DIY AC condenser replacement on Lexus hybrid
Discussion
I recently noticed that my car's was not getting very cold. Lexus dealer checked out the system and diagnosed that the condenser radiator has a leak and needs replacement. The car is 10 years old and done 140,000 miles.
Dealer has quoted £600 to replace the condenser, test and recharge system. That is a big expense on a good but old car.
I have seen replacement aftermarket condenser on Ebay for £100. I reckon I could remove front bumper and swap the condenser over. There is probably no gas in the system now.
I understand that the gas for a hybrid is still R134A but has a different lubricating oil. Thus not everyone that offers recharges has the right R134A (but Lexus and some places such as ATS do).
I would welcome experienced advice for fixing the AC (I want it doing) but cost effectively.
Is it legal for me to do this DIY? Would an EBay part be OK? Will I run into problems doing this myself (O rings, lubricating oil).
Advice appreciated.
Dealer has quoted £600 to replace the condenser, test and recharge system. That is a big expense on a good but old car.
I have seen replacement aftermarket condenser on Ebay for £100. I reckon I could remove front bumper and swap the condenser over. There is probably no gas in the system now.
I understand that the gas for a hybrid is still R134A but has a different lubricating oil. Thus not everyone that offers recharges has the right R134A (but Lexus and some places such as ATS do).
I would welcome experienced advice for fixing the AC (I want it doing) but cost effectively.
Is it legal for me to do this DIY? Would an EBay part be OK? Will I run into problems doing this myself (O rings, lubricating oil).
Advice appreciated.
You would need to get the system drained of coolant first do the repairs then go back to get it tested and refilled some places may charge you extra for this
Other then that if it just the condenser should be a easy job a few bolts and two pipe connections as long as the part is made well enough
Other then that if it just the condenser should be a easy job a few bolts and two pipe connections as long as the part is made well enough
you may spend a lot on a compressor and replace it then connect it all up and find the leak is else where, that's the trouble.
Remember you have an evaporator a condenser and a compressor and some form of control as well as other sundries in an AC circuit.
also recovery of AC gas is required and you can not simply discharge to atmo.
Remember you have an evaporator a condenser and a compressor and some form of control as well as other sundries in an AC circuit.
also recovery of AC gas is required and you can not simply discharge to atmo.
If you have an ATS Euromaster near you, there's a Groupon offer for £38 check and refill at present - if you buy the voucher it's good until end of July. Just had them do one of my cars.
So if you can get the part swapped yourself, then take it to them, they do a check before refill to make sure it's not leaking.
So if you can get the part swapped yourself, then take it to them, they do a check before refill to make sure it's not leaking.
Thanks all.
I am pretty sure it has been left with no gas in the system.
It is the condenser that can be seen leaking , it is "sweating" from the core.
Thanks for tip about Groupon, but unfortunately it does not apply to the gas-oil mix a hybrid takes only the more standard R134a. It is different because this car has an electric compressor and the oil in the gas has to have different dielectric properties.
I am pretty sure it has been left with no gas in the system.
It is the condenser that can be seen leaking , it is "sweating" from the core.
Thanks for tip about Groupon, but unfortunately it does not apply to the gas-oil mix a hybrid takes only the more standard R134a. It is different because this car has an electric compressor and the oil in the gas has to have different dielectric properties.
I took my Lexus IS 250 to ATS with a groupon voucher last year an they diagnosed a leaky condenser so couldn't do it. I don't know whether they are obliged to but they attempted to extract any remaining refrigerant in there.
They quoted me about £300ish with fitting IIRC for an aftermarket one and a lot more for a genuine Lexus one (cant remember price bit I think that was about £400).
Anyway - decided to fix it myself so bought a condenser for £73 from www.autoairconparts.co.uk (no affiliation just a happy customer) and fitted it myself. I then took it back to ATS and they filled and tested it and it worked perfectly. They didn't charge me the first time and just charged my about an extra tenner for a refresh bomb or something at my request which is supposed to clean the system and kill bacteria. Still working fine today and blew lovely cool air :-)
IMO I would do it yourself but be warned....took me best part of a day with most of the time getting the front bumper off as it involves removing about 6 million bolts including under-trays! LOL
I know it's not the same car but to try and give you an idea of what you may expect.....
New and old condenser compared
With the front bumper off there's still a lot bodywork/locks etc to remove
You get new rubber o rings/washers etc as part of the "kit"
They quoted me about £300ish with fitting IIRC for an aftermarket one and a lot more for a genuine Lexus one (cant remember price bit I think that was about £400).
