I fixed my A/C a few years ago and recently I'm losing refridgerant. I recharged and added a dye to detect leaks. I've checked the hoses infront of the firewall with out finding anything and now I'm trying to get to the evaporator to check there, but I can't get the evaporator box to come out. I've removed all visible screws/bolts and the front little slide clip, but it is stuck on something.

I'm trying to avoid opening the system if possible and wondeed if the box can be removed while leaving the evaporator in place?

I think when I did it the last time I already had the evaporator hoses disconnected on the engine side of the firewall and removed the box and evaporator as a unit.

 

Before you do all this work, take your car to a shop that has a R134 sniffer.
They can tell immediately where the leak is without removing anything.

EDIT: The most common place an A/C system leaks is the condenser and the compressor shaft seal.

 

The evaporator box can be removed without draining the system. I did it but it is a pain in the A**! There are screws by the fire wall that have to come out. If you use a mirror and a flash light you should be able to see them.

 

before you get into some heavy work check your dryer bottle for leaks from the sensor or hoses connected. i had the same problem and it was the o-rings that went bad there.

 

Thanks for the help guys. I'm not sure of a good shop around that wouldn't charge an arm and a leg...I was going this route because I have tools to repair it, if I can find the leak. Besides time is cheap (realitivly).

I wondered if I could rent a sniffer, I'll check into it.

That's what I thought but I couldn't see them last night. The drawings in the manual don't show any detail so I wasn't sure if the bottom half actually surrounded the hoses. I might just pull the passenger seat so I can get down there for a look.