Q: I drive down the road and all of my windows are hard to keep from fogging up?
A: This can be the result of several causes but the most common is the Fresh Air or Recirculated control setting. I find that most people set this to the Recirculated Air position. This does not allow any air movement so any moisture is "trapped inside" and adds to condensation. Leave this in the Fresh Air or Outside Air setting and most of that problem will go away. Some models have a lever but the symbols look the same.
Q: I have R12 freon in my A/C system. How worried should I be that this will become obsolete preventing repairs?
A: Right now there is sufficient supplies of R12 but something unusual has happened to the price. When R12 was the norm the cost was approximately $1.00 per pound (avg. per vehicle is 2 lbs.), now the price has jumped to $7-10 per pound. Relief is in sight in that conversion kits are available from Toyota or aftermarket companies to upgrade your older system. The conversion is actually less expensive than repairing or recharging a system with R12. My advice is to convert when repair is needed and tell the dealer to add 1/2 pound extra of R134 when recharging.
Q: My heater fan only has high speed?
A: In most cases the heater fan resistor has failed. It is designed to give you high speed if the part fails. Installing a new resistor normally solves the problem.. If you have a Previa or 90-94 Truck/4Runner then you may have a failed fan switch, this is not uncommon in these two models.
Q: My 92 Camry A/C system keeps losing it's freon and will not cool, the dealer cannot find a leak?
A: Toyota had a problem with the Expansion valve in these models and most likely the cause is in this part. It is almost impossible to find this leak with a leak detector. There is a campaign for the expansion valve for 92-93 Camry, Previa, Truck, 4Runner, Supra and Land Cruiser (although most have been completed). The other cause is the front seal for the A/C compressor. This only leaks when the compressor is turning and "blows away" the leaking freon, the seal is not difficult to change.
Q: I've noticed that I'm getting water on the floor of my Camry is this unusual?
A: If your vehicle has Air Conditioning then the drain from the evaporator is blocked. The A/C system dehumidifies the air which removes moisture from the air, this water needs to go somewhere so each manufacture "drains" the water out of the vehicle. If the drain is blocked the water builds up and overflows into the passenger compartment. Cleaning the hose is simple and vacuuming the water from the carpet is required to prevent mildew buildup. I did not mention the Heater Core,which is also located on the passenger side, since Toyota's almost never have this problem.
Q: My heater fan is noisy and increases with speed so I have a bad motor?
A: Have your Toyota dealer remove the motor and inspect for loose items or animal's that may have found their way into your heating system. This is not unusual especially if you live in a rural or suburban area. I wish I could tell you that there is a solution for this but I haven't found anything that is permanent.
Q: I need repairs to my 90 Camry and since freon is hard to get and is expensive should I convert to the new freon at this time. What will it cost to do this? Dave C.
A: This might be a good time since your A/C system may have to be emptied or is empty. Once the repairs are made ask the dealer what it will cost to convert to R134. Toyota made a kit available but it is three times more inexpensive than ones available from other sources. The total conversion can cost between 159.00 and up based on the parts used and labor charged. It is well worth it since just recharging you system with R12 will cost that much and the R134 cools almost as well as the R12 in your type vehicle.
Q: I have had a problem with overheating while using the air conditioner. Everything is fine until I hit a grade. Any grade at all makes the car heat up. The temp gauge shoots over to the red in no time. If I stay on a flat grade all is fine. I have noticed the keeping the RPMs around 27-2800 seems to help but I still can not keep the air on when in the hills. Both fans are working and I don't know what to do. I have owned the car since it was new and have had this problem since it was new. Any suggestions? I also have a Toyota Pick-up. Bill
A:I can't believe that you have had this condition since 87 and 127k but here is my guess. Since the A/C condenser is located in front of the radiator and receives warm freon it causes the radiator to warm up and thats why they added an extra fan. Since you have this problem on hills it may be because of the radiator. It may be restricted and not offering full cooling, it may be fine for normal driving but hills add extra load to the cooling system. The thermostat may not be opening properly again restricting coolant and heating the engine. Have someone check the radiator cap since each pound of pressure raises the boiling point 3 degrees.
Q: My car pool partner has a Toyota Camry, 1992, I think, whose air conditioner works OK until the engine is under a sustained load, such as driving up a long hill on the freeway. While we're going up that hill, the A/C blows hot air. Immediately after cresting the hill, the A/C starts working again. He took it in for service, and it was low on freon, but that didn't fix the problem. Compressor works fine, cycles on and off as needed, freon is OK, no leaks. We thought the engine might be overheating, causing some sort of failsafe mechanism to turn off the A/C compressor to prevent excessive overheating, but that seems unlikely because the temperature gauge stays nicely in the middle during the whole trip up that big hill. Any thoughts? Graeme
A: My guess is that the compressor speed sensor is cutting out. Its designed to give you the extra horsepower you may need. The other is the amplifier for the A/C system. The problem is that both of these items cause the same condition.
