Obviously I DON'T, but I do know quite a bit about cars and fixing them. I DO know that the "you need special tools to do that" line is used so often at dealerships to get them business and make money.

 

That's why this forum has been so valuable to me (and many others) as it tells (and often shows) you what stuff you can do yourself and what stuff you can't. And when you are at the mercy of the $tealership.

 

Well, it was one of the battery A/C refrigerant lines that had to be replaced, and it only came as a line kit....so over $1100 later I get the car back and now the AC doesn't work. I take it in again, and they said they checked the charge for 15 min and it held. Therefore, it is a new problem (not a no charge recheck) and the core needs to be replaced??? More hundreds of dollars... They (stealership) said it was normal wear and tear, and it was just a coincidence it happened right after. REALLY???

I'm picking it up soon so what do you guys think here?

 

Ah, the old "just coincidence" scam.

If the A/C was working fine before you took it in, I'd fight them on it. Depending on how you paid, you can even threaten to dispute it with your CC company; that might get their attention.

 

I suppose it is possible that the lack of refrigerant damaged the system. But one thing bothers me. Did the A/C work when you picked up the car?

In any case, the A/C is critical for getting the hybrid components to run correctly, it cools the battery.

 

Careful. In some states it is a crime to do this if you paid with a credit card in order to get the motor vehicle repair facility to relinquish its possessory mechanics lien, especially after you signed for the repairs when you picked the vehicle up.

 

Can you name one state where it's a crime to threaten to dispute a charge?

 

guys...

for pin hole leaks in the A/C system, use one (or two or three) $15 cans of replacement freon 134a with STOP LEAK.

MECHANICS hate this because it puts them in a catch 22.

They can't recycle the freon (if its still in there) during servicing, but per EPA rules they are not allowed to intentionally vent to atmospere.

However, this is usually a moot point. No one changes out their freon at regular intervals like oil changes. If you are in for A/C service, 99.9% chance it is because the system self discharged. I know it could be just the compressor, but usually not.

That being said, a couple cans of Freon and 15 minutes of work on mine sealed my leak and it has been fine for over 5 years and 100,000 additional miles.

It is so cheap and easy, you don't even get your hands dirty, and it all goes in the top side of the hood. I would always try this first for tiny pin hole leaks.

 

A/C services are getting smarter than you think! They are using a refrigerant verifier on your vehicle first. If it shows that the system contains stop leak, they will refuse to service your vehicle and you will be the one that is stuck. Some are using the expensive AirSept Recycle Guard Filtering System. They have to do something because the stop leak wrecks recovery machines.

Most leaks are from the valve cores in the service ports and compressor shaft seals.

 

LOL, just about any state that has an extortion statute depending on what you are demanding that they do. My above statement applies to situations where one actually did dispute it after gaining possession of the vehicle.