AC Issues

Has anyone had any issues with the ac not cooling enough? I have had 5 Toyotas and if you set the ac on recirc, medium fan speed and about 68 degrees, you'll get frost bite. In this one same settings and it's like the heat is on! I had this new Tundra checked at the dealership and the service manager compared it to 4 others and they were the same. When I had the general manager come over to chat about the issue, he said he drives one as a demo and he has the same issue. Any thoughts?

 

Use Auto or set the fan speed you want with temp at LO

 

Thanks and yeah I have done that and it will get cold that way, but that seems excessive. It's like there's no in between, either cold or warm no middle ground for comfortable. I've been looking around for solutions because like I said the service checked the system and it was good, but they all agreed that there is something off. I mean seriously in my 2021 TRD Sport 4x4 Tacoma I traded for this Tundra, and in all my other Yotas, if you set it on 68, recirc, and 2-3 on fan speed it was cold but not too cold and it would get colder! I'm doing some research though because here in south Alabama we get 8 months of 95 degree, 100% humidity weather and having a properly working AC is critical! Thanks again!

 

Yeah, was having problems here in south Texas. Like it would a mind of it's own. Sometime it would fell cold and others cool. That's with not touching any of the controls. We'll see in March-April when the temps get back up and see if it continues to be a problem

 

I read that a forum member had to have the system recharged at the dealer, they were told that their system was not properly charged. That resolved their issue.

When was your truck manufactured?

 

I've had two AC issues with my 22. The first kept in in the shop 5 weeks. It blew hot air on Low and was determined not to be holding any freon at all (or whatever the appropriate term for the gas is). They replaced some type of screw or clamp on a hose and it seemed to work better, but not great. It was blowing cold enough I couldn't have an arguable complaint, it just wasn't as good as other vehicles I've owned.

Fast forward six months or so and the AC started blowing hot on a short road trip after running about 2 hours straight. I take it to another dealership and they said the first dealership had no idea what they were doing (based on reading notes in the computer). It is assumed they did not vacuum the system out properly or something before filling. Of course, this took another several days in the shop to rectify. It is now blowing what Toyota calls "cold", but the highest I have ever set the temp is 62 and that's when it's been in the low 20's outside. I usually leave it on either 60 or low. Personally, I think the AC in the 22 is about the worst of any vehicle I've owned.

 

Yeah I had the dealer check all the levels of refrigerant and its properly charged and everything there looks good. there's just no real middle ground for comfortable its either LO and high fan speed to get cool/cold or basically warm better with window down, which sucks here in south alabama especially from march to october

 

I hate that you had that experience but yeah I couldn't agree more this ac in the new tundra sucks. I've had 5 other toyotas b4 dating back to a 2004 avalon and they have all performed very well, would almost freeze you out if you wanted and or keep you comfortable, but this 2022 tundra there is no middle ground its either LO and cool/cold feeling or warm nothing in between. I wonder if its the new refrigerant toyota has been switching to the R1234yf, I think they've been changing here and there from the norm now R134a. Nothing will ever be as good as the old R12 though!

 

I’m not impressed by the AC in mine either, but it’s not horrible and just about the same as my ‘20 4Runner was, I don’t think it has to do with the R1234yf because my wife’s ‘22 Camry will freeze you out, I do agree that the old Toyota systems performed better, we had a ‘00 Lexus GS300 and I’ve never experienced a colder system I used to turn it down in the heat of the summer here in Phoenix it worked that well

 

Oh for sure my 21 tacoma trd sport would freeze you out or stay at a comfortable temp, the whole range was good, but not this tundra, idk what the issue is but I'm researching for sure, thx

 

There have been a few threads on 2022s HVAC, not heating/cooling as well as expected. Here is one
https://www.tundras.com/threads/climate-control-fans-airflow-weak.107088/#post-2992063

 

Thx I'll check it out

 

UPDATE!!!
So I had a a meeting with a regional service representative (from Toyota Brand) today at my dealership. Super knowledgeable guy by the name of Neil. Anyway we had quite the conversation about the ac systems and fan blower systems in these new Tundras. Surprisingly there is a fairly simple change that can be made. And the dealership can do this. Turns out there is a variable setting inside the system, meaning when it's set to cool say setting 68° it may feel like 70 or 72 because the "variance setting" is set there. So for instance someone in a low humidity area, up north, Arizona may not need the system to cool as efficiently, however in south Alabama at the beach where humidity is super high this setting will make it feel like warm air or warmer than the setting is coming out. So as you run it down it starts to cool. Anyway they tweaked mine to the lowest variance setting which is -5° and now at 68° it's actually cool and coming out of the vents is cool air. The fan speed issue is another thing which they're working on and the whistling sound is air blowing across an actuator. They took my passenger side dash underneath off and found these issues. A report has been made and sent to corporate Toyota. And just so everyone knows this is NOT a random thing it's happening to a lot of people. If you haven't discovered these issues in yours yet, you prob will or maybe you live in a region where it doesn't affect your air. Risie is the Toyota Brand rep I've been working with on the phone and I highly recommend asking for her to get things done, she's great. I was actually able to set my air at 72° today and still get cool air, I couldn't believe it! Nonetheless there are still updates to be done and adjustments to be made by we're on the right track! If anyone needs to talk about this shoot me a text or call 2514235500 and I'll tell you what I know. If you call leave a message as I don't answer unknown numbers but will return calls or txt. I'm excited about this and glad I didn't get rid of this truck, but it was a close call. Anyway good luck and keep the post coming!

