Horror pics: Eveporator Repair

[doublevanosrc]

Damn, my car had this done about 3 years ago by the dealer. So far it has been solid and rattle free.

[MightyMouseTech]

We have to do this kind of thing all the time.

Passenger airbag recall on an E70.

[tracer bullet]

Originally Posted by MightyMouseTech

We have to do this kind of thing all the time.

Passenger airbag recall on an E70.

Good grief. I know that everything is a trade-off, and so components that are historically unlikely to need replacing get buried. But wow you'd think things would be a little more modular by now, there'd be design changes to make some of this stuff less difficult to access. Heater cores, airbags, our evaporators, etc.

[gjm120]

Originally Posted by MightyMouseTech

Should never leave it in recirc for more than 5 mins or so. Even says so in the owners manual.

I recall somewhere (maybe this site) being advised to do not only this but run on ventilation ie no compressor for the last bit or driving. This is supposed to avoid the musty smell that is common on BMW's.

[MightyMouseTech]

Originally Posted by gjm120

I recall somewhere (maybe this site) being advised to do not only this but run on ventilation ie no compressor for the last bit or driving. This is supposed to avoid the musty smell that is common on BMW's.

That is good advice for all cars.

[MightyMouseTech]

Originally Posted by tracer bullet

Good grief. I know that everything is a trade-off, and so components that are historically unlikely to need replacing get buried. But wow you'd think things would be a little more modular by now, there'd be design changes to make some of this stuff less difficult to access. Heater cores, airbags, our evaporators, etc.

I really wish they made it cheaper/easier for passenger airbag deployment. As it stands, most BMW require a full dash replacement. All that so that you don't see a dash seam for the bag.

[bm996tt]

Happy there's no airbag seam on dash, never looks good and in most cases insurance would pay= if not I would gladly.

[tracer bullet]

Originally Posted by bm996tt

Happy there's no airbag seam on dash, never looks good and in most cases insurance would pay= if not I would gladly.

Eh, I think they could pull it off. As for paying, it's a shell game, even if they or warranty covers it the cost of the car and premiums are higher accordingly.
It also knocks down the values used because people are afraid of one of our cars out of warranty, which is bad for those of us that keep them for a while.

I'm not calling you out BTW Just have a differing opinion!

[bm996tt]

I hear the cost argument on the other forums also, if something breaks etc I usually fix it myself or get it done by a quality shop. I do not worry about resale as losing money on most cars is just a fact of life= its a hobby.

[champignon]

Originally Posted by bm996tt

I hear the cost argument on the other forums also, if something breaks etc I usually fix it myself or get it done by a quality shop. I do not worry about resale as losing money on most cars is just a fact of life= its a hobby.

It's part of that Ultimate Driving experience :-) If by chance you have a BMW and it hasn't extracted its pound of flesh, check the VIN number to be sure you weren't sold a counterfeit.

[Shortedaman]

Originally Posted by tracer bullet

I think this is where I'd have decided "Screw it, I didn't use the A/C often anyhow". But I live in MN, and even when it's 90 - 100 F out (which happens a total of like 30-40 days, not a ton, but it happens) I tend to just roll down the windows anyways. Houston... been there... I suppose that's a bit different when it's like 6 full months.

in Houston, its ten full months. lol.

[TMR013]

This happened 3 times in my old 1er. You can probably search for the threads under my user name.
Issue was the evaporator part itself. The original part just could not handle the stress of a high heat environment. I think BMW changed the P/N twice. My last one seem to be a good fix as it held up for 3 years before I sold the car. As far as the nightmare of pulling the dash. Never really noticed a problem. no excess rattles or noises. Except I think the last time they forgot to reattach the power to the front power plug.

[spiceyxi]

Waiting for my warranty company to inspect and approve this service. It is in the shop to get an oil leak fixed and this came up.

Now I am scared. I guess the good thing is these two repairs equates to 80% of the warranty cost???

[thin_client]

Originally Posted by TMR013

This happened 3 times in my old 1er. You can probably search for the threads under my user name.
Issue was the evaporator part itself. The original part just could not handle the stress of a high heat environment. I think BMW changed the P/N twice. My last one seem to be a good fix as it held up for 3 years before I sold the car. As far as the nightmare of pulling the dash. Never really noticed a problem. no excess rattles or noises. Except I think the last time they forgot to reattach the power to the front power plug.

This is my main concern as well. How do you know that the latest BMW part has solved the issue if they keep changing part numbers? I asked the stealer what kind of warranty do I get with this new evaporator and it was something ridiculous like 90 days, definitely not more than one year.

[Gizmo135i]

Originally Posted by thin_client

This is my main concern as well. How do you know that the latest BMW part has solved the issue if they keep changing part numbers? I asked the stealer what kind of warranty do I get with this new evaporator and it was something ridiculous like 90 days, definitely not more than one year.

Not true, you get 2 year unlimited mileage on parts/labor at all bmw dealers as long as you have a receipt

[thin_client]

Originally Posted by Gizmo135i

Not true, you get 2 year unlimited mileage on parts/labor at all bmw dealers as long as you have a receipt

OK that may be the case in the US but here in Canada we usually don't get as good deals as you guys get. Having said that, you are probably correct in this case.

[HyeWarrior]

Well this thread is terrifying

[Gangplank]

My turn for evaporator replacement. Symptoms were colder air from passenger side A/C, whine when I press the AC button & goes away when it's off. Then eventually no A/C.

Took it in yesterday. 11 hours labor. $2500 Covered under my Route66 aftermarket warranty. All except the Freon recharge which is $40.

[Danksies]

Originally Posted by KNS

The evaporator is a known weak point in the 1 series as many probably already know. When I had my car in for the airbag recall my SA said he would check the AC system because of the poor evaporator. They ended up replacing it and I was thankful.

Wow I'm shocked that they took care of the evap, did you have to ask or did the SA just bring it up? And were you still under warranty? I still haven't taken in my car for the airbag recall but I might now if I can somehow get them to fix the evap lol...

[Bimmer-Bob]

Originally Posted by mad1stgen

I did this repair to a friend's E91 last winter. Took about 6 hrs including a CIC retrofit There is no question if your car needs it, just a matter of when ...

Obviously this looks like a huge PITA, but is it hard, per se? In my experience that hardest part about jobs like this is working up the nerve to start pulling apart things that seem like they shouldn't be pulled apart.

I guess this has the added wrinkle of cracking open the HVAC system, which is foreign territory for me.

[519.E82]

I had 0 A/C last year and i was going to recharge it at work this year but since pandemic ive been off and havent got to yet. I'm assuming it will hold decent A/C for a while but not long. I know i have 0 refrigerant. If a well written DIY was done id probably send it and give it a try since the parts and ridiculously expensive given you go with the denso OE alternative

[Thunderguts]

When my A/C goes I will attempt this repair myself, but I'm definitely not looking forward to it. I plan to go extremely slowly and use 100+ Ziplock bags individually labeled with a photo ID that I take at every stage. I will also use about two rolls of felt tape putting everything back together so I never hear another damn rattle.