Recommended Prius shop in San Antonio. Sams Auto Repair. 210-400-1000. Low overhead shop across the street from the SAS Shoe Factory, Store and Antique Cars. No credit cards. Worth a drive from Austin, San Marcos or New Braunfels area.
Hi - My 2007 Prius has A/C issues and looking for a repair shop that specializes in hybrid a/c repairs. Do you happen to know if Sam's repair shop is recommended for Prius A/C repairs?
Call him. I don’t think he has an AC machine but he may have discrete tools. If he does not he would know options.
Yeah, I saw Tampa Hybrids being recommended here on PriusChat posts but unfortunately I live too far from Tampa. Thanks for your suggestion.
Took my Prius today to Sam and had to hear the news I didn't want to. Looks like evaporator is gone. Sam helped fill up the Freon (ShopPro R134a Refrigerant 12oz; https://www.autozone.com/a-c-charging-and-refrigerant/r134a-refrigerant/p/shoppro-r134a-refrigerant-12oz/3275_0_0) and A/C is blowing cold air now. Unfortunately, on the drive back home, I see red triangle on the dashboard. The only change was adding the refrigerant, making me think if it's incompatible. On the other hand, Sam would have known if it is incompatible as he dealt with Prius Freon refills many times. I'll take it back to Sams Auto Repair shop but any ideas what's going on?
Looks like the "Inverter Coolant Pump" is gone and have to cough up $350 for replacing it. JUstification i got was that as the Freon is filled, A/C drew power which put load on the pump and damaged it. This pump seems, as per Sam's repair shop, to be a not so uncommon issue and may need a replacement every few years (always subjective). Took the car for one issue and left with another. Heard/read a lot of good things about Prius but I got a lemon for buying a used car with just 110K miles - first hybrid battery replaced and now the A/C.
Not likely. The inverter pump runs on 12v while the compressor is high voltage from the hybrid system. More than half of that price is labor and he uses parts straight from the dealer. There are cheap parts on Amazon. Read this: Counterfeit vs Real OEM Toyota Prius Inverter Pump 04000-32528 | PriusChat
Sure, thanks for your response. More so, thanks for recommending Sam’s repair shop - hard to find a dependable Prius technician. I can see why Sam has great reviews online.
@rjparker - One thing I wanted to mention for someone who may visit this conversation: When Sam recharged my A/C, it was not evacuated before doing the recharge. Some reasoning (that i dont remember now) was given when asked about evacuating the system. Some videos online (especially from an experienced Prius technician like lech auto air conditionin) strongly recommend to evacuate the system to avoid air/moisture damaging the system (e.g., condenser) if recharged without doing so. I would like to but the tools/equipment (Vacuum pump, valve system, R134A refrigerant, scale to measure upto 1kg) to evacuate and recharge the system. I'm unsure is if I need to fill the ND-11 oil. If needed, please advise if this A/C refrigerant () the right one to use as it seemed to come with the oil.
Glad you had the water pump changed by Sam. That was far more important than the AC. It is possible to add straight r134 by sight glass if pressure remains and a no cool situation exists. Add no oil unless a major part like a condenser, compressor or evaporator is replaced or the system has been recharged many times due to a leak. To properly add oil, the existing oil has to be removed and measured during parts replacement.
Thanks again for your advice and quick response. The latest recharge was the 3rd time in the last 3-4 years with almost a year or more in between the recharges going without A/C and using the car only for short (<10 miles) distances. May i know what you meant by " a no cool situation exists" in your response? Does it mean when A/C was not blowing cold?