Anyway - decided to fix it myself so bought a condenser for £73 from www.autoairconparts.co.uk (no affiliation just a happy customer) and fitted it myself. I then took it back to ATS and they filled and tested it and it worked perfectly. They didn't charge me the first time and just charged my about an extra tenner for a refresh bomb or something at my request which is supposed to clean the system and kill bacteria. Still working fine today and blew lovely cool air :-)
IMO I would do it yourself but be warned....took me best part of a day with most of the time getting the front bumper off as it involves removing about 6 million bolts including under-trays! LOL
I know it's not the same car but to try and give you an idea of what you may expect.....
New and old condenser compared
With the front bumper off there's still a lot bodywork/locks etc to remove
You get new rubber o rings/washers etc as part of the "kit"
Tony1963 said:
How much did Lexus want just for the oem condenser (that also comes with a warranty)?
£400 for the condenser, and not a stock item. They then reckon 2 hours labour, discounting that to 1.5 hours for £200. All including VAT.Definitely thinking of going aftermarket for a non-Lexus unit!
348jeff said:
I took my Lexus IS 250 to ATS with a groupon voucher last year an they diagnosed a leaky condenser so couldn't do it. I don't know whether they are obliged to but they attempted to extract any remaining refrigerant in there.
They quoted me about £300ish with fitting IIRC for an aftermarket one and a lot more for a genuine Lexus one (cant remember price bit I think that was about £400).
Anyway - decided to fix it myself so bought a condenser for £73 from www.autoairconparts.co.uk (no affiliation just a happy customer) and fitted it myself. I then took it back to ATS and they filled and tested it and it worked perfectly. They didn't charge me the first time and just charged my about an extra tenner for a refresh bomb or something at my request which is supposed to clean the system and kill bacteria. Still working fine today and blew lovely cool air :-)
IMO I would do it yourself but be warned....took me best part of a day with most of the time getting the front bumper off as it involves removing about 6 million bolts including under-trays! LOL
I know it's not the same car but to try and give you an idea of what you may expect.....
New and old condenser compared
With the front bumper off there's still a lot bodywork/locks etc to remove
You get new rubber o rings/washers etc as part of the "kit"
Thank you. Exactly the kind of experience I was hoping to learn from.I can imagine it is a chore finding all of the fixings for the front bumper, then same again for the condenser. Its a case of going slowly, recording what came off where (with photos as you have done), then hoping for the best! ATS quoted me £95 for a non-Groupon recharge, so I reckon I can get the job done myself for £200ish. They quoted me about £300ish with fitting IIRC for an aftermarket one and a lot more for a genuine Lexus one (cant remember price bit I think that was about £400).
Anyway - decided to fix it myself so bought a condenser for £73 from www.autoairconparts.co.uk (no affiliation just a happy customer) and fitted it myself. I then took it back to ATS and they filled and tested it and it worked perfectly. They didn't charge me the first time and just charged my about an extra tenner for a refresh bomb or something at my request which is supposed to clean the system and kill bacteria. Still working fine today and blew lovely cool air :-)
IMO I would do it yourself but be warned....took me best part of a day with most of the time getting the front bumper off as it involves removing about 6 million bolts including under-trays! LOL
I know it's not the same car but to try and give you an idea of what you may expect.....
New and old condenser compared
With the front bumper off there's still a lot bodywork/locks etc to remove
You get new rubber o rings/washers etc as part of the "kit"
Two questions
- did you renew the pipes that fit onto the condenser too? I was wondering if it was worth getting that as an original part whilst renewing the condenser - just in case its a weak point and still leaks.
- did you buy PAG oil for the O rings?
Found this company that come to your house: http://www.vehicle-airconditioning.co.uk/ Thinking I may give them a call.
Edited by TUS373 on Saturday 29th June 22:06
TUS373 said:
£400 for the condenser, and not a stock item. They then reckon 2 hours labour, discounting that to 1.5 hours for £200. All including VAT.
Definitely thinking of going aftermarket for a non-Lexus unit!
That's not a bad price all in done OEM.Definitely thinking of going aftermarket for a non-Lexus unit!
The quoted price for Audi Q7 condensor all in is nearly 1K.
Youch!
Thing is, the car is only maybe worth £6,500 now with its age and mileage (though it is very good conditional mechanically and cosmetically, and I know its history as the only owner from new in its 141,000 miles). Spending £600 represents a big chunk on a car like this. I know that here can be quality differences for OEM vs aftermarket, so it feels like a calculated risk.
Thing is, the car is only maybe worth £6,500 now with its age and mileage (though it is very good conditional mechanically and cosmetically, and I know its history as the only owner from new in its 141,000 miles). Spending £600 represents a big chunk on a car like this. I know that here can be quality differences for OEM vs aftermarket, so it feels like a calculated risk.
