Just wanted to share my experience with my recent AC repair on my 2012 v. I bought the car at the beginning of March with 180k. It is now the beginning of May and 7k miles later. I'm not sure if the AC wasn't working when I bought the car, or if it stopped in the meantime. But warm weather is finally here in upstate NY and I noticed that it was not blowing warm air. I'm a DIYer for 99% of car repairs. Have not taken anything I own to a shop in years (with the exception of state inspection). But I don't have AC servicing equipment, and I was a bit nervous given the high cost of the compressor if you make a mistake with the amount or the oil type. So I made some phone calls around my local area. Most shops will not service the prius AC system. And I was skeptical of any that would. I only have 1 mechanic around here that I trust and he wouldn't service it. I narrowed down my options to the Toyota stealership, and "The AC Man" in Stillwater, NY. AC Man was very confidence inspiring over the phone. His repair business has been focused on AC repair only for 30 years and he had lots of experience with the prius, as well as separate equipment for it. I brought it over to his shop. He connected the manifold gauges and found the system was completely empty. He added a little refrigerant and used a refrigerant gas leak detector to sniff around the system. Found several leaking o-rings. His theory is that the hoses were removed/disconnected when the engine was replaced (before I bought it). The o-rings were still black OEM and they were brittle, and the fill port caps were missing. After replacing the o-rings he added a few ounces of the appropriate oil, vacuumed down the system, and added 1 pound of refrigerant. The cost to repair was $150 for diagnosis, $150 for repair, and $255 for the refill. I felt that the refill price was pretty steep, but probably no more expensive than the dealer and to be fair he is the only shop around here that does it. The AC is now blowing ICE COLD so I am pleased. Hoping the system will be all set for the next 187k!
The ac is not the limiting factor on a v. Clearly with a replacement engine you are ahead of the game assuming they provided a rebuilt engine. The ac on my v is one of its saving graces. Toyota added btus for the v versus the standard hatchback.
I thought the prius required a special way to charge the system..... works for a while then blows up if not charged correctly. Use caution.....
It's not that special- the trick is that the lubricating oil mentioned in the OP's 5th paragraph is not chemically compatible with the lubricating oil used in the other 98% of the world's auto air conditioners. This means the technician has to keep a separate set of tools so they never become cross-contaminated. That's a substantial expense, and the reason why many auto a/c shops won't work on a Prius. The actual actions you use to fill the system are virtually identical and represent no different risk.
