Hey Guys,

I was trying to get at a header bolt tonight and had a pry bar (I know, don't crucify me yet) that was holding some stuff out of the way slip and poke a hole in the black box that sits behind the Accumulator for the AC. Now, I don't know exactly what is in the box...is it the dryer? I don't know how bad this is or what can be done to fix it so I need your opinions.

In the picture you'll see a A.I.R. tube and below that a green wire that actually nicely outlines the hole. Is this a catastrophic thing or can I duct tape it and call it good (I have no idea where I'll get a replacement for this thing). Thanks for any and all help!

 

well, in the second pic you can see the wire mesh that covers the dryer. if you go to a junkyard, suggesting they have a third gen in stock, you can probably pull the a/c box of. unfortunatly, it looks like its below the removable top section. its not that hard to do, maybe 4 bolts on the ac box going into the firewall, three going into the firewall in the passenger compartment and wa-la it comes out after pulling it every which way.

 

Ok, so if I put everything back together, it's driveable. That's good to know! Man I was worried for a bit. Will it work with the hole or does it need to be patched up before running the A/C?

 

Yah, it's drivable all right, and you can still run A/C with the hole present. I think you'll only have a little air pressure from the fan leaking out of there, but a little piece of fiber glass and epoxy and/or maybe some duct tape will fix it. (Don't apply so much epoxy that it runs inside.)
It's the evaporator that's inside the box. If you poked a hole in that far you'd hear a hiss and see a cloud, and you'd be looking for an A/C shop.. Accumulator = receiver = dryer.

 

Thank you so much! That's the kind of good news I was hoping to hear. Well, I haven't run the system since I busted it. I stopped everything until I got an opinion here and I don't think I poked the hole in that far. I stopped as soon as I felt the pry-bar slip, I just had so much pressure that it slammed into that box before I got a handle on it. Not sure where I'll find any fiber glass around here, but I'll look. Also, I will need to get the car back running again before I can check the A/C system. Looks like a project for sunday! YAY. lol

 

You're welcome. I'm sure you'll find one of those little body repair kits in a shop near you, that's all that should be needed. Duct tape is an ok temporary fix, but the glue might get dry with age so it can fall off. Good luck!

 

88trans_am_gta
I am trying to replace the passemger compartment side of my heater box. I got all the bolts but I am told there is one in the engine compartment I have to take out to get the box out. Can you please tell me what all I need to do to get this out.
Thanks