Air Compressor Explosion?

Brand new Taco Sport 2020 with less than 1500 miles. Suddenly there was a loud bang and a release of gas/steam/smoke. At first I thought it was the tire - but most of the stuff came out the front and the hood. I had just started the car and it had been running for maybe three minutes. It was literally the first time I had ever set the AC to max so I'm assuming it's AC compressor? Oddly tho, nothing is leaking but the AC was blowing warm air after that. Was that steam or smoke that came out? Lucky that me or my son wasn't standing in front the truck when that thing blew. Feeling disappointed.

 

Damn! That's wild. Just take it back to the dealer and they'll take care of you under warranty.

 

I'm betting you blew an A/C line. Yes that would be pretty loud and smokey. That expanding refrigerant would look a lot like steam or smoke.

I bet if you follow the lines down, you will see what let go.

If you find it, we would love to see some pictures for future references.

 

Based on description this sounds 99% likely an A/C blowout. What you experienced would have been the A/C refrigerant leaking out in an instant. The refrigerant is sometimes called freon, although for many decades they've used newer chemicals that are increasingly less damaging to the environment than actual freon.

What you saw--the steam or smoke effect-was likely actually just water vapor condensing around the escaping refrigerant. The decompression would have instantly cooled the refrigerant below the dew point of the surrounding air, so the 'steam' clouds would be the same as you'd see around any other abnormally cold air, like near dry ice or liquid nitrogen.

Sometimes, refrigerants have a dye added to them as well, usually green, but I'm not sure about new Tacomas.

Anyway, don't keep trying to run the A/C. Or if you already did, argue for compressor replacement, in addition to whatever blew out. You shouldn't run these things dry for too long.

On the way to the dealership, keep an eye on the temp gauge and tpms... on the 1% chance it was a tire or radiator.

 

Get a black light (UV light) and shine it in your engine bay... bet you it will glow like the sun. Generally there is a UV dye in ac systems to help find leaks.

 

Thanks all for the good info!

 

We want pictures...

 

ok here we go

 

Wonder what happened to the bolt that should be holding that on. Looks like there was never one there to begin with. Are there any marks on the aluminum that would show that a bolt was even in there?

 

I bet there was no bolt.

If a new bolt threads in, you are going to get off cheap.

 

Doesn't look like it...

 

Yeah, for some reason, modern A/C systems tend to barf green goo when they explode. Not so bad on a car where the coolant is red/pink, like our tacos. But easy to mistake for a radiator blow-out for us old timers, cause we grew up driving shitboxes that boiled sweet green nectar instead of this pink long-life bullshit that doesn't even taste very good.

The good news is that you are driving a brand new truck with a solid warranty. And this is perhaps one of the clearest cut warranty claims of the 21st century.

But, if they don't replace your compressor by default, then demand a full AC manifold test (with pressure readings), both now, and a month or two before your warranty is up. If the numbers are sliding between now and then (they should only slide slightly if at all) then you'll have a solid foundation for a free compressor replacement far beyond nominal warranty limits, should it ever actually shit the bed within, say, the next decade.

But without those two readings, you might face a harder battle out of warranty, because sometimes AC compressors just die on their own.

And no matter what, if you are making it a decade with no A/C problems, then you bought yourself an okay car.

Cheers.

Edit: they will take these readings no matter what when they refill your system. Just make sure they're noted officially. The only 'demanding' you'll have to do is when you're warranty is about to expire, and if they give you trouble, just say that the A/C isn't as cold, and they'll test it.

Corrected for temperature, a loss of pressure or differential means you have either a leak or a degrading compressor, plain and simple.

That said, all compressors degrade over time. Mine seems to be wildly out of spec, but it still blows cold air, and I have yet to recharge it.

 

Make sure you check to see what refrigerant is being used. The new stuff is R-1234yf .

Doing some research, this new refrigerant is much more expensive than R134A.

You wont be needing a compressor. You might need a new condensor if the threads on this one are stripped out.

 

That green stuff is likely to be the compressor oil.

 

I defer to @koditten here as the far-more experienced member, so perhaps you do not need a new compressor. And certainly, thread damage would necessitate the replacement of any affected fitting.

But... an AC compressor is a positive displacement pump that is lubricated by its working fluid--here, refrigerant mixed with a soluble oil that is apparently green in color.

My intuition is that most oil-lubricated positive displacement pumps will quickly self destruct when operated without any oil. Much as your truck's engine will seize within moments if you forget to refill the oil after draining it.

Now, I'm sure there are many engines that have been accidentally cranked or even fired-up with an empty oil pan. Most were probably destroyed on the spot, but certainly, some might have survived, and a few might even still be very reliable engines.

All I'm saying is that, if I knew that my engine had been run without any oil because of a manufacturing defect, I would hope and pray that mine was among the bulletproof ones, but I would also scour the earth looking for any hints of damage before its warranty expired!

 

I think when it detects no pressure, the clutch will not engage to turn on the compressor.

 

This is correct. The pressure switch cut power to clutch when less than 10 psi is present.

The bolt that holds that fitting is threaded into the Block of aluminum that is attached to the condensor. If that threaded bolt hole is stripped, it's just easier to buy a complete condensor.

 

He won’t be paying a dime regardless of the fix

 

I've never seen that fitting fail like that. I'm sure there never was a bolt present.

Regardless, it's a new truck. Toyota will repair it on their dime.

Unfortunately, the work will be done at a Toyota dealership. I'd rather an independent A/C repair shop do the work. Dealerships are good at a lot of things, but a/c repair can be hit or miss.

Hold out for an extended warranty on the a/c system repair.

 

Maybe never tightened from factory and the bolt vibrated out, that’s the condenser it blew out of.

I imagine if the threads are buggered up they’ll just replace the condenser and charge the system. And if not they’ll just installed a new bolt and charge it.