Jack Foulard Posted March 13, 2011 Share Posted March 13, 2011 I have a Subaru Outback 2004 with about 50k miles. I have noticed a few things today: 1- A drop or 2 of oil like consistency under the car. I popped the hood this afternoon and saw the following (with plastic cover on the engine): oil on the ACH77S hose that looks like it comes from the radiator and enter the engine from the driver side. Same looking wetness on the ACH87S hose (this hose is much thicker in diameter. 2-A/C does not work but rather i heard a weird noise from the vents. 3-This has been going on for the past few months intermittently. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I hope this doesn't turn into a large and expensive repair. Are hoses like this easily replaced without special tools? Thanks in advance for the help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted March 13, 2011 Share Posted March 13, 2011 can you post a picture of the hoses? and 4 or 6 cylinder? auto or manual? check your fluid levels - particularly the engine oil, coolant (in the radiator and tank), and power steering fluid levels. a leak should show itself there as well. but the pictures will help us more. you mention "large hose", that probably just means the radiator hose if it's the largest rubber hose you can find under there. the coolant/radiator hoses are the largest. they are very easy to replace. just make sure you properly refill with coolant, get all the air out, and it does not overheat. the 4 cylinders are particularly sensitive to air bubbles and overheating if you don't get them all out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Foulard Posted March 13, 2011 Author Share Posted March 13, 2011 I have a 4eat auto 6 cylinder. I'll check the fluids tomorrow and will report back. I can't seem to figure out how to post s photo to this thread though. Thanks for the help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ocei77 Posted March 13, 2011 Share Posted March 13, 2011 Think you have to have at least 10 ten posts before the system will allow you to add attachments. O. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Foulard Posted March 13, 2011 Author Share Posted March 13, 2011 Good to know. I think the photo that I have will be helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Foulard Posted March 13, 2011 Author Share Posted March 13, 2011 I have a photo on my laptop but don't have a URL to link to. I suck I know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Foulard Posted March 14, 2011 Author Share Posted March 14, 2011 After further investigation from above the car and below I found the following: 1- With engine cover off, the only seepage/wetness is seen on the ACH77S and ACH87S hoses. The 87S hose wraps around toward the passenger side as it nears the firewall and there was some wetness there. When wiped with a paper towel, it is just dry and black. I tried the A/C today and it didn't work but didn't make the noise that it did yesterday. Also pressing the A/C button does not put load on the engine and make it slow down for a moment. 2-Drops under car were definitely from oil pan plug. It was slowly leaking. Last oil change 3K ago by me, so this is weird but I tightened it up and will recheck tomorrow. Any ideas from here? Maybe check A/C fuse? There is a high and low blue capped port for the A/C lines. IS it possible to buy some refrigerant and see if it takes a charge? Again thanks for the help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olnick Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 Drops under car were definitely from oil pan plug. It was slowly leaking. Did you perhaps forget to put the washer on with the plug? (Please don't ask why I thought of this. ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Foulard Posted March 14, 2011 Author Share Posted March 14, 2011 new crusher washer used every 5k when I reload with syntec. Any ideas on the seeping hoses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 we need to know what hoses they are - the numbers don't help me. you got dozens of options to help us help you - google search those numbers, google image search for the EZ30 engine, or post your own pic. i'm guessing they're coolant hoses to the heater core. if they're leaking, replace them. a/c isn't working - is it low on charge? be advised, the H6 engine in your car has lots of problems with the idler and tensioner pulley bearings for the drive belt. they fail all the time. i replaced both of my as preventative maintenance and they were both in bad shape when i removed them. the good news is that it's a really simple job - two bearings cost like $10 and it takes 30 minutes to do the entire job....an hour tops maybe if it's someones first time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Foulard Posted March 14, 2011 Author Share Posted March 14, 2011 we need to know what hoses they are - the numbers don't help me. you got dozens of options to help us help you - google search those numbers, google image search for the EZ30 engine, or post your own pic. i'm guessing they're coolant hoses to the heater core. if they're leaking, replace them. a/c isn't working - is it low on charge? be advised, the H6 engine in your car has lots of problems with the idler and tensioner pulley bearings for the drive belt. they fail all the time. i replaced both of my as preventative maintenance and they were both in bad shape when i removed them. the good news is that it's a really simple job - two bearings cost like $10 and it takes 30 minutes to do the entire job....an hour tops maybe if it's someones first time. Thanks for the info. Both pulleys and belt replaced 15k miles ago. Got a quote from 1 dealer for parts and labor equaling 750. How difficult is it to replace 2 hoses and add refrigerant? