Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

Hi, Ran into some snow at a curb while taking a turn (New England Weather). The front bumper bottom part cracked and broke. After parking I heard a hissing noise and some refrigerant seems to be leaking. The noise seems to come at a junction near the radiator connected by 2 metal tubes. Any idea what the leak is and how to repair that potion only? Any input as to what exactly is the diagnosis and repair?
I have uploaded pictures, the leak is where the bent tube connects.

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

You have to replace line. You can buy it, likely - dealer or junk yard.
You will have to evacuate and re-charge AC thereafter. Line replacement is easy. It's freon evacuation that is NOT. as you have to evacuate it before line removal. Of course, if there's anything left. Connection is simple single bolt and fitment with 2 O-rings tube.

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

Oh, yes, it's AC line going to AC radiator.

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

Be sure that who ever does the work knows exactly what happened. They need to pull vacuum for a while to be sure that the condenser was not damaged. Also, when those hard lines shift, leaks can occur in other places as well. Depending on the damage, you may wind up replacing the receiver as well.

If it were mine, I would do a flush and a new receiver as insurance that no crud got into the system.

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

It was a slide and into the bank. Not very fast. The bottom part of the bumper was cracked. I checked inside the only leak coming was from this joint.

Q1) By receiver you mean the condenser or where the line is running into?
Q2) is the car safe to drive? Will driving the car out to the mechanic cause any problems?
Q3) I have a personal mechanic handy, is it something he could do without extra tools? To evacuate the refrigerant, what extra tools or loaners (if available) will be needed?
Thanks for your input guys.

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

1. No, the receiver/drier acts as a filter and keeps moisture and crud from reaching critical components.

2. Yes, if a puncture is visible, it would not hurt to "wrap it" for the drive. Especially if it is nasty out.

3. Maybe. I would take it somewhere to have the system flushed and leak checked. Depending on where the damage is located, you could just replace the component yourself, hope for the best and have it leak checked and recharged.

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

AC radiator is called condenser, just like LS mentioned before.
There is no hurt to drive, only make sure AC is not turned on and freon is not pumped into the broken line.
Only damage will be to environment. Your mechanic should be able to replace line, but refill is AC shop job. That is not bad, around $150 or so, unless they really made it complicated for this particular vehicle, considering electrical compressor. Then dealer it is.
Bumper cover will cost you another $500 or so. Cover is not that expensive, say from Certifit. It's paint job that will get you.

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

Hey, but look at it this way. It's only minor damage and no one was hurt. Amen, thank you Lord.

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

Yeah thanks for the input and yes thank god no one was hurt.
UPDATE: So it appears that the hissing noise is gone, so is it same to assume that all the pressurized gas has gone? The o ring connector appeared to be loose, we tightened it.
I am thinking about getting the leak stop from autozone, is it ok to try that? its supposed to be a stop all A/C leak from autozone. The metal doesnt appear to be cracked or damaged, only the joint. I am not running A/C cold. Is it ok to run the heater?
Yeah I have looked at a few bumper cover options, looking for a oem black one.

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

I have got the leak finder & sealant with me, and a refrigerant refill on the way. I am gooing to spray the leak finder to see if I could spot any more leaks. If not my buddy is going to refill the AC freon. Is it ok to fill up using normal procedure or any other special way to fill up since its the hybrid system? Hope you guys can update me before tonight coz I am planning to do it tomorrow.
Anyone who used it or any experience or knowledge on those stuff will be great. Thank you in advance.

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

I'd safely bet, only Georgeahybrid will know if it's safe to DIY refill.
I say, you will end up in leaking system and will keep tossing money at it. My suggestion is to actually bite the bullet, take her to dealer, or find out, who dealer outsources this type of jobs to, and let it done professionally. I somehow don't believe, you had "just loose bolt". Does not happen that way.

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

First things first....Do NOT use a SEALER in your AC system. The next guy to work on it will charge you a fortune to clean that crap out of everything. Second, you can replace the lines but you will still need to pull a vacuum on the system and charge it with oil before putting in refrigerant. Any local tech can do the job for you that has an AC pump and charger unit. I would have them put a new dryer on plus any other parts that are cracked from the hit, pull a vacuum to check for leaks, add the correct amount of PAG oil and fill with R-134.

You can do a DIY fill but most of the time it is a useless proposition. Think about it for a second, you have a sealed system that nothing can leak out of that has leaked refrigerant.......Yes, you can add R-134 but it will leak back out again unless you fix the problem. To fix the problem, the system has to be discharged, the leak fixed and a vacuum pulled as noted above.

If you do decide to do it yourself, make sure you pull a vacuum and add the right amount of PAG oil. If you don't, a VERY expensive compressor replacement will be in your future.....

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

Hi Georgiahybrid. I Almost out the sealant in. But with your word of caution I am not putting it in.
So there are no lines cracked, but what I noticed was the O ring was loosened. The small line behind the bumper connected to the condenser had got pushed back and that's where the leak was felt.
My question since I could physically feel the leak, can I try adding r134 through a regular bottle from autozone, without pag oil? That way I can confirm if I do have a leak or tightening the o ring has fixed. Is it safe? Or is there a special way to add. I just want to confirm the leak before I take it in

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

If you hit hard enough to pop the O-ring seal on that connection, you will be lucky if that is all you have done. You would have to run the AC compressor in order to build up enough head pressure to see if it will leak. Doing that without oil is not a good idea and the reason that a tech will pull a vacuum on the system in order to do a check.

This is not a $1,000 fix to your system. ANY decent AC tech can do the job and more than likely, will be cheaper than it will cost you trying to do it yourself. It does not need to go to the dealer for something this simple but the equipment that you really need to have is not something a normal DIY person has sitting around the house.

As much as I have sitting in my garage, I don't have an AC pump at the house either nor do I want one for the 1 or 2 times ever 10 years that I might need one. Work is a different issue however....

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

Thank you for your input. I will be taking it to a tech.

Re: Ran into snow bank, refrigerant leaking!
 

David, thanks for backing me up on this. Pretty much, you repeated everything I said - don't DIY, and if it was hit hard enough to pop out connection, "just loose O-ring" is not likely to be the only result. Thing with human senses is - we can not sense microcracks and chances of those being present in aluminum tube are high.
OP, all the best. You may disregard my words, but if GH says so - that IS so. He knows his chit.