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Never trust them. The service advisor told me that the pulley will work hardly for one month and then again i have to replace the entire system but touchwood its been a year and 15000 km without any glitch

That's encouraging. The service advisor told me a similar story. I asked him to change the evaporator but he advised against it by saying that you will use it for two-three months and then need a complete system anyway...

Even authorised Service Stations outsource the AC job to local repairers. So, go to them directly, after ensuring their credibility and get it fixed. This would be a lot cheaper and better.

There are some things which are better done outside the ASS network, to list a few, AC repairs, glass replacement, Tyres - incl replacement, balancing and wheel alignment, battery replacement, etc.

Its always helpful to have a friendly guy in the service centre. The service advisors have a fixed commission on every part they replace outside warranty. Everyone is out there to make money so be wise and decide. Hope you sort out this issue soon.

@Ankur

Was in a similar situation recently where in my A/C condenser had a leak.

H.A.S.S recommended a replacement as they said welding the fin may not work reliably. Checked with the A/c specialist and their feedback was identical as the location of leak was the issue.

Hence taking a second opinion before your proceed seems prudent at this juncture

Hi all,

My car (Figo 2010 model) AC is showing similar problem since last 2 days. Just throwing hot air.

I was not sure of going to ASS or local workshop but looking at suggestion, I think its better to go to local ac repair workshop.

I searched in the BHP directory, but unable to find recommended AC repair workshop in Hyderabad, so would like to get suggestion on any recommended AC repair workshops in Hyderabad(near Miyapur/Madhapur/Banjara Hills)

Thanks in advance.

Took my car to the local AC guy.

He took the entire dashboard out to fix a new evaporator coil.

Two guys started working on either side of the dashboard. That's a lot of cables, latches and nuts.

Took them fifteen minutes to get the dashboard out.

Here is an image of the car with the dashboard removed:




Finally, they took out the HVAC unit and dismantled it to get the heater and evaporator coil out.

The old evaporator was very dirty and there were traces of compressor oil which confirmed the leak he was telling about



A new evaporator coil was installed in the HVAC unit



After reassembling the entire stuff back, they pumped air into the HVAC system using a compressor to test for leaks. Here is a picture showing air at 250 psi



After about half an hour, when the pressure stayed the same, they took it to the gas charging machine. Using that, they first vacuumed the AC lines and then pumped compressor oil and refrigerant into it.

Total cost: Rs. 4,800/-. That's almost ten times less than what I would have paid at Hyundai.

The blower air flow has increased significantly. I guess that is because of the new evaporator coil. Temperature is also cooler than before (when the AC worked).

Thanks to all those who helped me make the sensible decision.

Both people are right. Due to the type of delicate construction of a condensor and that too with soft aluminium, repair procedures are mostly failures. So if you would think that its a cheap option, you could also take into consideration that in case of a failure you would end up paying for gas and labour all over again, not to mention the cost of a new condensor and also waste of time as a bonus. All things considered, replacement in this situation certainly makes more sense.

Remember modern condensers, evaporators (and often) radiators are all aluminium. Soldering / repairing Al parts though possible in some cases is well nigh impossible, esp if you expect it to last for some time, that too in a high stress environment.

So my Beat's AC has packed up since yesterday. Very low cooling and intermittent short hissing sound coming from inside the vents immediately when I switch on the AC button and then every 30 seconds or so. This was never there before. Today cooling is even lower but the hissing sound is spaced out further, say every minute or two. First hiss always comes when I put on the Ac button.
I am taking the car to the Service centre rather than an independent AC specialist since I still have 2 months left on my extended warranty and pretty much all the AC parts are covered by it.

I am guessing that the most likely problem is a leak somewhere in the system due to a part failure. What is most likely ? Im pretty sure that the compressor comes on and is working. Will get to know tomorrow once they check. I just want to make sure they do a permanent fix that will last or else it will be a pain to follow up past the warranty.

Will keep you guys updated and check back for further advice.

The hiss may be due to valve leakage inside the compressor or high pressures in the compressor since you say it was never noticed before, and have since experienced low cooling.

Since you have valid warranty, ask them to run a pressure test on the AC system to validate the problem and if necessary replace the unit.

Since you would be getting it looked at, get a general AC service done also.

Thanks for the advice, it is currently at the service centre

How did this get so dirty? Looks like there has never been a cabin air filter installed before the evaporator. Please check if this is in place and replace once every year. Do not reuse the cabin filter. It is the air you are breathing after all. Looking the condition of the old evaporator core, I am surprised you did not run in to any respiratory problems.

Yes, you are right. There never has been a cabin filter in this car. I enquired about the filter when I was getting the AC fixed but he said old i10 (model 2009) does not have cabin filter.

I am skeptical about his reply, but I will get the filter fixed when I visit the Hyundai A.S.S. to get the servicing done.