I have a big leak (1 can every 3 weeks) but no signs of oil anywhere

is there a common a/c leak area to look for?

if so where should I look?

I know how hard these things can be to find so im hoping to narrow down the possible areas of concern to watch for


UPDATE: I confirmed it is the worst case and I need to rip out the entire dash to the bare firewall to replace the evaporator. also this leak quickly turned into 1 can of freon every 6-7 days within a week of the time i first posted about this, it hasnt gotten much worse then that "yet" but im using the truck "almost" every day so who knows what if i let it sit unused, i would imagine it only lasts a few days now if i do that.

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UPDATE: I am adding the list of parts to buy if you, or anyone you know, might be planning to do this job , or to buy the parts to have someone do it for you


this is my parts list for what I bought: (2006 4runner sport 4.7 v8)

valve expansion, no - part# 88515-60190 $67.08

unit sub-assy, radia - part# 87107-35100 $280.53 (heater core)

thermistor, cooler - part# 88625-60190 $11.83 (temperature blend control sensor)

servo sub-assy, damp - part# 87106-35120 $134.46

servo sub-assy, damp - part# 87106-35150 $122.22

servo sub-assy, damp - part# 87106-35180 $136.27

evaporator sub-assy - part# 88501-35130 $224.57

condenser drier element bag - part# 88474-17010 $75

total for everything comes to ------------ $1051.95
plus shipping ------------------------------ + $76.39

total cost from ToyotaPartsDeal.com -- $1,127.34

santech replacement o-ring kit off ebay ----- $8.00

so I am all in at what im calling -------- $1,135.00

Next fill add the Freon with the leak indicator. Then use the black light to find it. Check the condenser coil and look at condensate drain hose to see if the evaporator is leaking.

it may very well turn out to be the evaporator because I see no obvious signs of a leak anywhere and no oil residue at any of the fittings or connections.

Evap....Do you smell it when you get in the 4runner after it sat for a while?

my money is on the evap, you should smell refrigrant inside the car...affter being parked for a while, i have the same issue........thoiugh a refill lasts me between 8 to 10months, if car is driven constantly...but less than 5months if parked for days intermittently

cant really tell to be honest, I don't drive around that much so it usually sits for a week at a time, and its leather interior so mostly all I smell is leather in the hot sun.

plus I am going to say im old and my smeller isn't all that sensitive to be able detect the sweet smell of Freon but I will try to see. I think the leak dye and watch for it showing up by the drain tube might be my best option.

I just got the runner, and had put a can of Freon in about a month after I got it but didn't think anything of it at the time since its not unusual to need it once a year in some vehicles, but then I just had to do it again so its a big leak, by most a/c leak standards, but not like its obvious enough to see oil anywhere its leaking from.

if I went to the stealership to have an evap replaced, what kind of money are we talking about here?

I saw the process involved and know the dash needs to be stripped right down to the firewall and quite frankly I am in no condition to do that if I was willing to try it lol.

plus I would sure as hell would want to have a warranty on such a super involved repair like this so that if the new evap was defective and it failed in a day, or a week, or 6 months from now, because it was defective, and had to be replaced again. I would sure as hell want it covered under a repair warranty so it didn't cost me anything to redo it.

murphy's law and his cousin "bad luck" lives at my house full time lol.

also, where is the heater core at? if im going to spend a fortune having the evap replaced I sure as hell want anything else done too if the dash is going to be stripped down to the bare shell

@keakar

The heater core is with the evap. In the picture the evap is on the left, next to the drivers right leg. The heater core is on the right, between the air intake/fan and the evap. You can see the inlet hose at the back.
And yes it is a big job to get everything out!

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so then it "is" a really good idea to have both replaced at the same time then right?

Yep , and check the servo motors and linkage too.

no way am I gonna do this job

just trying to replace anything and everything that it makes sense to replace when the job is done.

I plan to keep this runner for another 10-15 years so anything not easy to replace while its apart I would rather buy new and not have it fail later in another year or two or three

are you eligible for the dash replacement?..if yes..thats a good window to chnge out the evap...since they will strip down the dash to do the replacement. a few extra quid to the dealership ..am sure they will help swap out the evap

not sure really? but there is nothing wrong with my dash so im guessing it would need to have issues to qualify.

I borrowed a leak detector and will see what I can find this weekend when I have time to get more into it

I think I have a "small" leak at the valve core where you add Freon, it was hard to tell with the wind blowing and wind sets those detectors off so will have to do a more thorough check to confirm that one way or the other

It's easy to check if you have a valve core leaking, use a little bit of soapy water, Freon will leak out as a gas and should produce bubbles.

talk about sticker shock lol

last time I bought valve cores many many years ago they were like 25 cents each (4 in a pack for a $1), took a quick look at what they sell and they are like $5 each !!!!!!!!!!!!

holy cow that's inflation

haven't checked anything yet but I will be hoping its just a valve core leak, its rather odd though that I see no sign of oil from it (if it is indeed the source of the leak) I say that because in my experience they all leak "some" but the cap o-ring is what really seals it to stop it