GR86 Air Conditioning Recharge

GR86UNS

GR86UNS

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Hello all. My GR86 is 21 months old now, but the Air Conditioning has been feeling very weak in the warmer weather we've had, and taking a while to blow cold.

Toyota dealer has told me this is normal for it to have lost its refrigerant by now, and are going to charge for a gas recharge despite its age.

It feels like it shouldn't have lost its gas so soon, so I'm curious how long has the refrigerant lasted in everyone else's cars?
 
As far as I know, refrigerant isn't a consumable item; you should only need to refill it if you have a leak in the system, I have never heard anyone claim that it would be normal to lose so much in less than 2 years.

Do you only use your AC occasionally? Apparently not using it regularly is what promotes leaks as seals dry out. I never turn mine off and it's still blowing ice cold. In my GT86 I did the same and that was still blowing cold after 9 years of not being serviced at all.
 
Surprising for a car this early in its life. Any potential stone damage to the AC rad ?
 
I make sure it's run regularly, but not all the time, even in winter when I don't use the car as much as I've heard about keeping the seals lubricated. I have sometimes gone a few weeks between drives though.

Even then, it seems far too soon for it to fail. I was told it was considered normal by Toyota and expected to lose a certain amount per day.

It's apparently advised (by them) to have it topped up every 2-4 years, so they think it's due being done.

Edit: no stone damage to it as far as I can tell, it does work, but very poorly and takes ages to feel cool. The front end of the car is clean, no stone chips, so I'd be surprised if one hit the AC condenser.
 
@GR86UNS How do they know if it needs gassing up until they've done a proper Gas Recovery and Leak Test? It's pointless pushing gas into the system if there's a leak. The OEM volume is 400g +/- 30g.

I took my GR86 (registered in February 2023) to an Aircon specialist in April of this year for a 'service'. It cost me £120 including a filter friendly AC system injected freshener (breeze).
Here were my figures:
Gas recovered 362g. Oil recovered 4ml.
Vacuum time 25 minutes.
Oil injected 4ml. Gas charged 400g.

So in two years I 'lost' around 9.5% of my gas, assuming that Toyota put 400g in it to start with. The +/- 30g tolerance could make it anywhere from 2.2% to 15.8% if we were to be picky.

Maybe you should find a decent recommended AC Specialist/Mobile Repairer if their price is considerably higher ...
 
Sonic said:
@GR86UNS How do they know if it needs gassing up until they've done a proper Gas Recovery and Leak Test? It's pointless pushing gas into the system if there's a leak. The OEM volume is 400g +/- 30g.

I took my GR86 (registered in February 2023) to an Aircon specialist in April of this year for a 'service'. It cost me £120 including a filter friendly AC system injected freshener (breeze).
Here were my figures:
Gas recovered 362g. Oil recovered 4ml.
Vacuum time 25 minutes.
Oil injected 4ml. Gas charged 400g.

So in two years I 'lost' around 9.5% of my gas, assuming that Toyota put 400g in it to start with. The +/- 30g tolerance could make it anywhere from 2.2% to 15.8% if we were to be picky.

Maybe you should find a decent recommended AC Specialist/Mobile Repairer if their price is considerably higher ...
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Cheers for the information. Weirdly, it felt slightly less weak tonight, although I had to have it turned to Max AC for it to eventually feel coldish. It's nowhere near as strong as I remember the AC being on the test drive car though, I remember that blowing nice and cold in a heat wave in 2023.

I wondering how much is me noticing it more in this heat, and if it's been like this for a while.

They've quoted £110 (possibly +VAT), I haven't taken it in yet for the full test and regas.
 
I'd ask the dealer how often he has the refrigerant topped up on his fridge freezer? :rolleyes:

Could possibly push it as a warranty defect, they should do a pressure test on the system really.
 
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My AC is super cold in this weather - I was really enjoying driving through France in near 40c temps recently.

AC in cars has to run through rubber hoses winding round various nooks and crannies in a very inhospitable dynamic environment that is completely different to that experienced by a fridge freezer or home AC.

In other words, cars do naturally lose refrigerant and need a regas occasionally but it seems a bit early for our cars so I'd suspect a leak from some kind of damage. A tiny pin prick from a flicked up stone will be enough to cause it.
 
Mine is also 21 months old (and around 8k miles) and the AC is still very effective.
I declined the AC service last year so the system hasn't been touched yet.
 
