Warning: That 'easy' home AC refrigerant recharge took me 8 hours and 3 trips to the auto parts store.

Turned out my specific 2015 Honda Civic had a weird fitting that nobody mentioned online, and I wasted an entire Saturday chasing a leak that was just a loose o-ring, has anyone else dealt with this phantom leak issue?

3 comments

3 Comments

bell.felix5d agoProlific Poster

That 2015 Civic uses a 134a fitting that's recessed differently than the standard ones, which caught me off guard too. The o-ring compressors in those systems are super sensitive to any debris or misalignment, so a loose one can mimic a full system leak real fast. Did you have any trouble getting the low side adapter to seal properly after you swapped the o-ring out?

phoenix_grant345d ago

Did you end up using a pick set to fish that old o-ring out or did you get the "guess I'm pulling the whole line apart" surprise like I did? Honestly, that recessed fitting tricked me for a good hour before I realized it wasn't some weird aftermarket adapter. Tbh, I just ended up buying one of those little o-ring pick assortments from harbor freight after that job, totally worth not losing my mind over a $2 seal again. Ngl, when I finally got the new one seated right and heard that hiss stop, I felt like I had just performed open heart surgery on a grape.

taylor125d ago

Did you check the schrader valve core too? I had a similar issue on my 2014 Civic where the o-ring was fine but the valve itself was slightly loose and it was bleeding pressure super slow. I ended up using a valve core tool and just snugging it down a quarter turn and it fixed the whole thing. Also, make sure you're lubing those o-rings with PAG oil before you seat them, bone dry ones will pinch and leak again in like a week.