A/C on tacoma not holding R134A

i have added Freon 2x already & it stays cold for a few days but then it starts blowing hot again. Only the driver side vent is somewhat cold. Passenger side is like room temp.

Any idea what might be wrong? Or how can I go about resolving the issue

 

You got a leak in the system.

First you have to find it
Then you need to fix it
Then you need to recharge the AC system

I have the same problem. You can buy a can of R134a refrigerant that includes UV Dye in it.
Put that in the system. Let it run for while and then check using a UV light.

You may or may not be able to fix it yourself once you find the leak.
If you do try to fix it yourself you will need an A/C Manifold gauge and a vacum pump when it comes to recharging the system.

 

And just an FYI ... these trucks don't use freon.

They use R134a / HFC134a

 

Pay a professional.

There's nothing fancy about Tacoma ACs, so no dealer required. Any quality independent shop can handle it with ease.

No offense to you, but it seems you don't have the experience or the tools needed. So unless you have a friend who does, and is willing to look over your shoulder to coach while you work..............

 

spend a few quality minutes going over all your AC lines under the hood looking for the leak. literally follow/trace each line with your eyes and examine every connection carefully. Dont put dye, our trucks come with dye from the factory.

I found mine right where they run into the firewall on passenger side. Green goo everywhere. replaced some O rings, pull vacuum, recharge and blowing cold.

Once you find the leak the battle is half over.

 

If you don’t know about air conditioning systems, it’s not something to be taken lightly. Don’t just go adding refrigerant. This can do more damage than good. These systems are designed to run on a certain amount. Suicide cans are not the way to go. Systems can also be damaged by adding too much dye or oil.

 

^^ +1

OP, if you are adding that much refrigerant and it is leaking out at the rate you describe you may also have an oil problem as well because oil in the system circulates with the R134A and also leaks out. You can easily end up making very expensive mistakes by trying to save a few dollars. Although I am a strong advocate of DIY work on our trucks the A/C system is not one. Take it to someone with strong auto A/C experience.

 

How does one simple question imply I don’t have the tools or experience in fixing a vehicle?

I am definitely not an expert at A/C shit, but don’t be trying to talk down on anyone.

Clearly this is something I’d probably be better off taking it to someone who is experienced with A/C stuff, but it never hurts to ask. I prefer fixing my own stuff before getting raped by a shop.

 

Not doubting that with some training you will gain the skills to fix your truck, being a professional tech the most costly ac repairs I have done were caused by people trying to fix it themselves. I have stories for days about the stupid things people have done to try to avoid paying shops. If you don’t have the equipment it’s better off to pay the 70 bucks for an evac and recharge and a shot of dye from a pro

 

There's a saying. There was 1 thing wrong with the vehicle. The owner fixed 6 things. Now there's 7 things wrong with it.

 

Well it appears I found the leak

 

This sounds like a more extreme version of what started happening to me in 2017. Long story short, my evaporator core developed a leak and had to be replaced...


My dad bought the truck new in September 2009, and gave it to me as an early Christmas present in December 2016. In June 2017, after more than 7 years and about 75,000 miles of trouble-free service, I realized that the A/C was blowing ice cold out of the two left vents, kinda cool out of the middle right vent, and hot, humid outside air from the far right vent. The middle left vent was not quite as cold as the far left vent. I brought it to my dad's mechanic about a week later, and he pressure-tested and vacuum-tested the system, but couldn't find a leak. He charged it with R134a, and it worked fine for the rest of that summer.

Fast-forward to an unseasonably warm Saturday in April 2018. My then-girlfriend and I were driving to a car show in New Jersey, and I realized the far right vent was blowing warm. Luckily, my girlfriend didn't mind. A few days later, I brought it do my dad's mechanic, who again could not find a leak but charged it. Over the course of the new few months, I noticed that the performance of the A/C was dropping again.

I figured that I had a slow leak somewhere, but there was also another problem. All clues pointed to the blend air door actuator thingy, and I ordered the part from the Toyota dealer (got a surprisingly good deal). I ordered the part in late July or early August, but it ended up taking a few days to get there.