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I did notice the GR86 have by far the weakest aircon, it barely kept up on the hottest days in direct sunlight.

My other 2 cars are completely fine. Well, bad aircon is the least of my concern on my GR86 that have seen more Toyota dealer than my driveway...
 
I went through this with my other car recently. It was regassed by a dealer less than a year ago and as they did no test to check for leaks the problem re-occurred. The dealership told me they couldn't find a leak, but I shouldn't be worried as this time they added a 'dye' to spot any leaks the next time.
As I didn't trust going back to them at this point, I went with a specialist garage, and their first suggestion was also to do a re-gas first, claiming they were doing me a favour and saving me money (lol). I had to insist to test first and I heard all sorts of stories about pressure just naturally going down in just a year's time. Anyway, even though I had to argue they did as asked and were able to find a leak and fix it first.
After this whole ordeal I was slightly paranoid, so on a sunny day when the A/C didn't cool my hands so much it was uncomfortable, I went back and asked to test for pressure - which they did for free. This time they found the pressure up to spec (+10%, as they put in more the last time).

My take from all this is that the A/C will just not work as well as you might expect when the car sits in the Sun all day long. If you want to save yourself trouble, test it out first thing in the morning, or after taking car out of garage, to see if it's icy cold. And if you go the service route, dealerships are probably the worst option. Also insist on the refrigerant recovery being done before deciding to 'top up'.
And third, the stories you will hear from A/C garage sales people are absolute con 😂
 
midlife_sportscar said:
Mine is also 21 months old (and around 8k miles) and the AC is still very effective.
I declined the AC service last year so the system hasn't been touched yet.
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Don't want to tempt fate, but my GR is the same age and has still very effective aircon. So much so that I had to turn the heating up to 18⁰ the other day as I was getting cold!! My previous GT86 lost its gas after 15 months and I refused to pay for a regas. Dealer finally agreed that I had a case.
 
Mine is absolutely knobbling cold but it's very much use it or lose it. The Swift is probably due a regas. Still cold but has never been done in 16 years.
 
leosayer said:
My AC is super cold in this weather - I was really enjoying driving through France in near 40c temps recently.

AC in cars has to run through rubber hoses winding round various nooks and crannies in a very inhospitable dynamic environment that is completely different to that experienced by a fridge freezer or home AC.

In other words, cars do naturally lose refrigerant and need a regas occasionally but it seems a bit early for our cars so I'd suspect a leak from some kind of damage. A tiny pin prick from a flicked up stone will be enough to cause it.
Click to expand...
This is very true, however it's still designed to be a closed loop system and I'm sure there is nothing in the service schedule for it, so it's not anticipated to need attention.

The AC in my GT86 was stronger than it is in the GR, it was still ice cold when I sold it at 8 years old. My MK4 Golf never had its refrigerant recharged, it lasted the entire life of the car (15 years).
 
Stardus. said:
I did notice the GR86 have by far the weakest aircon, it barely kept up on the hottest days in direct sunlight.

My other 2 cars are completely fine. Well, bad aircon is the least of my concern on my GR86 that have seen more Toyota dealer than my driveway...
Click to expand...
Have I missed a story of woe and upset?

Link?
 
Chris Mc said:
Have I missed a story of woe and upset?

Link?
Click to expand...
Recently got a new short block installed after many many failed attempt at fixing a oil leak. But now I am struggling with them sealing the engine with too much sealant and getting cam sensor issues due to that.

I should share some of the details that when it's a good time but it's nothing but nightmare for the past year.
 
Stardus. said:
Recently got a new short block installed after many many failed attempt at fixing a oil leak. But now I am struggling with them sealing the engine with too much sealant and getting cam sensor issues due to that.

I should share some of the details that when it's a good time but it's nothing but nightmare for the past year.
Click to expand...
Sorry to hear that, hope you get a resolution soon!
 
Stardus. said:
Recently got a new short block installed after many many failed attempt at fixing a oil leak. But now I am struggling with them sealing the engine with too much sealant and getting cam sensor issues due to that.

I should share some of the details that when it's a good time but it's nothing but nightmare for the past year.
Click to expand...
That’s rotten.

Will it get to the point that your reject the car?
 
Chris Mc said:
That’s rotten.

Will it get to the point that your reject the car?
Click to expand...
I don't want to get there if I can help it. The car have spent over 80 days at the dealer's workshop on this single issue, not fun.
I really like the car when it works. Hard to find something I like as much as this for being a fun daily.
 
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