Auto Air and More

BIG RIPOFF - I had a hole in a hose, they did not tell me and wanted me to replace EVERY A/C Component instead I went to them March 28th, 2008 when my A/C stopped working. I paid $77.63 for a diagnostic test which was suppose to include temporally filling the A/C system on my car with Freon, running the A/C, looking for leaks/problems and giving an repair estimate. They told me they preformed the tests and then recommended I replace every major A/C component for a total of $1606. Said because there were some metal flakes in the orifice tube that meant the compressor was short-lived and the condenser was contaminated. I then thought I would see what would happen if I simply put some Freon in. It might only work at 50% efficiency but that was better than nothing. So I bought a couple of cans of Freon at Wal-Mart and the second I started to fill the system I heard a loud whooshing where it was leaking out. It turned out that there was a rubber A/C hose along the bottom of the radiator that had ripped open. (Probably when driving on a rutted dirt road next to Lake Mead a few months earlier.) Therefore based on that large hole, it would have been IMPOSSIBLE for them to have done the diagnostic service for which I paid – how could they have temporally filled the system to check it with such a large hole????? How? I contested the charge with my credit card company and then Auto Air and More contested me, so I counter-contested. My credit card company refunded me the money (Thanks Capital One). My “case” was they could not have done the test they said they did with such a large leak (and they tried to rip me off for $1606). Now why couldn’t they tell me I had a leak in a hose and I would have paid them $200 - $300 for them to repair it? Instead I read up and watched a lot of videos on YouTube about recharging an A/C system. I bought and installed a replacement hose assembly from AutoZone for about $50 and an orifice tube, as well as adding the special PAG oil. They have a loan-a-tool program at Auto Zone so I borrowed a vacuum pump and gauge set. I hooked everything up on a very hot day (one gets a lower vacuum when the temperature is hotter) and drew the system down and then filled it with Freon. That was a few years ago and now in April 2012 I still get nice cold air from my A/C. Total cost: $50 for the hose and about $50 for the Freon, PAG oil etc. And the fact it is still working with the original parts (with the exception of one hose and orifice tube) is proof of how wrong they were when their solution was $1606 in repairs.