Air Con clean

[Hadrian1]

Our 2021 Yaris Design was in for it's first service today. I have a service plan.

They rang me during the day to say there were no problems. (I should hope not considering it's only done just over 3,000 miles.)  They said the air con system has a high level of bacteria, and would I like it cleansed ?  I asked how much, and was told.. A hundred and....... No thank you I replied before they could finish.

Anyone else experienced this ?

[Hadrian1]

Along a similar line. Although it shouldn't need changing for a long time yet, unless it's clogged with Sahara dust. Is the pollen filter the same as the cabin filter, and located behind the glove box on the 2021 Yaris ?

[TonyHSD]

Omg, do not accept any offers like that at any cost, they will simply mess up your hvac system and cause real problems. On a brand new car they are talking about bacteria 🫢🫣🤔bs, my car is 11 years old and hasn’t got any. It is obvious that they simply are trying their luck hunting for people who has no clue about cars, maintenance and general use to screw them over and take their cash. Best for your car is to keep fan always on, use ac from time to time or permanently, change pollen filter more often( every 12 months or 10k miles) and do air conditioning regas every 3-4 years. That’s all. 👍

[flash22]

By all means do the cabin filter (its in the same place as the mk3), quite a few are antibacterial these days, unless the dealer has a bacterial analyser and taken multiple swabs what i doubt, it's BS trying to fearmonger using recent events

[Hadrian1]

Thanks chaps.

There was no way I was going to accept their kind offer, and it's not something I would

expect a main dealer to come out with.

[Bernard Foy]

Perhaps Alan they did a Covid test on your new Yaris.🤣😂

[Bernard Foy]

I know we’re splitting hairs one is a virus 😂🤣

[bathtub tom]

5 hours ago, Hadrian1 said:

They said the air con system has a high level of bacteria

Ask them for the numbers and claim you're a PhD.

[corradovr6]

You can get a disinfecting spray which you leave open for a while with the fan running and windows closed. Exact instructions on the can. I thinks it's about £5 per can

 

Alternatively you can use a handheld steamer and blast it through the vents changing the direction control as appropriate

 

[Guest]

11 hours ago, corradovr6 said:

You can get a disinfecting spray which you leave open for a while with the fan running and windows closed. Exact instructions on the can. I thinks it's about £5 per can

 

Alternatively you can use a handheld steamer and blast it through the vents changing the direction control as appropriate

 

Exactly this. Buy an aerosol and follow the instructions as stated by Hasan(corradovr6). I treat mine every year, along with changing the filter.

Whether it is very effective, don't know, no nasty pongs and I haven't contracted any nasty diseases yet.

Change the pollen/cabin filter too - easy.

A hundred plus, they're 'avin a larf. I'd wager that's all they do and buy those aerosols in bulk and trade price. How did they test for bacterial contamination? I'm surprised they used bacteria rather than virus. I suspect that was just a scare tactic.

[Starensis]

It's all a ploy to get you to spend cash. I've never had any issues with any car regarding A/C - other than a stone puncturing the condenser.

Re-gas when it's not preforming, change pollen filter every 2/3 years, that's all you need.

Ensure you run A/C for 10/15 mins every week or so.

[MikeSh]

17 hours ago, Hadrian1 said:

expect a main dealer to come out with.

Mine offered it for £35 the other day.

I didn't think that was stupid expensive (it was in for a C service, so I was set for a big bill anyway) and as the car is 4 years old and I don't know if it had ever been done before I took it.

[MikeSh]

21 minutes ago, mrpj1 said:

I'm surprised they used bacteria rather than virus. I suspect that was just a scare tactic.

Bacteria is correct. Viruses don't multiply in warm damp places, but bacteria love them.

[Guest]

Correct Mike  but suggesting a virus, of a certain name, could be more scary!

Not an endorsement or recommendation, but I use this. Smells nice afterwards if nothing else.

 

[Guest]

1 hour ago, MikeSh said:

Mine offered it for £35 the other day.

A cool £30 profit, at least. Virtually nil labour to carry out.

