It's been a hot couple weeks inside my XK. Air Conditioning went out. Always blew cold since I bought it. Figured a simple charge would do. $550 later and no leaks detected, I'm out the door. Back to new...or so I thought. It lasted two days. Back to the shop. This time they find a leak in/at the evaporator under the dash. "Ouch...that sounds expensive". It's worse, there aren't any evaporators (#C2P 8713) in stock anywhere. It could be a couple months.

Forum friends...Do you have any suggestions on where I can find an evaporator?

 

Ouch. I'd normally advise you to get a second opinion on the leak location, but NO mechanic would want to do that job if it wasn't necessary.
Partsgeek shows having one.

https://www.partsgeek.com/73vggg1-ja...4aAgwDEALw_wcB

 

$550 to vacuum test for leak and re-charge! Jeez. I pay the equivalent of about $75 in the UK.

I would be worried that your garage not only charges exorbitant prices but also seem to be incompetent because losing all the coolant in two days is a pretty big leak. If they are incompetent, I'm wondering whether they have diagnosed the leak correctly as the evaporator is normally OK as it is protected from the environment. The condenser is much more likely to be the problem and they are in ready supply and easy to replace. I would get a second opinion at an auto a/c specialist before committing to more expense.

Richard

 

Richard has a point. If they were filling up your AC they should’ve checked for leaks. And if you’ve got that big of a leak that means your system was pretty empty which meant they should’ve pulled a vacuum which meant they should’ve seen the leak. Sure it might be possible that a leak under pressure doesn’t leak under the vacuum but I think if they would’ve pulled a vacuum they would’ve seen this

 

Every A/C system I've used requires the user to first pull vacuum before the fill. I suppose there are ways around this, like a finger over the fill lines, but that's just stupid.

 

According to this dealer it's the same evap on the F-type - ya'd think they would be available:

https://parts.jaguarpalmbeach.com/p/...7/C2P8713.html

 

Get a second opinion.

 

One&Done,
I had the same thing happen to me about a month ago. Lost A/C and took it to my mechanic. He replaced either the compressor or the condenser, I just don't remember but can ask him. Air worked great for about a week and then went out again. Had to replace the same part again and that worked except I picked it up from some other service I was having done, and it was warm again. He checked and filled the freon, and it's been great for the last month. For parts you might call a Jaguar dismantler, we have several here in Los Angeles that I've used. If you need some names and phone numbers, let me know.

 

Thank you for all the replies. I definitely had sticker shock on the refill cost. He explained to me it was high due to the process to fill R1234YF Freon. Just the Freon was $200. They had to recover the old freon (which was non-existant), vacuumed, and charged. No leaks were detected and it held pressure. I am assuming, the vacuum or recharge made the hole in the evaporator larger. Who knows. The second time they performed the same procedure. Still no visible leaks under their light. They concluded the evaporator from a "sniff test". A second opinion is coming soon.

MHMINNICH...I do not believe that is the correct part. Looks similar but I am seeing the part from $900 - $1200. At $68.95, something doesn't seem correct.

McJAG222...Thank you for this info. I called and they do not have stock.

tberg...Please share your contacts. I will give them a call. Not completely sure about a used part due to the potential failure rate and the labor cost involved in pulling the dash and replacing everything. Unless, they can provide a warranty.

I will update when I have more info. For now, it's morning and evening drives only...with the top down.

 

Ah, I would have thought that a 2015 version of an existing model would still be using R134A. If you car really is R1234YF then I can understand the additional expense.

Are you absolutely sure that yours is not R134A? Check the under-hood sticker. If it is R134A then either you have been completely ripped off or your system has been filled with the wrong refrigerant and that is not good although, as the fittings are different, I'm not sure how that could happen.

Richard

 

From Google:
If your vehicle was purchased from 2014 to present then there is a good chance that you will need R-1234yf refrigerant. As with older systems, an R-134a recharge hose will not work on an R-1234yf coupler.

 

I don't know whether it was different in the USA but certainly over here manufacturers had the option not to switch to R1234YF for models which were introduced before 2014, and most exercised that option rather than re-engineer the a/c system for an existing model. We have several cars which were registered after 2014 but are all still using R134A whereas we only have one which is using R1234YF.

I never believe anything that Google tells me. With me, it ain't necessarily true until I see it myself 😉

Richard

 

Vacuum test does not tell the whole story, however a pressure test could.

 

The issue is that a vacuum has to be drawn as that is the only way to remove residual refrigerant and water out of the a/c system so it makes sense to use the vacuum to test for leaks. The vacuum has to be held for some time, at least 15 minutes but the longer the better, and I have never known a leak not to be detected by a properly executed vacuum drawdown. If a pressure test were performed after the vacuum test it would inevitably push up the costs even further.

Whilst I'm sure that a pressure test would make it easier to actually locate the leak, an experienced a/c technician will almost always be able to pin down the leak with the vacuum test which is why I suspect the competence of the OP's garage.

Richard

 

I invested in one of these nifty little gadgets which has more than paid for itself! its also very fun to use.