Help! Evaporator replacement glitch

[myf16]

I'm nearly done removing the AC evaporator from my 1991 NSX, and my wife is both impressed and frightened at the state of the car. As am I, but I have faith.

Still, I'm having trouble removing the two heater hoses just forward of the firewall. I could cut them off, but then I'd have to wait for new hoses before reassembling. I have managed to move them about 5 mm forward so far. Any suggestions?

Also I could use any hints about how best to deal with the console carpeting, which I dread having to re-fasten to the dashboard because I won't be able to pull the loops up over the screw heads.

Any other hints for reinstallation of evap and dashboard? Besides "Have a pro do it", that is, since that's what I know most of you are thinking. Hey, if the President of NSXCA can do this job, so can I, right?

 

[myf16]

Hose problem solved, sort of

I cut the hoses. I found that hose 17122-SL0-A00, which I didn't have, is the same as hose 19422-PR7-A01, which I had. I had the other 3 front compartment heater hoses as well, so I put those on too. It was convenient to cut them all off and assemble all four hoses outside the car.

The evap box is now outside the car. It's going to be a bear getting everything back in place...

 

[myf16]

Getting there

Update: Reassembly is going better than I expected, and in fact faster than disassembly. The dash panel went back with minimal fuss, and even the console carpet worked out OK. All the parts in front of the firewall are back, except the spare tire bracket. But the steering column is still on the floor.

Hints for the FAQ: To get the dash panel back in, I found it very helpful and simple to remove the A-pillar molding rather than tape it as described in the service manual. The manual also does not tell you to remove the sub woofer, but you have to. And you have to remove the center speaker panel to unplug the celluar phone control cord.

The FAQ should also advise that you order new heater hoses before you start, since the old ones are essentially impossible to remove without cutting them. You can use generic straight heater hose if you are disinclined to pay inflated Acura prices.

To be continued next weekend.

 

[myf16]

Got it together

Everything went back together fine, with no excess or missing parts. The last bits are remarkably quick, but this is still a two weekend job for the first-timer. I may write up some more hints for the FAQ.

The old evaporator did not show any significant signs of leakage (UV dye) but no way was I going to reinstall a suspect and failure-prone 12 year old part when I had a new one on hand. It looks like I had better put more UV dye in with the new R-12, in case the actual leak is somewhere else. And this time I will have to actually run the AC for a while rather than letting the R-12 leak out while the car is sitting in my garage.

I used the climate control self-test modes described in the service manual, and it was fun to see the box go through its paces. This unit is so complex, it's a wonder the thing works at all. Probably if the car were a BMW, it wouldn't.

It will be a minimum of several weeks after I recharge the system before I know whether my AC leak is indeed fixed. I'm hoping it will work for summer 2004 after two summers of no AC.

 

[myf16]

Success!

My AC is still cold months after the repair, so I am ready to declare success. Looks like a long, cool summer.

 

[hlweyl]

Well done, thx for the tips.

 

[matteni]

You are in the shade tree hall of fame IMO!

Great job.

 

[Oldguy]

Congratulations. You just saved $2150, which is what I paid my dealer last month to replace the exact same components.