The Carlisle Truck Nationals are held every year on the first full weekend in August. I have been entering my truck in this show since 2016. Unfortunately, a record-setting heat wave hit most of Eastern Pennsylvania that weekend. Luckily, the A/C in my Taco kept me sufficiently cool despite operating at only 65% or 70% capacity. The part arrived the Monday after the Truck Nationals, and I installed it myself, with no improvement.

Fed up, I called the dealer and told them that I was bringing my truck in to have the A/C looked at. I drove the truck to the dealer, and on the way there, the A/C started blowing colder than I could remember out of the far left vent while getting warmer across the other three vents (with the far right being the worst). I dropped the truck off at the dealer, told them I didn't want it back until the A/C was fixed, got my free loaner car, and left. The next day, the dealer called me, and told me that my truck was about a pound low on refrigerant. They had been unable to find the leak, but they had recharged the system to factory specs and added UV dye. I was told to bring the truck back in two or three weeks, by which time the dye would have circulated and revealed the leak.

The A/C worked great during those few weeks, and when I finally brought it back, it ended up being the worse case scenario. The UV dye revealed a leak in the evaporator core. Replacing this part involved removing the entire dashboard and would cost almost $1,600 (Lesson learned; NEVER use the dealer). I shopped around a bit, attempting to compare prices at other dealers. After a woman from Sloane Toyota called me back wanting to buy my truck and sell me a new vehicle (while mentioning NOTHING about my A/C repair inquiry), I stuck with Thompson (the dealer that has done numerous oil changes, inspections, and warranty repairs on my truck). I did not have the money to pay for the repairs at the time, and my dad felt bad about me having leaky A/C, so he paid for it. My truck was out of commission for about two days, but it's been about nine months and the A/C is still working perfectly, so Thompson fixed it.

Have your system charged by a mechanic or Toyota dealer and have them add UV dye (this will be $125-$150 total). I'm guessing your problem is also the evaporator core. My leak was slow enough that I could have gotten away with simply charging it every year, but I am OCD and wanted it fixed. It sounds like you have a much faster/larger leak, and if the evap core is indeed leaking, you're gonna have to replace it if you want your A/C system to hold a charge. I look at it this way; Yes, this repair will probably be a thousand bucks at a bare minimum, but a brand new Tacoma with no options is more than $25K.

Would you rather have working A/C in a truck that's otherwise fine (and I'm assuming paid off), or a brand new truck with five or six years of payments?

 

Looks like you got lucky...

My entire dash had to come out!

 

See...?

 

Yup. That job is such a freaking nightmare its hard to explain. Looks like the HVAC unit is still in place. Did they try to get the evaporator without pulling the HVAC box? I think Bebop has done a number of these and got it down. Thanks for sharing.

 

All these people advising against fixing your own system and I'm going to go 180 degrees and say do yourself. My wife's car had the AC system from hell. I took it to shop after shop and they could never fix it so it would stay fixed. Finally I got pissed and said FINE! I'll do it myself. Bought all of the tools I needed from Harbor Freight, including the vacuum pump for a bit over $200. Then after watching an untold number of youtube videos I finally traced the leak to the compressor. I spent more on shop fees than the cost of the tools to do the job.

 

I have no idea...

I did not take the pictures, but rather the service manager did at my request and texted them to me.

I plan going into HVAC and know more about residential central A/C systems than I do automotive A/C systems. What I can tell you is that my A/C works great and is covered until September 2020 under the dealer warranty!

 

Question. If I am smelling a bandaid smell in the cab after recharging the system do you think the leak is most likely in the evap core?

I smelt the same thing begining of last fall/winter went it went completely out on me as for as A/C.
After a recharge I am smelling it again in the cab.

No smell when the heat is on.


OP. Not attempting to hijack thread but since we are on the topic I thought it may be okay to ask.

 

Go right ahead

 

Took me 30 minutes to replace the hose. Not bad for someone who “doesn’t have tools” or “experience” working on Tacoma’s