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Foulard Posted March 14, 2011 Author Share Posted March 14, 2011 Got another quote for 750 for high and low ac hoses, o rings and refrigerant. Wow! Can I do this myself? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 a/c is easy to work on yourself. diagnosing is the hard part. the hard part is finding the leaks, but generally speaking not much commonly leaks on an a/c system. personally - i'd just charge it properly one time with the system sealer cans and see how it goes. i have a few buddies that have had that work for years. if you know the hoses need replaced - then replace them and charge it. it's really easy - just buy a couple cans and the hose at the auto parts store. the hoses are easy - each fitting when you remove a hose has an oring under it, be sure to replace those too - with the green a/c related orings. the autoparts stores have all that stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 Get used hoses. If you have no mechanical knowledge have someone test the system for leaks. Subarus rarely have an AC hose leak, it is usally the O rings. As for the drip.... wash the engine especially under the car. DRive the car for a day with a peice of cardboard under it when parked over night. In the morning if you see drips, try to trace them to see where they are coming from. Examine the drops, are they sweet or oiley or plain water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Foulard Posted March 15, 2011 Author Share Posted March 15, 2011 Nipper, Thanks for the recommendations. The drip was my oil drain pan plug that needed to be tightened a bit. Ironically, my co worker has an 03 h6 and has no ac either. Husband is going to have it looked at this week so ill wait to see how that goes, what it was and how much it cost. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 +1 to what nipper said, i missed that. it is rare for Subaru A/C hoses to leak...i've never seen it happen even on my old 1980's Subaru's. And it is statistically improbable for both hoses to need replaced. So it sounds like they're sort of guessing, there was no diagnosis, and they're throwing more parts at it than needed. if it's any consolation our 02 H6 has 170,000 miles of trouble free A/C. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShawnW Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 Its very common for the dealer to want to replace both hoses. They see oil residue on them which is a sign of a leak nearby. The H6 cars seemed to go thru A/C hoses pretty often. 134A does leak more easily than R12 for some reason. I can order you the hoses with my dealer wholesale account. I would replace the o rings on all of them as well if they are not included with the hoses which they often are. You really should pull a vacuum on the system and verify there are no more leaks before trying to refill it even with system sealer. The sealer isn't good for the system and is even worse for A/C evac recycling machines that shops use. It is likely the noise you were hearing was the compressor trying to kick on, and then the pressure switch detecting that the system is low on freon and kicking back off promptly. This happens when you are on the edge of the fill amount until the leak seeps a little more out and then it just doesn't even try to come on anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Foulard Posted March 19, 2011 Author Share Posted March 19, 2011 Problem solved. Needed o rings, hoses, dryer/receiver, refrigerant. Was quoted 1125 by dealer. & AC now works well and I have 1 year warranty. Very lame that this is a common problem with subies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Problem solved. Needed o rings, hoses, dryer/receiver, refrigerant. Was quoted 1125 by dealer. &AC now works well and I have 1 year warranty. Very lame that this is a common problem with subies. First I heard of it, so I will hold judgement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Foulard Posted March 20, 2011 Author Share Posted March 20, 2011 First I heard of it, so I will hold judgement. First you heard of what? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 the topic at hand AC hose issues Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShawnW Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 Problem solved. Needed o rings, hoses, dryer/receiver, refrigerant. Was quoted 1125 by dealer. &AC now works well and I have 1 year warranty. Very lame that this is a common problem with subies. Wow that is terribly expensive. I would have fixed for 1/2 that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Wow that is terribly expensive. I would have fixed for 1/2 that. I still do not beleive he needed all those parts. Like I said i have not seen this "common" issue anywhere else on any board. What is done is done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShawnW Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 I don't know what it was about the h6 cars I was working on but they always seemed to have high and low side hose leaks to the compressor. I agree it doesn't make any sense. Maybe the hose manufacturer, defect in materials, not sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Foulard Posted March 24, 2011 Author Share Posted March 24, 2011 353 otd for everything on the end. Pretty loudy that a car would have this type of issue nowadays. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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