2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission AC Repair, Everyone Get a Filter! (Long)

[nwinters]

I completed the reapir of my air conditioning system today, took me about 12hrs, could probably do it in 6 now that I know what to do. In the picutures below you can see how dust, leaves, dirt and other debris will gather on the evaparator. I couldn't find any leaks in the system under the hood, other people have reported the same, this usually means the evaparator is leaking. You can read a bit more about it from the following threads.



AC Thread 1



AC Thread 2



Here are some pics from my install. You can see where the buildup is on the evaparator.



Pic of the 'Instrument Panel Assembly' removed. Instrument Panel Assembly means just about everything in front of you BTW, I didn't realize this.

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It all comes out as one piece, once you take out the steering column, airbag stuff, and disconnect a few wiring harnesses. The most difficult things I encountered were the aftermarket accessories I installed which were not intended to be removed as an entire assembly (stereo AMP, COMP box, etc... . )

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Lets get the thing opened up and see if this is really where the problem lies.

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This is a view of the top housing (bottom up), showing the evaparator with debris buildup along its bottom edge.

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This is a shot down into the bottom of the housing.

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New evap left, old evap right. You can see the green gunk among the dirt/dust/leaves etc. along the bottom, this is the dye that is used to find leaks in the system. The dye didn't get to the outside via moisture drain, so I never saw any leaks. I was relieved to see it, b/c I had done all this work to get to this point.

The white object above the old evap is a piece of styrofoam that helped to trap more debris, I think it probably helps with airflowacross the evap, I left it out when installing the new evap.

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This job absolutly s*cked! My back hurts and my arms are bruised and cut. The worst part about this is that this could all have been prevented with good air filtration from the factory to keep debris out. My truck is a 98. 5, I've owned cars 10yrs plus and don't get this problem.

I'm not even going to run the system untill I get the air filter system from Genos, it is totally worth the cost if it can keep things clean in the truck.

 

[baby.driver]

I don't know what to say...

that kind of work scares me.

Now you've got all this experience I'll call YOU when mine starts to leak.



Jay

 

[mchelius]

That's NASTY!!

:--) WOW! Is it the same nightmare to do the heater core too?

 

[nwinters]

Its the same job for the heater core, you can see the top of it as the copper tubes in the3rd picture, and the bottom of it in the 4th picture behind the evaparator.

Ther heater core in my truck looked great, the evaparator had accumulated all the crud.



Is this 'Shadetree mechanic' stuff still?



Nate

 

[CFowler]

i dont miss that type of work at all!! can anyone tell me about the air filtration system from genos you mentioned? thanks that sounds like good advice .

 

[Doc Tinker]

It looks like Chrysler hasn't changed the way they mount the heater/evaporator housing much since the seventies. I used to hate jobs like that at the radiator shop, but they made money



It looks like the blower motor should drop out the bottom pretty easily though



Excellent thread by-the-way



Doc

 

[jcbrown]

Wiring...

Guess I'm going to have MAJOR headache if and when my dash has to come out? I've stuffed electronic boxes and wiring up under the dash. One of which you cannot see, only feel. :--)

 

[TRpolk]

Nate,



I feel your pain. I recently replaced the evaporator coil in my wifes Grand Cherokee, and it too was a PITA job. I did however,

have a detailed instruction guide written by a Jeep tech. that chimes in on one of the Jeep forums. Without that, I would have

removed way too many components unnecessarily. Thanks for the insight, and I will have an air filter on all my vehicles HVAC systems from now on.

 

[thepitts]

Question

Can you get a vacum hose in to clean it out before putting on a prefilter?



Thanks

 

[nwinters]

I believe you may be able to. You can take out the fan/motor from inside the cab without any major headaches. I believe you could snake a vaccum hose up through there and suck the dirt and debris off the evaparator.

If you took off the windshield wipers and plastic cowl below them you should be able to clean out that area as well.

Nate

 

[Doc Tinker]

nwinters - I hope you took advantage of the teardown to pack more sound killing materials in there



Doc

 

[Motorhead]

Nate, Thanks for the pics!! It showed me where the drain hose is supposed to hook up. Chris

 

[C Schomer]

Great post, Nate! Did you use UV detector? That stuff is terrific - it shows ANY leak! I've found pinhole flaws in tubing with it. Craig

 

[illflem]

I had a Jimmy at work whose heater core was clogged with leafs. Rather than take everything apart I hooked a 160 mph leaf blower up to one of the vents and blocked off the rest. It was cool watching the leafs shoot up in front of the windshield. I'm sure it didn't get them all but the heater worked again.

 

[shendren]

nate, i feel your pain to. . i own a dodge as well! .



where does the filter from genos go?



illflem, was that an electric blower?



scott.

 

[Pit Bull]

Wow, I think I would just trade the truck in on a new one That is too much work. Dealer would charge big $$$ matter of fact it might be cheaper if you couldn't do this yourself to get a new truck.

 

[kaffine krazed]

It's not that bad of a job on the trucks. Try some of the cars they can be a pain. I like when the customer has to come get something from the glove box when I have the dash out and insist on doing it themselfs instead of letting me get it for them I really need to get a camrea.

 

[WTBurke]

Nate... You Are Da Man!

Holly cow... . Shade Tree Mechanic... . I THINK NOT!

I did put the "Cab Fresh" filter in place just after I bought mine last August. It's a neat filter and yes it makes a big difference on how much less dust enters the cab.

After seeing this effort I'm glad I did! Thanks Nate for a kick-butt post!



William

 

[Motorhead]

For what it is worth, I usually run my A/C on Max position. That is a recirculated air mode that closes off the outside air. Keeps the smells out incase an old stinky non PS 7. 3 ford is in front of me.

Chris

 

[10-G]

Ahhhhhhh the horror. I had almost forgotten about that fiasco. I did that job on my 96. Stealer wanted $1,100. 12 hours is pretty durn fast for an amateur. It took me three 8 hour days. That includes running parts and going to get tools that I didnt have. Still had to take it to a/c shop for vaccum and recharge.



It can be done without completely removing the dash. The passenger side can be swung out and supported by a jack stand.



By the way-good job!!! Thanks for the pics.