It's gettin' hot here in Texas

June 24, 2008 12:41 PM

(AutoRepairFilter) I'm so close to fixing my Nissan Frontier's A/C. I have to replace a leaky hose... or do I? What is the cheapest way for a budding DIYer to handle this?

I received some outstanding feed back from this thread a little while back. I used some UV dye and noticed leaks at both ends of the rubber A/C hose going from the compressor to the condenser. Their seems to be a couple of ways to handle this. According to this site, I could remove the hose and replace it which would require cutting the ends with a hacksaw and recrimping them, or I could try some of this handy-dandy sealant but I doubt it works. Does anyone have any experience in doing this? It seems these hoses go bad quite a bit so I assume it's a pretty routine thing to do for someone who normally works on their own car. Thanks in advance

posted by Brandon1600 to travel & transportation (4 comments total)

If it were my vehicle, I would find a used factory A/C hose from a junkyard. There are several different meta-search services for junkyards online. The one I've used with success is http://car-part.com/. I think the default view for search results lists the most expensive parts first, so either re-sort of go to the end.

If you don't want to go that route, I would look in your local phone book for a local industrial hose supplier or repair service, and just have the local shop make up a custom hose for you. They have all the right hoses, fittings, and crimping equipment, and will give you a hose that you can trust.
posted by mosk at 1:12 PM on June 24, 2008

Er..."re-sort or go to the end."
posted by mosk at 1:13 PM on June 24, 2008

I don't know about using a salvage yard hose. For about the same price you could try that recrimping thing. Having had the exact same thing happen to my 01 Taurus, I just went to Rock Auto and got the AC hose I needed for about $75. The seem to have yours for about $121-129 You could try the others, but I personally wouldn't hold out much hope.
posted by sanka at 1:23 PM on June 24, 2008

Just buy the new hose. Refrigerant isn't free, and though we can debate on degree, it's certainly not good for the environment, and a new hose is almost guaranteed to last longer than a replacement hose or a refurbed hose.

I like turning wrenches as much as the next guy but doing a job twice really sucks in my book. YMMV, I guess.
posted by Kwantsar at 1:41 PM on June 24, 2008