97 Es300 Expansion Valve Replacement - $600 Labor!

[kashi125]

I am in HOT Houston, TX and my A/C recently started blowing warm air. Brought it to the mechanic hoping that it would be a cheap recharge--but he told me that there is NO vacuum in the system and said that it is my expansion valve. It is stuck open or something...

Now the expansion valve is $61 but he wants $600 labor to replace it (said he has to take the entire dash apart). I looked at FSM but didn't see any details on how to do this myself. Does anyone have any experience? I have a 97 ES300.

Also, the mechanic recommended replacing the drier and compressor because he said the compressor is making noise. So it looks like:

Compressor: $454

Expansion Valve: $61

Drier: $30

Labor: $600

-----------

Total = $1145 to get my cold air back!

Any ideas? Can I not replace the compressor and hope the expansion valve fixes the problem? Will a bad compressor cause a bad expansion valve? Any help on changing the expansion valve myself will be greatly appreciated.

[mypursuit]

I am in HOT Houston, TX and my A/C recently started blowing warm air. Brought it to the mechanic hoping that it would be a cheap recharge--but he told me that there is NO vacuum in the system and said that it is my expansion valve. It is stuck open or something...

Now the expansion valve is $61 but he wants $600 labor to replace it (said he has to take the entire dash apart). I looked at FSM but didn't see any details on how to do this myself. Does anyone have any experience? I have a 97 ES300.

Also, the mechanic recommended replacing the drier and compressor because he said the compressor is making noise. So it looks like:

Compressor: $454

Expansion Valve: $61

Drier: $30

Labor: $600

-----------

Total = $1145 to get my cold air back!

Any ideas? Can I not replace the compressor and hope the expansion valve fixes the problem? Will a bad compressor cause a bad expansion valve? Any help on changing the expansion valve myself will be greatly appreciated.

\\

Have you taken it to a toyota dealership yet. It would be a second opinion as well as possible cheaper parts and labor!

[kashi125]

Have you taken it to a toyota dealership yet. It would be a second opinion as well as possible cheaper parts and labor!

These prices are from an independent mechanic--Lexus dealer wants $800 labor. I didn't talk to a toyota dealership yet...but I am assuming it would be somewhere in between $600 and $800....

[mburnickas]

I am in HOT Houston, TX and my A/C recently started blowing warm air. Brought it to the mechanic hoping that it would be a cheap recharge--but he told me that there is NO vacuum in the system and said that it is my expansion valve. It is stuck open or something...

Now the expansion valve is $61 but he wants $600 labor to replace it (said he has to take the entire dash apart). I looked at FSM but didn't see any details on how to do this myself. Does anyone have any experience? I have a 97 ES300.

Also, the mechanic recommended replacing the drier and compressor because he said the compressor is making noise. So it looks like:

Compressor: $454

Expansion Valve: $61

Drier: $30

Labor: $600

-----------

Total = $1145 to get my cold air back!

Any ideas? Can I not replace the compressor and hope the expansion valve fixes the problem? Will a bad compressor cause a bad

expansion valve? Any help on changing the expansion valve myself will be greatly appreciated.

It is not hot, it is the humidity.

[homemechanic]

how does the mechanic know it's the expansion valve needs to be replaced? the valve is located inside the AC unit under the dash. It's a big job to remove the dash and all, but I wouldn't do it unless I know for sure the valve needs to be replaced.

by the way, does your total price includes freon recharge?

if u really have to do this, may be u can skip the compressor replacement for now. since the compressor replacement is a separate job from the expansion valve, the labor should be less.

[kashi125]

how does the mechanic know it's the expansion valve needs to be replaced? the valve is located inside the AC unit under the dash. It's a big job to remove the dash and all, but I wouldn't do it unless I know for sure the valve needs to be replaced.

by the way, does your total price includes freon recharge?

if u really have to do this, may be u can skip the compressor replacement for now. since the compressor replacement is a separate job from the expansion valve, the labor should be less.

Thanks for the response.

The mechanic knows because he checked the pressure on the low and high side and came to the conclusion that its a bad expansion valve based on that. Also, after reading these forums, my car's symptoms seem similar to the other people who had expansion valve problem. It cools sometimes, sometimes doesn't. Today when the temperature was relatively low, my AC was working fine as if nothing was wrong. Then in the afternoon, no more cold air...

Yes, the total price includes freon recharge. I am also thinking about skipping the compressor replacement. Since the AC was working today, the compressor must be OK...

[CUMan]

I would be inclined to agree with your mechanic that the expansion valve is the problem. It seems that far too many ES models during the 1990's suffer from this problem. The problem usually occurs during very hot weather. When you crank the car, the air is cold. As you drive, the cold air just disappears. There is no problem code which tells you what is wrong.

However, I would certainly not pay $1,145.00 to get it repaired. I had the expansion valve replaced on my 94 ES in March, 2006 for about $450.00 total (parts and labor).

I would have this part repaired and then see how the system works. Don't replace the compressor until you have to. I believe that the folks who repaired mine did replace the drier.

In a city the size of Houston, you must have some places that specialize in auto air conditioning repairs. Check the repair costs at one or more of these places. A Lexus dealer would be my absolute last choice for this repair. A Toyota dealer would probably be a bit cheaper but would probably still be more expensive than an auto air place.

[homemechanic]

OK. . your mechanic said so, but I was just a little questionable. He might be able to remove the valve w/o having to remove the dash. May be he can get to the valve by removing the blower and heater core? Unless he went w/the book and tells him to remove the dash, he should look into removing the blower and heater core. That would save a lot of $.

[kashi125]

I looked it up in the FSM--the entire dash does not need to be removed --just the glove compartment area, right door scuff flate, ECM, Amplifier etc, and then take out the blower unit and then the evaporator (expansion valve is attached to the evaporator). If this wasn't an AC related problem I could probably do it myself in a day. I am thinking of taking off the glove compartment etc and then bringing it to the mechanic--hopefully it will bring the cost down a little and I wouldn't have to worry about them damaging my dash!

[homemechanic]

First of all, i wouldn't go back to the same mechanic again because he can't quote you how to replace the valve correctly. He might just want your $ and tell you the dash has to come out, which it doesn't.

You can do this yourself at home as long as you have the freon drained. Have a mechanic drain the freon for you, and you can refill it yourself after replacing the valve.

[kashi125]

First of all, i wouldn't go back to the same mechanic again because he can't quote you how to replace the valve correctly. He might just want your $ and tell you the dash has to come out, which it doesn't.

You can do this yourself at home as long as you have the freon drained. Have a mechanic drain the freon for you, and you can refill it yourself after replacing the valve.

Good idea. Thanks homemechanic!

[pearlwhite97ES]

I have a 92 es that has a small leak in the evaporator and wonder if someone has a write up

on what needs removed to get at the evaporator? any help is greatly appreciated.

[Ratatat]

drain system?! just crack a line connection loose, wear gloves, cost=0$

what were your high and low pressures? All it takes is half a can of r134 to go from warm air to cold ac air, and there is not much pressure difference, but when its cold its cold.