The ac on my 2006 prius stopped working several months ago...the coldness gradually declined until the air just came out at ambient temperature so I suspect a small leak somewhere. There are no HVAC shops in my country qualified to work on hybrids so I'd like to fix it myself to avoid wrong oil or any contaminants getting into the system. I'm about to order 2 12oz cans of r134a refrigerant and would like to know if there is any risk in using the r134a cans that come with leak sealer included...I would like to use this to check any minor leaks as long as it won't affect the dielectric properties of the nd-11 oil. Also, would I need to top up the oil and if so how do I know how much to add? The nd-11 oil is quite difficult for me to source and I'm sceptical of alternatives. Se
Most would not recommend the leak sealers, they can cause problems down the road. Something with a dye that can be detected with a uv light would be a better choice. I have not used these products, so try at your own risk. Hybrid Vehicle/Mini-EZ™ Dye Injection Kit | tracer A/C Pro HYB-134a from Amazon
Be sure to use gauge set/charging hose that has not been used with the regular r134a. It will likely have residual amounts of pag oil that will contaminate your ac system.
I'd be inclined to pay the extra, take it to a dealership, for two reasons: 1. Ensuring (hopefully) that the proper fluids and tools are used. 2. We're trying to avoid AC fluids getting into the environment. DIY topping up of the system is not helping in this effort.
Actually I prefer if a professional dealership can do it. But there is no Toyota dealership in my country that does servicing of any sort...they only sell cars. Apart from that there are shops that do auto ac repairs but they're clueless about hybrid technology and don't have dedicated charging systems for hybrids. My best bet to avoid contamination is to do it myself. I have a brand new charging hose with gauge and 2 12 oz cans of this on the way. I hope all goes well and there's no major leak, otherwise I'll be forced to go to a local shop. There are only about 15 hybrids in total in my country presently...hence the lack of qualified service techs. I'm thinking about opening my own service centre for hybrids to fill the hole. I've owned my prius for 3 years now and have learned quite a lot about maintaining and fixing it in that time. HTC One_M8 ?
