Toyota service done and now saying £500 to fix a/c leak?

[jayla]

Hello,

All I want is your advice from looking at the picture if this is a 500 pound job that Toyota claim  it needs.

I gave my car in for service and the report came back the a/c is leaking and will cost 500 pounds to repair.

btw as is working fine and nice and cold. 

The reason I am asking for your option  is last time they said my rear brake disc and pads needed changing when they did not. Only because it has rust on disc during lockdown. 

I am shocked the cost and repair is this high. when I ask them he said the high pressure pipe cost alot. 

How does he know it that from just looking at picture? Maybe it a somone problem?

[Derek.w]

What has failed the high pressure pipe itself or just a "o" ring type gasked.

Maybe gasket is not sold separete.

In any case aircon needs depressurising by a specilast with the kit to capture any gas in the system then strip repair and test system can hold pressure then if its ok repressurise system.

By law you have tobe able to collect this gas from your system and not vent it into the atmosphere.

Hope this helps.

[corradovr6]

You can get the aircon o-rings separately. They're usually orange or green as opposed to black. 

Ask them for some more specifics as they should have used a UV dye to identify the leak area. If the pipe has a fracture or crack it will need replacing but that shouldn't really happen. However, as Derek has mentioned above, for the seals to be changed you need to collect the refrigerant prior to opening the pipe connection.

Personally i would go to an aircon specialist as opposed to toyota for this

[jayla]

I will be going to ac specialist but to be honest 500 is steep. All he told me on phone high pressure pipe leaking and need replacing. he said part is 200 pound when i ask why it is so much. i find it odd a 7 year old car with only 36k miles has a air con leak soo soon. 

[Derek.w]

1 hour ago, jayla said:

Hello,

All I want is your advice from looking at the picture if this is a 500 pound job that Toyota claim  it needs.

I gave my car in for service and the report came back the a/c is leaking and will cost 500 pounds to repair.

btw as is working fine and nice and cold. 

The reason I am asking for your option  is last time they said my rear brake disc and pads needed changing when they did not. Only because it has rust on disc during lockdown. 

I am shocked the cost and repair is this high. when I ask them he said the high pressure pipe cost alot. 

How does he know it that from just looking at picture? Maybe it a somone problem?

sorry but cannot tell just looking at the picture.

But if cold air is coming out of it & you cannot see any fluid leak then put a glove on and clean the area and keep a eye on it.

Even in winter its best practice to run this system every other week just for a few minutes to stop seals brying out.

[jayla]

5 minutes ago, Derek.w said:

sorry but cannot tell just looking at the picture.

But if cold air is coming out of it & you cannot see any fluid leak then put a glove on and clean the area and keep a eye on it.

Even in winter its best practice to run this system every other week just for a few minutes to stop seals brying out.

I guess it dont help that the person i bought car off did not drive it for 1 year. Had to already install a 12v Battery now maybe seals gone due to that never know 

[wildtapholer]

Our other Yaris, which we don't have now had a similar problem, car went in for the airbag recall and car was given a health check, on returning the car to us we were told it needed that same part, and a further load of money spending on rust around the fuel filler cap and would need replacing. Told Toyota where to go, we couldn't find the rust around the filler cap untill we went under the car, what car isn't rusty underneath, it was the filler pipe to the fuel tank under the car. I jet washed the air con pipes plus the engine while I was under the bonnet, took the car to air con shop told them what Toyota said, they removed the gas refilled and added a dye to check for leaks, guess what no leaks found, cleaned the rust off pipe with a wire brush and repainted, total cost £50, £45 for the air-con re-gas and £5 for a tin of chassis paint.

[Stivino]

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. 

[Derek.w]

Please note main radiator when looking at the grill in front of car in not air con radiator thats a thinner seperate radiator on the mounted on the  back of main radiator.

[Devon Aygo]

29 minutes ago, Derek.w said:

Please note main radiator when looking at the grill in front of car in not air con radiator thats a thinner seperate radiator on the mounted on the  back of main radiator.

