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100 Series AC Evaporator and Valve removal

Andy Harvey

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2010
Messages
343
Does anyone know what it is like to get the evaporator / valve out of a 100 series. It looks pretty full on under the glove box but not sure if you can actually get the thing out without removing everything, can you just remove the ECU and a couple of other things and then undo the nuts and screws that hold the assembly to the firewall or do you really need to pull out the dashpad and everything else with it.

My A/C has been driving me round the bend, replaced the pump (it seized), condenser (it was blocked) and now it looks like the TX valve has gone (I think I'm casing crap round the system and as I do one thing it messes up the next. The last time I had the system charged (yesterday) it wouldn't hold pressure, reaching pressure, turning the compressor and then immediately losing pressure and disengaging the clutch. The guy doing my A/C is going to completely clean the system and provide a new TX valve and clean and re-oil the compressor but he wants me to get the evaporator out if I can.
 
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OK for others who have to do this I managed to get out the Evaporator and TX valve without removing the dashboard but it's a bit of a pain. however this is how you do it.
(before you do anything have the aircon professionally discharged).
1. Remove the Glovebox (2 screws)
2. Remove the top inner trim piece that holds the airbag cable (lever out the cover and disconnect the airbag) by removing the 3 screws.
3. Remove the antenna relay box (2 screws and one multi connector.
4. under the (I think) 8 screws that hold the front cover on the evaporator assembly (this is the cover that the antenna relay was screwed to and also has a removable cover which the (optional) pollen filters are fitted in.
5. under the bonnet remove the two clips from the cables (these can be removed without the special tool by putting a jewellers screwdriver in the smaller of the pair of slots and levering down the clip that holds the clip together. Then pull out the two pipes.
6. back inside the car, with the front cover of the evaporator box removed and holding the other cables out of the way you need to pull on the bottom dash bar (that the glovebox mounts to) but do this carfully but there is just enough give in it to enable you to pull the evaporator out of the case and get it out from under the dash. This is the most difficult part. Disconnect the evaporator temp sensor by pulling out of the vanes of the evaporator.

Now to make reassembly easier I am going to cut the bottom bar of the dash at both ends, mount it onto a suitably sized aluminium bar and then drill a hole either end and use screws and blind attachments to reconnect it in place.

Actually only too about 20 minutes to do the job and hopefully it won't ever need to come out again.

Next job get the evaporator flushed, a new TX valve, reassemble and then get it re-charged. Hopefully 4th time will be a charm.
 
Update
Well it's all working again at last. After reinstalling the evaporator with the new Expansion valve (TX valve) it still was not working and the system was vacuuming. In the end after flushing the evaporator again and the pipes and the condenser and it still not working the A/C guy pulled the filter out of the dryer assembly (on the drovers side of the condenser. It was absolutely full of crap. Changed this and the A/C worked. Drove it around for another week and then changed the filter again. Now everything is nice and clean and the A/C is colder than it has ever been.
Lessons learned, get the system cleaned out if anything fails - don't assume just because you have replaced a failed part that the rest will be OK. my A/C man has spent a few weeks chasing crap around the system which even killed new parts (the drier filter was new with the condenser). It seems that probably the scenario was that it was dirt in the system that caused the original compressor to die on me, then the blocked condenser caused problems and then chased the dirt around the system which killed the TX valve.. Then having tried to flush the evaporator, it just loosened off the stuff and then when it was charged up it ended up in the filter.
 
OK for others who have to do this I managed to get out the Evaporator and TX valve without removing the dashboard but it's a bit of a pain. however this is how you do it.
(before you do anything have the aircon professionally discharged).
1. Remove the Glovebox (2 screws)
2. Remove the top inner trim piece that holds the airbag cable (lever out the cover and disconnect the airbag) by removing the 3 screws.
3. Remove the antenna relay box (2 screws and one multi connector.
4. under the (I think) 8 screws that hold the front cover on the evaporator assembly (this is the cover that the antenna relay was screwed to and also has a removable cover which the (optional) pollen filters are fitted in.
5. under the bonnet remove the two clips from the cables (these can be removed without the special tool by putting a jewellers screwdriver in the smaller of the pair of slots and levering down the clip that holds the clip together. Then pull out the two pipes.
6. back inside the car, with the front cover of the evaporator box removed and holding the other cables out of the way you need to pull on the bottom dash bar (that the glovebox mounts to) but do this carfully but there is just enough give in it to enable you to pull the evaporator out of the case and get it out from under the dash. This is the most difficult part. Disconnect the evaporator temp sensor by pulling out of the vanes of the evaporator.

Now to make reassembly easier I am going to cut the bottom bar of the dash at both ends, mount it onto a suitably sized aluminium bar and then drill a hole either end and use screws and blind attachments to reconnect it in place.

Actually only too about 20 minutes to do the job and hopefully it won't ever need to come out again.

Next job get the evaporator flushed, a new TX valve, reassemble and then get it re-charged. Hopefully 4th time will be a charm.
Thanks for this post replaced both saved $600 :)
 
After any work on an AC system that has had a problem (like a seized compressor) that involves opening it up, the last thing to do before refilling the system should always be to replace the filter drier.
 
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As peace of mind I use a Toyo drier. If an inferior one may block, burst and send debris round the system.
 
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