Hello,

I have an Octavia II combi, 1.9TDI from 2005.

The air condition is not good enough anymore.

The compressor needs to be change.

The mechanic told me that I also need to change the condenser (with dryer) at the same time.

Apparently the working time for the condenser replacement is quite long and I would like to know if this is a must.

What do you recommend?

Thank you!

it is true.  If the compressor has failed then it is very possible that the condenser and system has been damaged/contaminated by metal particles. It did cost about €1200 or more. Es tut mir leid. 

If there is any contamination in the system, its a matter of time before a new compressor dies as well.

 

What did happen to the compressor? If there was a leak in the system, and the compressor died due to lack of lubrication, there is no need to replace the condensor as well. Only the compressor should be fine in that case.

 

However, I assume the leak is in the condensor (This is a known issue, the top of the dryer is known for leaking over time). In that case, a top-up and new compressor doesn't make sense without fixing the actual cause.

 

Replacing the condensor is labour intensive: It took me almost 5 hours to DIY. A good car mechanic can do it probably in 3 hours, if they, unlike me, aren't confronted with rusty screws which are a pita to remove).

Besides that, the whole system needs to be vacuumed and refilled.

 

Compressor: 250-300 eur (guess)

Condensor: 150 eur (guess)

Replace condensor and compressor: 4 hours labour?

Refrigerant and refill: 100 eur?

 

They probably want to make some profit on the parts, and charge you 60-80 eur/hour for labour (Dont know about the pricing in Germany), but for me (Netherlands) anywhere between 750 and 1000 eur sounds pretty reasonable (based on the information you've provided and some guessing)

 

If you have the tools and space, maybe you can save a few bucks on DIY: Ask them to empty the system (you're not allowed to expose refrigerant to the environment), buy the parts yourself and install them, and ask the garage to do a refill and vacuuming. 

In that case, you're probably ready to go for <500 eur.

 

I've replaced the condensor myself, a small write-up with pictures is on https://www.skodaforum.nl/forum/i/o2-airco-condensor-vervangen.33273/

(My compressor was still working so I didn't have to replace that one). I also have a 2005 O2, (although its not a combi, but I think the front/engine bay is identical)

 

Thank you for your useful answers.

I am not sure what happened to the compressor.

I suppose that it just got old as it is now 13 years old.

What I can tell is that the air con is working but with very low efficiency (not cold enough) for the second year now.

Your price estimation seems pretty good.

I will check if I feel like making at least part of the job myself. 

Thanks!