Not Quite, the AC condenser is in front of the Engine cooling radiator, you can actually see the AC pipe connecting to it.

[MikeSh]

If aircon is leaking it won't take long for most of the gas to be gone and it doesn't work.

So if it's still blowing good and cold I'm inclined to think the dealer is trying to generate work.

When it doesn't blow cold then, as others say, go see a specialist.

[flash22]

Get a second opinion, unless they can prove it with a test (sniffer) it may just be road Gunk, that looks very suspect almost like oil has been sprayed on it

 

edit, UV dye only fluoresces under UV light (black light) - bright green (left middle) i would suggest is spilt washer fluid as the fill is just above it, and the bottle is just behind it pair that with a large wet patch in the bottom left

 

[corradovr6]

Once your aircon company has properly diagnosed if there is indeed any fault, it might just be worth taking their report to Toyota to then get an explanation from them about a £500 'leak'.  I'm sure they'll backtrack pretty quickly! 

[anchorman]

I’d leave it until it doesn’t work. 

[Jasper.]

I had a very similar experience when I had my Rav 4 serviced by Toyota several years ago and upon collecting my car was told by the receptionist that the air con needed repairing as it didn't work. 

I informed her that it did indeed work when I'd dropped it off with them.

When I got home I took photos of a digital thermometer inside and outside the car to prove that it did work and sent these to the service manager followed by a rather heated phone call. 

I had a grovelling apology and an offer of a free service next time. 

[Rhymes with Paris]

It is fairly easy to tell if main dealers or garage staff or fast fit merchants are lying.

Just look at the lips,if they're moving they're lying.

[Guest]

I know I'm repeating myself, but when my car went in for it's 5 years old service at the supplying main dealer the health report listed a leaking rear main oil seal on the engine - £700+ to "fix". When it was pointed out that the car was just still within it's 5 years warranty their "Master Technician" had a look and the "leak" had mysteriously self healed.

On previous services there I caught them out missing items that should have been checked and carried out as part of the service. Grovelling apologies only.

I haven't passed through their door since.

[Mojo1010]

5 hours ago, mrpj1 said:

I know I'm repeating myself, but when my car went in for it's 5 years old service at the supplying main dealer the health report listed a leaking rear main oil seal on the engine - £700+ to "fix". When it was pointed out that the car was just still within it's 5 years warranty their "Master Technician" had a look and the "leak" had mysteriously self healed.

On previous services there I caught them out missing items that should have been checked and carried out as part of the service. Grovelling apologies only.

I haven't passed through their door since.

Damn, it's fraudulent & dishonesty behaviour. I would have them reported to head office. 

[Derek.w]

Believe me most garages large & small at some point try and rip us all off.

[Derek.w]

Are you keeping a eye on the radiator expansion tank to see if you are loosing fluid from this system?.  (Antefreeze)

 

[Cyker]

They're not all bad, but it does seem like there are a lot more bad ones than good ones  

[Rhymes with Paris]

6 minutes ago, Cyker said:

They're not all bad, but it does seem like there are a lot more bad ones than good ones  

I know Cyker, there are good ones somewhere I'm sure, it's finding them that is so difficult.

The tales of woe on here (including many of my own)and newspaper consumer columns however, paint a clear picture of incompetence and outright dishonesty throughout the motor trade.

I would not hesitate to sing the praises of a good and honest service,as indeed would many others I guess.

On a positive note, what do you think about a good garage/dealer guide on here?as in a pinned thread.

If the moderators were happy with this,then maybe a regional guide where members have had good experiences could be good for members and businesses.

 

 

[Cyker]

There used to be a dealer leaderboard on here when I first joined (Which the Lindop franchise always topped!) but it got taken down, I suspect due to pressure from the dealers who didn't fare so well!

I did try to start a thread on good dealers last year but I can't even find it now so I guess it didn't do very well...  

 

[Hornet3D]

Problem is it is almost becoming a no win situation with the new warranty rules, in the past it ran for ten years now it is only three unless the car is serviced at the main dealer.  I guess you just have to hope you can find a good one.