i have a 1997 xlt with 70,000 miles. my a/c was not blowing cool air, so i brought it to the ford dealership to be looked at. they told me the accumulator was rusted (it has a foam wrapping which i know is the cause of the rust) and needed to be replaced. they quoted $895. flabbergasted, i said i'd take it elsewhere. i first had the a/c recharged, hoping that might do the trick. no such luck. i then complained to ford, who told me that there has been no recall coverage on the explorer accumulators, and that they would not cover the repairs. so, i am planning on taking my explorer to a local a/c shop. any ideas on what it might cost to replace the accumulator? i know a/c repair is expensive, but $895 seemed way too much.

 

The price I seem to remember from someone else replacing it was about $75 for the part. They were not a mechanic and spent about 2 hours replacing it. Add in a couple of cans of R134A ($6 each) and the parts should cost less than $100. $895 is way out of line. Quotes typically run in the $250 - $300 range.

 

Sure they didn't mean evaporator? I can't imagine an accumulator costing over $50, unless the hose is built in to it like on a Mustang.

But I also didn't know they put foam on accumulators either.

I would take it to an independent AC shop.

Winford

 

yes the acumulators rust out bad. you can get them aftermarket ones for like 40 bucks. then goto the autoparts store and buy the adapter and 2 cans of 134 a, you may be able to do it for about 60 bucks. i did on my 97

 

 

Ford TODAY... Just replaced one rubber booted one leaking bad (new one has no boot). Total cost at Ford, $202.32. $72 accumulator, $15 or $20 seals and freon, the rest labor...

 

If you want it to blow cold do it right. Go buy a new Accumulator from AutoZone, and replace it yourself, then take it to an AC shop for the Evac and Charge. If you open the system (i.e. disconnect a hose) you really need to have it vacuumed to get the moisture out it will destroy your cooling ability. An Evac and Charge will probably run you about $100, so I think you can get it take care of for less than $200 if you replace the part yourself.

David
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My 98 ranger was less than 200 parts and labor for the same job. Discharge/recharge may have been extra I dont recall. $895 is way out of line, maybe they looked up the wrong part number or something?

 

I would Tend to agree with the thought on a wrong part number. $895 sounds more inline with a compressor replacement, than an accumulator. It's a little metal Cannister with no moving parts for heavens sake.


David
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