[MikeSh]

6 minutes ago, mrpj1 said:

suggesting a virus, of a certain name, could be more scary!

Possibly, but it would be a lie.

Perhaps this dealer employee was being honest (though asking £100+ suggests the dealership bosses are milking things).

[Hadrian1]

Looking for something to do this afternoon, I' thought I'd check the cabin filter in my 2021 Yaris.

It didn't look much of a job going by the various YT videos.  Not quite as easy as it was supposed to be

but eventually I got the filter out. Considering the car is barely 18months old, the filter was filthy, and a

wonder any air got through it at all.  I gave it a good vacuum out, but will have to get a replacement.

It's amazing how quickly so much muck can accumulate.

 

[Max_Headroom]

I have seen these used before and they do a good job of eliminating smells - 

https://www.in2detailing.co.uk/products/bilt-hamber-air-con-bomb-150ml-citrus?_pos=1&_sid=17c21907c&_ss=r&ghref=3377%3A26349

 

[bathtub tom]

"Considering the car is barely 18months old, the filter was filthy"

I find that surprising, how many miles has it done?

[TonyHSD]

There will be better if people share pictures to see their experiences with their cars and parts replacements etc. Cabin filter gets clogged with soot pretty quickly especially if you drive in big cities or on busy motorways. In London and around 10k miles max or 12 months and the filter is done. Some filters comes in darker colours as they have active charcoal, this perhaps may give some wrongly impressions while checking. 
 

[Saxmaniac]

Is the car dealer serviced, they should be replacing the pollen filter at correct times. Don't believe anything a dealer tells you even if it's with big smiles and a cup of coffee, they're simply after your money. My cars have never gone near a dealer apart from what's necessary to preserve guarantee. I don't trust them to maintain car properly and double check and do extra maintenance in between. Btw, I've always been sceptical about air con regassing when the system is working fine. Whenever you open a system to regas or whatever,you comtaminate that system. If it's lost gas, then there's a leak and the dealer isn't going to be interested in diagnosing that properly. Only a specialist should do that. The car care nut recently confirmed my view, "if it ain't broken don't fix it" My last car was owned from 3 years old to age 15 years and 170k miles and the air con wasn't touched, just regular use as Tony's post above. 

[TonyHSD]

I agreed with Geoff,  

regular use of hvac system with or without ac and regular filter changes are most important for the system longevity and properly functioning.
For the regas though it is a good idea once every few years , 3-4 maybe or every 2 if in hot climates and ac been used more often.
We had two exact same Auris hybrids and one had low gas in its system, perhaps never been topped up, and my one been done 4 years earlier.  
My car had much colder ac plus quieter compressor work , while the gf car had noisier compressor work and not as cold ac.
 After we went together to the same garage to top up the ac systems both cars were equally cold air blowing and compressors work were both equally quiet.  
Girlfriend was happy about the ac but when we ask the mechanic which car he liked more the guy said mine 😂 and she went furious, hers was 12 reg low miles and mine 60 high mileage 😉🚙🚙

[Saxmaniac]

I make a point of listening to the compressor, I think if gas had been lost, compressor would be revving high all the time, with correct gas revs drop down quite quickly from first switch on. Is that a good approx rule of thumb? 

[TonyHSD]

21 minutes ago, Saxmaniac said:

I make a point of listening to the compressor, I think if gas had been lost, compressor would be revving high all the time, with correct gas revs drop down quite quickly from first switch on. Is that a good approx rule of thumb? 

The thing is that the compressor noise will also depend of air temperature and cabin temperature, usually when low on gas the compressor sounds like when very hot and the compressor is working on harder to cool down the interior. If the car is 5-6 years old and never been regas you can do it but good practice to be done when outside air temperature is 15C° + , otherwise difficult to check operation afterwards. Air temp blows should be between 4-7C° when ac set to lowest settings and blow through central air vent. 

[Max_Headroom]

Sometimes your AC system might not be working as good as it should.

Sometimes this is due to a low system charge. In this video I walk you through the steps of topping off your AC system to get it to cool better.