That price doesn’t sound bad actually considering all the work needed.
#6
Moderator
The labor is high as the time is long and yes the price/hr is high at the dealership.
Salim
#7
Driver School Candidate
If the problem is the evaporator coil leaking there really is nothing you can do besides replacing the thing. There are some stop leak additives but after seeing the mess that they can make, I would never use one.
The estimate from the dealer looks okay. I'm assuming the $990 for labor would also include consumables such as refrigerant.
The water that is getting dumped out of the thing is actually melting ice from the evaporator coil. It's kind of counter intuitive, but as an AC system gets low on refrigerant the evaporator actually gets colder. The condensation on the coil is freezing it into a block of ice because you are low on refrigerant.
The estimate from the dealer looks okay. I'm assuming the $990 for labor would also include consumables such as refrigerant.
The water that is getting dumped out of the thing is actually melting ice from the evaporator coil. It's kind of counter intuitive, but as an AC system gets low on refrigerant the evaporator actually gets colder. The condensation on the coil is freezing it into a block of ice because you are low on refrigerant.
It’s an older thread, but I am faced with this repair now, and my dealership quoted me well over $2000, a third party shop $1600 for my Lexus Rx400h. Is this an acceptable going rate for, say, the heartland of NC?
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#9
Moderator
You need to get a couple of more quotes for this work. That appears to be too high a price.
#10
Moderator
Although majority of folks are OK with drive out cost, I prefer the estimates to be broken up in labor, parts, disposal etc. Shops use a table to charge and pay the mechanic by a predetermined number of hours for a service ("book hours"). That number is then multiplied by labor rates [Labor rates vary between shops, dealer and experts have the highest rates].
Pay attention to what is being performed. I expect a substantial difference in "evap coil" vs "expansion valve". [Roughly 6 additional hours in case of expansion valve]
If you drive in with a complaint "AC not working", the shop may estimate the worst case scenario. Price/cost has been increasing rapidly and a while back coffee used to be 25 cents for a cup.
Salim
Pay attention to what is being performed. I expect a substantial difference in "evap coil" vs "expansion valve". [Roughly 6 additional hours in case of expansion valve]
If you drive in with a complaint "AC not working", the shop may estimate the worst case scenario. Price/cost has been increasing rapidly and a while back coffee used to be 25 cents for a cup.
Salim
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