TUS373 said:
Two questions
- did you renew the pipes that fit onto the condenser too? I was wondering if it was worth getting that as an original part whilst renewing the condenser - just in case its a weak point and still leaks.
No, pipes were fine. ATS had already diagnosed it as a hole in the condenser likely due to stone damage.- did you renew the pipes that fit onto the condenser too? I was wondering if it was worth getting that as an original part whilst renewing the condenser - just in case its a weak point and still leaks.
TUS373 said:
- did you buy PAG oil for the O rings?
I didn't but they do sell it for £3,50 so worth getting.BTW I was wrong before they dont come with O rings, you buy an O ring kit as an extra but again that was only £3.50.
All in the radiator and o rings cost me £73 and the ATS initial check and then 2nd visit to refill , test and do that air bomb refresh thing was about £45 so looking at about £120 start to finish which is excellent value IMO
With regards to job the longest part of the job was separating the under-trays from the front lip of the bumper as there is about 20 bolts which are all a bit rusty so it was a case of lots of penetrating oil and patience as the parts being joined together are plastic so you cant be too brutal without breaking something.
Below is a handy link to a parts catalog that is useful to see how things are held together
www.jp-carparts.com/lexus/carlist.php?maker=toyota
Edited by 348jeff on Sunday 30th June 07:48
Edited by 348jeff on Sunday 30th June 07:51
Excellent. Many thanks Jeff. That is all very useful information. It looks like a simple plumbing job, hampered only by challenging access.
I could not find the RX on the site, but sure I will somewhere on the web.
If I do the work myself, I can also clean up everything as I go along and make it as good as new. I know what you mean about plastic trims and the fragility of fixings. Some seem to be single use only.
Thank you!
I could not find the RX on the site, but sure I will somewhere on the web.
If I do the work myself, I can also clean up everything as I go along and make it as good as new. I know what you mean about plastic trims and the fragility of fixings. Some seem to be single use only.
Thank you!
TUS373 said:
It looks like a simple plumbing job, hampered only by challenging access.
Exactly!You can download/buy copies of the repair manuals online. I always check in there before starting a job not only so you can how to do it but also there's usually good pics of the parts. As mentioned this is not the same car as yours so it may be a lot easier (or harder) - you need to check and maybe watch youtube videos too.
Here's the removal of the front bumper - there's an awful lot of bolts and about 90% of those bottom bolts would'nt come out easily.
Removal of the actual part your interested in.
Thank you!
I just watched a YouTube video of someone removing and replacing condenser on a RX330/350. Not exactly the same as mine, but very similar. They did it without removing the bumper, stripping down the bar that sits between the headlights and over the radiator. It looks much easier than removing a bumper. However, Lexus dealer told me bumper has to come off.
I think I will just have to follow my nose and strip the front down step by step, and see if it can be done without taking bumper off. I expect it comes down to shifting bolts that do no want to be shifted and whether they can be reached with a 10mm socket or spanner, and losing skin off of my knuckles.
Going to get the unit ordered from the website. Will have a poke around under the bonnet today. It may be a good excuse for a new socket set and ratchet spanners too.
I just watched a YouTube video of someone removing and replacing condenser on a RX330/350. Not exactly the same as mine, but very similar. They did it without removing the bumper, stripping down the bar that sits between the headlights and over the radiator. It looks much easier than removing a bumper. However, Lexus dealer told me bumper has to come off.
I think I will just have to follow my nose and strip the front down step by step, and see if it can be done without taking bumper off. I expect it comes down to shifting bolts that do no want to be shifted and whether they can be reached with a 10mm socket or spanner, and losing skin off of my knuckles.
Going to get the unit ordered from the website. Will have a poke around under the bonnet today. It may be a good excuse for a new socket set and ratchet spanners too.
Job done.
I had to buy 4 condenser s in the end:
1. I crushed it accidentally, pushing it into position. Lesson learned, they are fragile
2. Bolt holes in wrong place
3. There were no bolt holes, even though part number was correct.
4. A panel from NFT (is it?). One of the best quality and fitted perfectly.
Got Stuart from Cool Drive around who vac tested, oiled and refilled system. Now working perfectly. Of not for breakage, total job would have been less than £160 instead of £600!
Thanks for kind assistance from friends on this thread
.
I had to buy 4 condenser s in the end:
1. I crushed it accidentally, pushing it into position. Lesson learned, they are fragile
2. Bolt holes in wrong place
3. There were no bolt holes, even though part number was correct.
4. A panel from NFT (is it?). One of the best quality and fitted perfectly.
Got Stuart from Cool Drive around who vac tested, oiled and refilled system. Now working perfectly. Of not for breakage, total job would have been less than £160 instead of £600!
Thanks for kind assistance from friends on this thread
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