I am going to attempt to change the evaporator myself on my 01 GC and then take it to the shop to have them evacuate/recharge system. The freon is already gone according to dealer and to replace the evaporator, they want $1600. I saw the directions on here with pictures for an older caravan evaporator and assume it is similar. The whole system was replaced a little over a year ago by a napa shop when the AC died while I was on a trip. My questions are:
Is there anything else I should replace while replacing the evaporator since the dealer didn't say they were going to replace anything else?
Where is the best, most cost efficient place to get another evaporator?
Thanks in advance for any help. And I will also take pictures of the job to help anyone else at in the future.
Rick99
06-10-2008, 07:39 PM
You should buy OEM (Mopar). With only a couple exceptions, OEM is almost always better-- so go to the dealer parts department or buy from an online seller. The parts desk at my dealer gives me the shop discount-- yours may too if you ask, especially if you point out that you can get a 30% discount from most online mopar sellers. The expense of the parts pales in comparison to the work for this job, so I wouldn't take any risk as to quality or fitment. Also, you should replace the heater core while you're in there. You don't want to do this job twice.
mfahey
06-10-2008, 08:22 PM
You may want to pony up for an alldata subscription as it may save you a lot of work. To replace the blower on our 01, I had to disconnect the dash and roll it to the rear just for access. I would assume that you'll need to do the same and more.
XDGT03
06-12-2008, 12:22 PM
yes, that was my diy. I hope it helps. I'm sure it is virtually the same process for yours.
As for the OE part. My evaporator failed after 6 years. I hardly feel that makes for a quality oe part. In fact most of these Mopar units have been failing right around 6 years (isn't yours an 01?). I got mine as an aftermarket off ebay for around $125. It was a bit lighter but the pipes and fins looked to be the same thickness. I don't know it the material has changed over the years or it is just cheaper. In any event, I figured that I knew the new Mopar one was going to fail somewhere around 6 years and that for less than half the price I could get one that should last about as long as the rest of the van will last (160k). Maybe not.
Anyway, good luck. it is a big project but only in terms of time. otherwise it is just a whole lot of lefty loosy, righty tighty.
