X3 air conditioner

[X3 enthusiast]

Hi all, I am new to the forum. I drive a 2005 X3. Fantastic car. I have a problem with the air conditioner. I have been told that I have a leaking evaporator core. Quote to have it fixed here in Cape Town is about R9000. Dashboard has to be removed etc. I don't mind doing the work myself but I am lacking the know-how. Can someone help with a cheaper option?

 

[Blue Shirt]

The only cost-effective option is to DIY this job which I did on my wife's X3 a while ago. It is a common problem for E83 X3's to have a leaking evaporator.

You should be able to get the part through any reputable aircon workshop, don't buy it at the dealers as their prices are outrageous. I paid R1700 for it back in 2014.

You won't need any special tools, but you will have to strip the entire dashboard out to get to the HVAC blower unit. It took me a full day for the job, hence the high labour cost if a workshop has to do it for you.

I found detailed instructions for the job in the TIS manuals that I bought off Ebay, they are readily available there.

 

[StraightSix]

+1 there isn't a quick fix for a leaking evaporator. The dashboard has got to be stripped... there are aftermarket evaporators available if you'd like to try and save on the spares... after the reinstall you would need to regas the system as well. Just make sure that the evap is actually the problem- you'd hate to strip the entire dashboard for nothing.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[X3 enthusiast]

The only cost-effective option is to DIY this job which I did on my wife's X3 a while ago. It is a common problem for E83 X3's to have a leaking evaporator.

You should be able to get the part through any reputable aircon workshop, don't buy it at the dealers as their prices are outrageous. I paid R1700 for it back in 2014.

You won't need any special tools, but you will have to strip the entire dashboard out to get to the HVAC blower unit. It took me a full day for the job, hence the high labour cost if a workshop has to do it for you.

I found detailed instructions for the job in the TIS manuals that I bought off Ebay, they are readily available there.

Thanks for the lead. I checked on eBay and they talk about BMW TIS, WDS, ETK, EPC, ETM. Any idea what the abbreveations mean?