Took a stick to the front cooler, need advice

[fishincreeks]

Welp, got a little aggressive in the woods yesterday and took a stick to the forward most cooler. Which cooler is in the very front? It's a 2023 3.6 Sport S Max Tow.

Thanks in advance!

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[Sandevino]

You’re talking about the a/c condenser.

 

[Lunentucker]

Advice: Take pictures or do a better job of describing the current situation.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Welp, got a little aggressive in the woods yesterday and took a stick to the forward most cooler. Which cooler is in the very front? It's a 2023 3.6 Sport S Max Tow.

Thanks in advance!

What the others said - plus - I'd agree it's likely the A/C condenser but due to the proximity of it with the radiator - I question that as well.

IF it's the A/C, you are in for an expensive repair.

On the other hand - are you talking about this? BELOW, the grill, or did it go through the grill?

 

[TroutFishingInAmerica]

I replaced my ac condenser, not a difficult job. Was a bit of work finding a Mopar condenser, if you don't care about having Mopar parts there's plenty others available and cheaper. The ac has the new refrigerant and not everyone has equipment to work on it. It has a different charge fitting to prevent some bonehead from cross contaminating the refrigerant, and not everyone is up to speed with the new stuff yet. I had to have the dealership test, purge and charge it. As with everything now days it cost more than I liked, it works flawless though.

 

[TroutFishingInAmerica]

If you see oil leaking out and think it's not a condenser, it's still the condenser. The new refrigerant has the lubricant in it.

 

[fishincreeks]

Hey all, thanks so much for the advice, and sorry for no pics. I didn't have a chance to get pics and we were super busy. I did figure out that it was the AC condenser. I do have fluid coming out, it's a red color (not tranny fluid). It didn't really smell like coolant, could it be the ac refrigerant? I'll get some pics later today...

 

[fishincreeks]

 

[Sandevino]

R-1234yf AC refrigerant in our vehicles is clear and has no odor. Unless you bought this used and someone added dye to the system you are not seeing AC refrigerant.

The radiator has RED (purple) coolant in it and I suspect this is what you are seeing. Perform a pressure test on the radiator / cooling system and get ready to replace the radiator.

 

[Minty JL]

Also be aware R1234yf refrigerant is extremely flammable............. take a look at Copart and look at the number of JLs and JTs are burned to the ground from front end collisions

 

[Sandevino]

Also be aware R1234yf refrigerant is extremely flammable............. take a look at Copart and look at the number of JLs and JTs are burned to the ground from front end collisions

Makes great sense to replace stable but environmentally questionable R-134A with R-1234yf that is "environmentally friendly" but will burn you and your vehicle to the ground in the right collision.

 

[Minty JL]

Makes great sense to replace stable but environmentally questionable R-134A with R-1234yf that is "environmentally friendly" but will burn you and your vehicle to the ground in the right collision.

The European Union will not allow imported cars & trucks with it, because of the known fire hazard.

This refrigerant is as good for the environment as EV batteries are.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

R-1234yf AC refrigerant in our vehicles is clear and has no odor. Unless you bought this used and someone added dye to the system you are not seeing AC refrigerant.

The radiator has RED (purple) coolant in it and I suspect this is what you are seeing. Perform a pressure test on the radiator / cooling system and get ready to replace the radiator.

You can see the rad is damaged unless he moved the phone when taking a picture. Looks bowed to me. And since there's pretty much no clearance between the two - looking at the damage of the condenser, yeah, bet on radiator damage.

Australia says: 1234yf is classified by the ASHRAE as a 2L flammable gas. That means that 1234yf is rated as mildly flammable. 1234yf requires much more energy to ignite than hydrocarbon refrigerant and if it does, it burns relatively slowly. The heat of combustion is 1/4 that of propane.

So while flammable, it takes a lot more to get it burning, it burns slowly, and with not nearly as much heat as many other substances.



In Europe, the options are R-1234yf and R-1234ze(E), taking into account that they are slightly flammable and safety measures may apply. In the United States, the medium temperature options are R-450A and R-513A. In Japan and Canada, these four refrigerants are allowed.

R134a is not permitted.

So little worry about 1234yf - it's the other stuff that's problematic.

 

[TroutFishingInAmerica]

R-1234yf AC refrigerant in our vehicles is clear and has no odor. Unless you bought this used and someone added dye to the system you are not seeing AC refrigerant.

The radiator has RED (purple) coolant in it and I suspect this is what you are seeing. Perform a pressure test on the radiator / cooling system and get ready to replace the radiator.

The condenser will leak a lubricant from it. The compressor has no oil reservoir, it's lubrication is part of the refrigerant. That's why he noticed the substance leaking.

 

[Minty JL]

The condenser will leak a lubricant from it. The compressor has no oil reservoir, it's lubrication is part of the refrigerant. That's why he noticed the substance leaking.

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