My '04 G coupe needs a re-charge on the air conditioning refrigerant. I'm wondering if this is too soon (i.e. could there be a leak that the dealer needs to look into).

Also, I'm wondering if this is something I can do myself.

Thanks.

 

There is no set time on when your A/C may need recharged. Freon is a gas and a good portion of the A/C system is made up of rubber hoses which are porous. The gas over time will escape through the hoses. The Freon also looses its cooling capabilities and needs to be recycled and put back into the car. When you have an A/C service done they will use a machine to recover and recycle the R134a in your system then refill the car to the OE's specs. Even if you car is a little low on R134a it will still cool efficiently, it will not cool if the properties of the Freon have been broken down. You should be able to get your A/C recharged for $99 almost anywhere.

 

or you can just do it yourself with a kit from pep boys for 20 bucks... and just a correction... Freon is actually not the right term to be using here ... Freon refers to the expensive R12 refrigerent that is found in cars 199x and earlier... R12 actually cools more efficiently than the current R134a refrigerent but hurts the environment more when released into the atmosphere...

now for the big question of a leak... you have a car that is less than 3 years old... you should not have to recharge your A/C system yet... all hoses and O-rings for the A/C system are designed to survive for at least 8-10 years... take the car into the dealer to have them check it out