2019 Ram 1500 hvac valve core leak, well maybe not.

[Snert]

Took my truck to test dealership today for oil change and to test/diagnose hvac system.

The charged the system, and at first came up no issues. They then disconnected the machine and found a leak.

Seems the schrader valve core is leaking slowly.
They quoted $445 to replace leaking schrader valve.
Valve was approximately $20, plus half a hour labor to install.
On top of that, $425 for labor and R234yf refrigerant while vacuum the system down and recharge/top up system.

Has anyone done the valve core replacement themselve? The tool seems to prevent/minimalize loss of refrigerant. Would the vacuum down be needed if using proper tool?

 

[Scap]

Took my truck to test dealership today for oil change and to test/diagnose hvac system.

The charged the system, and at first came up no issues. They then disconnected the machine and found a leak.

Seems the schrader valve core is leaking slowly.
They quoted $445 to replace leaking schrader valve.
Valve was approximately $20, plus half a hour labor to install.
On top of that, $425 for labor and R234yf refrigerant while vacuum the system down and recharge/top up system.

Has anyone done the valve core replacement themselve? The tool seems to prevent/minimalize loss of refrigerant. Would the vacuum down be needed if using proper tool?

You are correct, there is a valve core replacement tool.
No vacuum needed, and minimal refrigerant loss.

 

[kapinallinen2]

Took my truck to test dealership today for oil change and to test/diagnose hvac system.

The charged the system, and at first came up no issues. They then disconnected the machine and found a leak.

Seems the schrader valve core is leaking slowly.
They quoted $445 to replace leaking schrader valve.
Valve was approximately $20, plus half a hour labor to install.
On top of that, $425 for labor and R234yf refrigerant while vacuum the system down and recharge/top up system.

Has anyone done the valve core replacement themselve? The tool seems to prevent/minimalize loss of refrigerant. Would the vacuum down be needed if using proper tool?

The tool is like 40 bucks and change from amazon.

 

[Snert]

Well, when I left the dealership the AC ws working properly.
Went home parked and turned the truck off. About 4 hours later, remote start it while walking out. Get in and it's blowing luke warm air with temp set at 65.
Go into town , parked and went into the store. Cone out 30-40 minutes later. Still not blowing cold air, shut off the AC on the dash. Drive for 15 minutes, press the auto button and it's blowing cold air again.

Not feeling to trusting with the dealership diagnosis.
If refrigerant was low,why would it work one minute nd not the next. Sometimes it won't work for a day or two.

 

[kapinallinen2]

Well, when I left the dealership the AC ws working properly.
Went home parked and turned the truck off. About 4 hours later, remote start it while walking out. Get in and it's blowing luke warm air with temp set at 65.
Go into town , parked and went into the store. Cone out 30-40 minutes later. Still not blowing cold air, shut off the AC on the dash. Drive for 15 minutes, press the auto button and it's blowing cold air again.

Not feeling to trusting with the dealership diagnosis.
If refrigerant was low,why would it work one minute nd not the next. Sometimes it won't work for a day or two.

Could be the blend door acting up?

 

[Cbty2050]

Well, when I left the dealership the AC ws working properly.
Went home parked and turned the truck off. About 4 hours later, remote start it while walking out. Get in and it's blowing luke warm air with temp set at 65.
Go into town , parked and went into the store. Cone out 30-40 minutes later. Still not blowing cold air, shut off the AC on the dash. Drive for 15 minutes, press the auto button and it's blowing cold air again.

Not feeling to trusting with the dealership diagnosis.
If refrigerant was low,why would it work one minute nd not the next. Sometimes it won't work for a day or two.

Take it back.

 

[Snert]

Going to call them tomorrow.

As for the blend doors. I have another post here about the blend door actuators. They appear to be working.

I honestly think it is the climate control module. Just have no way to test it.

 

[John Kloehr]

Could be a flaky blend door, could also be refrigerant level is on the edge. As I recall, the sensor is on the low-pressure side. When the AC is shut off, high pressure moves slowly to low pressure; then the system will work again, but only for a while.

While the low-pressure line should get cold enough (in the engine bay) to condense water, it should not ice up. Being is a symptom of low freon.

I am intrigued by a tool which allows replacing a Schrader valve without evacuating the system first. Schrader valves are best treated as single-use. I do not ever allow "checking" the refrigerant level unless there is a problem.

The service cost is not unreasonable if valve replacement requires evacuating the refrigerant first (recovery fees plus the time it takes for the pump to do the work ties up a bay). If a $40 tool eliminates this activity, then the book time should adjust accordingly.

I do most if my own AC work. The exception is if the system needs evacuation (I pay for refrigerant recovery). If the system already puked the guts, I will repair, pump down, and refill myself.

[FYI: Book time is longer than shop or mechanic time, it includes weighted personnel costs for the front and back end, sourcing parts and materials, and disposal and cleanup; a fully qualified and experienced mechanic should turn in as much as 3X book time on average in any day. This is in keeping with the additional days support personnel put in to make it possible.]

 

[Scap]

I had one of these 20 years ago when I was on tools.

https://cdvalve.com/products/cd3930/

 

[Cbty2050]

Book time is longer than shop or mechanic time,

Book time is a guide to how long a job might take, that is how quotes are made. There are plenty of jobs done that the tech will not get done in the "book time". Especially the one off jobs.

 

[John Kloehr]

Book time is a guide to how long a job might take, that is how quotes are made. There are plenty of jobs done that the tech will not get done in the "book time". Especially the one off jobs.

Might have been better to say "on average" and for routine jobs. Anything custom really should be dome as T&M.

Got a buddy who works as a professional mechanic. The bane of his work day is brake jobs or suspension work on rust buckets. Stuff just breaks on disassembly and getting back to something he can repair adds time and hurts profit (customers get a guaranteed final repair quote so all the other stuff goes onto the shop and he comes up short on the work since he is paid on the original bid of book time). Really sucks for him since someone else does the estimating.

 

[Cbty2050]

Got a buddy who works as a professional mechanic. The bane of his work day is brake jobs or suspension work on rust buckets. Stuff just breaks on disassembly and getting back to something he can repair adds time and hurts profit (customers get a guaranteed final repair quote so all the other stuff goes onto the shop and he comes up short on the work since he is paid on the original bid of book time). Really sucks for him since someone else does the estimating.

I am a tech, some think I am really good at it and I am paid like a top level tech. With that said a job quote is that, if anything goes wrong like broken bolts, seized parts, and so on the cost is transferred to the client in most cases. If I am doing a wheel bearing and the axle shaft is seized in the hub, we call a timeout and get ahold of the client and explain the situation and why more labor or parts are needed.