Quote:
bartt previously said:
I've had rocks fly thru the grill and pin-hole the condenser on other vehicles. 50cents to save a $400 condenser is a bargain.
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Oddly enough, the Prius is *very* vulnerable to that sort of damage. The condenser is an aluminum one, and easily pockmarked just with normal driving. Over at PriusChat a few forum members have already lost their A/C due to pinholes in the condenser.
Around 6 months after buying my 2004 Prius, I went to clean out the condenser and was pretty horrified to discover all the pockmarks. Made a guard as you suggested, used that gutter guard stuff to keep leaves out of your rain gutters. Works just fine
To comment on the system being open so long, this will cause problems down the road. The system oil will have attracted dust by now, which is in the lines. There may be other leaks, I recommend an extended pressure test using N2. N2 is "dry" so will also help pick up any residual moisture in the system
At the very least, the receiver/dryer should be replaced at the same time.
