SRT4runner

Saw there was a small oil spot under the 4runner today, upon further investigation I found there is a small crack in the small aluminum A/C line located just behind the passenger side headlight that dripped out a little bit of a/c oil. Does anyone know the easiest way to repair this? The crack is located in a straight section of the tubing, but is kind of hard to get to so it may be difficult to replace just that section of the line. I can post pictures if necessary.

On a side note, I'm almost wondering if my trans cooler lines (that run right next to it) may have caused this to fail due to the heat being near the a/c lines? Just random thinking....

Sensei

If it's the high pressure line then , uhh, repairing it could be sketchy. Never have repaired a hp line. I have seen the suction line repaired with JB weld.
JB Weld and duct tape, God's gift to the offroader !

andrewflores17

jb weld and a little jb putty should do the trick along with a clamp let set over night should hold i did it to my jettas turbo been holding for 20,000 miles now so just clean sand goop then putty and let dry and then clamp it down to put a little extra force on it should hold

Outsane

tig weld it!

corax

Does your A/C still work at all? If you leaked out enough refrigerant to cause an oil spot, the A/C will be non-functional. Are you sure the oil you found didn't come from somewhere else?

If it is the high pressure line (usually smaller diameter than the low pressure lines), you're probably SOL on a "bandaid" type repair - the high pressure side normally sees over 200 psi and can spike above 300 psi on a hot day. From where you say it is, it's probably a high pressure line.

DailyDrive

Doubt JB weld will last long. That tube goes through heat/cool cycle all the time the A/C is on. From the DIY department, you might be able to cut along the crack and put a flare fitting in there. Tack welding it is the best of course.

wyoming9

iTrader: (1)

If you like your Ac as much as I do .

Don`t mess around just put a new line on. The system is all ready empty if the line is indeed cracked.

profuse007

If the line is removable, get it replaced.

NicCantDecide

Make sure its actually your AC line. If your AC works, its not the line. If it doesn't, it could be the line.

Replace the line as profuse007 said. Not worth it blowing and getting your AC recharged multiple times.

I'm not sure about the late 90's models specifically but AC lines in general are threaded the ends and you should just be able to detach it at both ends and replace. Of course, being a "newer" vehicle, there's probably a ton of other crap covering the AC lines...

SRT4runner

Ok Update time, WITH PICS!

Picture time:

here's a diagram of the line where the pinhole leak is located


Here's the front of the truck. The line that is leaking is circled.


Here's the line inside the just inside the engine bay. This view is looking straight up from underneath the truck. The crack is circled.


So the leak is like the size of a pinhole and the oil from the line will seep out of the hole VERY slowly, even when the motor is turned off (it will produce about a small drop every hour or so). The "Oil" that leaks out of it is clear, and feels like oil. My A/C still works perfectly and blows ice cold. When I ran the motor with the A/C on full blast, the leak did not get any worse and I did not feel any kind of pressure coming out of the hole. Does anyone know what this line does exactly? It doesn't seem to be part of the high pressure line. Is there an easy fix for this? I'm tempted to try epoxy due to the VERY slow nature of this leak.

justin_4runner

after seeing pics i can see why u dont want to replace, but if u can i would look around and see if u can find a replacement for it, to weld the pipe is going to be hard, i would see if u can find someone that is parting one out and get the pipe from them...

cruiserjim

check with a good ac shop that has a high frequency tig welder. I bet they wouldn't charge no more than $20.00 to weld it, but they will probally want to recharge the unit

SRT4runner

UPDATE

I found the part (# 8871635390 ) which retails for $44. I called the dealership and apparently it costs around $500 to install the tube and recharge the system. I've never worked on an A/C system before, does it require any special tools? I may try calling an AC shop in the area and get a quote because $500 seems like a lot of money for a crack in a pipe.

cruiserjim

yes it does take some special tools like a vacuum pump. a/c shops don't remind answering questions normally

SRT4runner

UPDATE:
So I tried to epoxy the leak and it failed. The drip was still there after drying overnight, oh well it was worth to try for $5.

I removed the line which was super easy, it took a screw driver to remove the plastic clip on the one end and a socket to remove a bolt from the other. When I removed it, all the freon emptied out of the system (by emptied, I mean shot out all over the place cause it was still pressurized! safety glasses are my friend). Funny how the line was able to leak out oil, but it was still pressurized???? Anyways, I ordered all the parts online and will be waiting for them to come in the mail, hopefully by next week at the latest. I'm hoping this works out, then I would just have to pay for the A/C to get recharged which shouldn't cost too much.

DailyDrive

Putting a flare coupling would be a few $, and just as good as a new tube.

Don't forget to tape the holes in your open system. It's kind of like open heart surgery, you don't want anything getting in there.
And it won't be a recharge service. You'll need to have it vacuumed, and refrigerant oil/refilled. This is $100+.

J2F42C

If you can spare an extra $40 (Toyota list price), I'd get a new receiver as well. Depending on how long the hole has been there, who knows how much garbage is in it now.

A good AC indy shop for everything should be $250~$300 tops I would think.

SRT4runner

UPDATE:

Everything is now fixed. If you learn 1 thing from my experience it should be REPLACE THE RECEIVER whenever the A/C system has been discharged and exposed to the air. Inside the receiver is silca gel that absorbs moisture and contaminates in the system. When the A/C system is exposed to air, it can get contaminates into the system (including moisture) that can damage the system. The receiver is like a filter for these contaminates and should be replaced and it is cheap insurance, the part can be found for ~$30 and takes 1 minute to install. It is well worth it to buy this part than to pay for the cost to refill the system only to find out the receiver should have been replaced before it was filled. This also helps keep excess wear and tear off other components in the system.

Other things learned:
Wear safety glasses! I had a leak in the system and it was still pressurized somehow.
Epoxy doesn't work on high pressure A/C lines.

I replaced the line, receiver, and new rubber O-rings where the connections were made. Make sure to get new O-rings, they are cheap insurance that a new leak won't occur. These parts cost me $75 total and took an hour of my time to put in. I was charged $190 to refill the system, which included a dye that is used to check for any future leaks if they occur. $265 compared to $500+ the dealer originally wanted, saving money and learning something FTW!

So that was my A/C adventure for the week. Hopefully someone else can learn something from my experience.

Outsane

so is it nice and cold?

corax

Yes, you don't want to get frost bite on your eyeball from escaping freon

from the Dupont MSDS: