Hello,
I bought a 2007 Toyota Yaris this past April. I recently had to take it to the dealer because I found that water from the air conditioning is leaking all over the floor on the passenger’s side. The floor mat and carpet are completely soaked and I can hear water moving around when I turn left. Anyway, I was told that debris from the trees in my driveway has clogged the drainage hose and it would be about $60 to unclog it. I thought that was bad enough, but then I just got a message that they found a lot of debris in the evaporator housing assembly and that I will continue to have clogging and leaking problems. They said that the only thing they can do is remove the evaporator housing assembly, but that this is “very, very labor intensive” and not covered under warranty because there are no defective parts. They have not yet given me an estimate. I’m trying to figure out why the past 3 cars that I owned (and parked in the same spot for much longer) did not have this problem, while this brand new car gets clogged so quickly? I’ve never heard of such a thing. Isn’t there supposed to be a filter? I’m having a very hard time accepting the fact that I have to pay for this type of thing on a new car. Is there anything that I can do? Should I address the manufacturer? Please help. Any suggestions would be very welcome and appreciated. Thanks!
Kate
The dealer is likely right about the cause of the problem. They are also likely charging far more than most mechanics would charge, or you may be able to do it yourself.
The first part is the area under the vents in front of the windscreen. The leaves etc. need to be removed. The drain(s) need to be cleaned. You clean them buy using string trimmer line from the garden center.
The same string trimmer line can open the drain line to the AC. That drain is usually located under the car in front of where the passenger puts their feet.
If you don’t want to do it yourself, bring it to a local independent (not part of a chain) mechanic. You should save quite a bit.
In the future try not to park under trees.
Good Luck
I have had the same cars parked under trees for over ten years straight without ever having such a problem. Yes every once in a while I have to clear debris from the front grill between the windshield and hood, and some debris drops in the vent, but that debris should drain out the bottom of the car through the fender. There should be a fine mesh screen and or filter before the outside air intake in the coul to prevent debris from clogging up the coils. I consider this a design defect, and not only should Toyota clean it out for no charge, they should be working on a retro fit screen kit of some type to fix the defect.
They simply weighed the number of people likely to have this type of problem against the estimated population of purchasers and determined that the cost of adding a screen isn’t worth it to them. Welcome to the minority- in this case, people who have to park 2007 Yarii (Yarises?) under trees.
FWIW, very few cars have inlet screens these days. Some have better designs to help prevent leaves and such from getting into the ducting.
I’d want that organic matter out of the ducting because it will collect moisture and promote mold growth. Then attach a piece of window screen over the inlet snorkel and you won’t have this problem again.
Consider yourself luckier than me. I learned this lesson after TWO cars got infested with mice and chipmonks.
Good luck getting any satisfaction out of the dealer or manufacturer. You’re at the bottom of the hill looking up. But, the struggle may be worth it.
It all depends on what kind of tree she parked under. Some trees drop only big leaves, while others drop all sorts of fine crap that will get through almost any screen. The OP just has to learn to either avoid such trees, or should cover the vents (a nuisance), or should look into some sort of aftermarket screen or filter. Maybe a piece of plastic or aluminum window screening could be cut to size with scissors and slipped under some grille work or something.
They simply weighed the number of people likely to have this type of problem against the estimated population of purchasers and determined that the cost of adding a screen isn’t worth it to them.
Ah yes. The most notorious example of this was of course the Ford Pinto gas tank – they estimated $120M to fix versus $50M in payouts for people who burned to death.
Consider yourself luckier than me. I learned this lesson after TWO cars got infested with mice and chipmonks.
Oh yeah. Every time I open the hood on my car, I have to clean out the mouse nests on top of the valve cover. It’s a DOHC, so there’s a nice comfy little valley down the middle of the thing. It wouldn’t be so bad, except 1) I’m afraid of this dried grass and stuff catching fire, and 2) the mice are nibbling on the spark plug wires.
Or a completely new car, one in which there is a filter in the cowl intake to prevent such a silly thing from happening. How long has Toyota been cars? No excuses for this!!!
edit, been building cars
I’ll try to look at my Yaris to see if there is supposed to be some leaf defense. Tomorrow. In the garage. I can’t tell if my truck starts well in the cold because it never seems to get cold in there. Just one more car mystery.
Does your local TV station have an investigative reporter? Give them a call. You’d be surprised how quickly they will change their story.
Thanks for your response. I already paid the $60 to have them unclog the hose, but am now looking at $770 to remove and clean the evaporator housing assembly. I’m going to look for some kind of cover or screen, because I cannot avoid parking under the tree–it’s literally the only place that I can park. I’m hoping that I can find a local mechanic that will not charge me as much.
It’s not a warrantable problem and it can occur on any make of car.
It’s either park elsewhere, cut the tree down, trim some limbs off, or use a car cover. You’re probably going to lose your enthusiasm for that car cover after a week or so.
Car manufacture have seemed to figured out how to prevent leaves and debris from getting into the engine air intake to prevent engine damage. So there is no reason that the same level of protection is not being applied, or required for that matter, to the HVAC ventilation intake. No one wants dead vegetation rotting smell inside there car.
FYI the code you would get if it is the air pump is
P0410 or P0411
disregard the above I posted this on the wrong thread DUH
Thanks for your advice. Unfortunately, I cannot trim the tree, or park elsewhere. And yes, I lost my enthusiasm for the cover in trying to put it on, as well as remove it, in the pouring rain. I happen to live in the rainiest city in the world (Hilo, HI).
I finally looked at my own 07 Yaris and can’t see any way that leaves can get into the duct work. There is a screen in the air intake and nothing can get in that way. The only openings I can see are at the windshield wiper shafts. There isn’t enough space there for much to get in. It had to be sabotage. Leaves would have to be pushed in with a thin stick. If not sabotage, there must be some other way to get leaves in there, but I can’t see how.
Unless the screen wasn’t installed. Is there an assembly plant in Hawaii?
toyota made a mistake making this car. go back totyota and demand a refund right now,or get retail on a trade towards a prius.
found a discussion on another board, apparently there is a slot available to install a cabin air filter inhttp://64.233.169.104/search?q=cache:lAfa9CyiWU4J:www.tundrasolutions.com/forums/yaris/63675-2007-yaris-cabin-air-filter/+yaris+cabin+air+filter&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us&client=firefox-a this could possibly resolve your problem good luck