Well - bad news today - evaporator core needs replacing. More than one dealer ball parked me $2200-$3000 for the work. That is out of the question. I have looked at the DIY threads on this, and the work is daunting to say the least and would probably require borrowing a car for a period of time or trying to knock it out all in one swing on a weekend. Neither option is very appealing. Not repairing it is likewise out of the question with a 1 hour commute in south Louisiana.

I found a local shop that that came recommended to me by my normal mechanic (this is not something he wants to do) that estimated $1200 or so. This was much more to my liking, but the only catch is the parts. They use Carquest for parts, and any work performed with those parts comes with a 2 year warranty - which includes labor costs. If I bring them Toyota parts they will warranty any defect in the work for 90 days - nothing for parts failures.

Anyone used non-oem parts for this job? Should I insist on using Toyota stuff?