Quick question for Austin, TX area folks
 

I know there are at least a few other Austin area people around ... wondering if anyone has recommendations for a decent indie auto repair shop in the ATX? I'd consider going to San Antonio, too.

On a recent trip out to Big Bend, the AC on my 2005 X5 3.0 started feeling a little weak and I'm hoping to get that taken care of before another trip coming up in a couple of weeks - and before it starts getting ungodly hot here in central TX.

Thanks in advance for the advice. :-)

Chris

Mine has all it's work done by me. Do you need a simple recharge? Vacuum and recharge? Full replacement? I could probably help you on a quick vacuum/recharge. I have all the tools necessary. Mine blows down to 42F! Even running at the lowest speed, I have to turn vents away from me. Replacing the valve cores, vacuum, and recharge are my recommendations based on age. Especially if it still works.

Mine went to Hill Country European Autoworks for electrical work. https://www.hceuro.com/
Basically, I wanted confirmation I had found my amp draws. They did great work. They spent 6 hours on it. Charged me only 3 hours since most of it was waiting time. The shop is clean. I would take mine back for work I couldn't do myself. The shop recommended fixes. The fixes recommended worked. A GMIII replacement fixed all the electrical amp draws and non working body control functions.

Thanks very much for the recommendation. The system is still working, and up until the last trip has been blowing very cold. I suspect it just needs a recharge, but at its age you never know. Mileage is only about 60K.

I do most of my own work and am interested in learning to maintain the AC system as much as I can, but don't think I'm going to have the time to get all of the tools together before I need to hit the road.

Best regards,
Chris

I just had my AC charge valves replaced and recharged by Auto Specialists in Round Rock - https://www.automotive-specialist.com/


They've done a number for things for me (front wheel bearing most recently). They're not cheap, but they do good work.

My advice is to try AC Pro. Relatively inexpensive, just make sure to add the refrigerant slowly and check, following the instructions on their YouTube videos. I can get down to the low 40's from my vents with the needle just to the right of middle in the green section on its built-in gauge.

More info in this post:

https://xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/...y-2-vents.html

I've been using it for four or five years now. This year with the high-mileage sealant version.

I use these guys: https://www.germanautocenter.com

Just wanted to check back in and say thanks to all for the advice. My inclination was to take the car over to Hill Country Euro (based on X5chemist's recommendation and also because they're on my side of town), but in three days of calling them, I didn't get a callback or a person answering the phone one single time! Who knows, maybe they were on vacation or something.

Running out of time, I decided to give the AC Pro product a try. The gauge showed my car on the low side of the pressure range and I just added a bit until I was in the middle. Seems to be working fine for now.

I suspect I've got a slow leak in one of the recharge valves, so I expect that repair is in order very soon.

If anyone sees a Black E53 on the road between Austin and Chicago tomorrow, it'll probably be me. And if you see the windows down, you'll know my AC fix didn't work. :-)

Thanks again,
Chris

Memorial Day weekend. They probably took time off. Best way for them to call back is to setup an appointment. Or request to setup an appointment.

Good luck on your trip!! Guess it's a game tourney weekend?

Well, it was considerably before this weekend when I started trying to reach them, and I did leave a couple of VMs. No biggie, just thought it was odd.

And yes, we're headed to a tournament for the young chess player - the Leonid Shamkovich Memorial Invitational. 9 rounds over five days ... chess is brutal!

Thanks again,
Chris

PS - photo below from the last road trip to Big Bend, when the AC started misbehaving.

Grab or order a valve core tightening tool.
Cheap tool to tighten the cores before your next charge. Old style cores have only one seal. Upgrade cores have two seals.

Wow, nice pic!