 

What is the temp outside when you get cool air at 68? My A/C is miserable!! Today it was 50 outside and set at 60 was warm, had it on Lo most the ride. I don't believe my truck has ever been over 64, that's full blown heat.

I will say 60 feels a little cooler the warmer it is outside. Recently, during the really cold weather, set on 60 was heat. I definitely have more complaints during winter months than I do summer. Then again, my truck has spent roughly 55 days or so in the shop during two visits for the A/C; I have a feeling it will never work properly.

 

Doesn't the 3rd gen use the newest freon? Seems every time they come out with a new freon it doesn't cool like the previous one. I will say that if I am not moving and stuck in traffic, my a/c also isn't up to the task. At least not like the old freons. I was in an old Dodge the other day at work and that thing had the oldest a/c. Compared to my truck it was like the North Pole and the desert, not that extreme but you et the picture. Fucking EPA.

 

It was 72 here today but humid and muggy. Did you by chance call Toyota Brand and report? I'll also say that the Intel I got was that this is not an isolated issue, all of them have an issue, but I think some people don't realize it due to location or whatever. Call and report daily if you need to and ask for Risie she will help. This is a design issue that can be fixed it's just going to take a bit. Good luck and keep me posted, I'll keep posting as I find stuff out because I'm hounding them pretty much daily.

 

Yes, my original A/C issue had a case manager assigned, or whatever they call them. This person made promises that were not carried through and I have called more times than I can count and they won't call me back and every other representative says they can't help me since I already spoke to this one assigned person.... Even though that case has been closed for months.

 

I'm sorry to hear that man. That's crappy. Don't know if it'll help but I'll be glad to give Risee your info and ask her to call you next time she and I talk if you'd like. I'm not sure why you're getting the run around because that has not been my experience. I think she and I will have a follow up conversation tomorrow after my meeting yesterday, and like I say I can forward your info if you want. But don't give up and maybe ask to speak to the general manager at your dealership and the lead service technician. I've had all these people and a couple more involved in my situation.

 

Thanks, PM sent

 

Thank you for sharing this info Kbeck70. I have a 2022 Limited. I live in Central Texas (Austin area) and it takes forever to get cold. The only way I have found to consistently get close to cold is to do LO, recirculate, AC On, high fan speed. If I leave it on auto, it takes twice as long to get cold. I pretty much leave it on LO temp all day, except at night if I have been driving more than a couple of hours.
At my 5,000 mile service they told me the AC system was over-pressurized with too much refrigerant and that they had to bleed some off. Well whether that was true or not, it did not make much of a difference. I may reach out to you for more details on what they did to yours. Thank you.

 

Or change it in Carista in two mins

Set temp dail to -2 and it’s perfect

 

Is this compatible with the 3rd gen? Carista says 2nd gen.

 

yes, that was from my 3 rd gen

 

I also used Carista to change the temp variance. Wife reports that she notices a difference. I haven’t got a chance to drive it yet tho

 

Borla, you fantastic son of a bitch, you just made my summer more comfortable! I owe you a beer!

 

Oh wow, making this change today.

 

How do you get to that?

 

The dealer adjusted my AC variance down -2 degrees. I can't say it is as cold as my wife's 2018 Highlander AC, but it is a noticeable improvement. It took an extra day of leaving my truck there and talking to the shop manager to convince them they should do this. I am surprised this is not a commonly known adjustment by dealers, given the weather we're having and how many Tundras they sell.

 

I'd just like to give some perspective for tundra owners who think the AC works poorly:

I just drove my grandmother's brand new Range Rover (I'm guessing it MSRPd north of $150k) for a week and the AC was a joke. Never cold, weak blower, and NOISY. Further, the cooled seats at max were less effective than my vented seats on lowest setting.

I won't say anything because she likes the car, but damn, that thing was miserable to drive.

 

As first summer w/ new truck has progressed and temps in my locale are consistently 90-95 range complaints from the boss in the passenger seat about the weak AC have disappeared. I also feel like the cabin is consistently cooler running it at 68 degrees than in the spring or last fall. The spring with borderline and up and down temps there were a lot of complaints and a few times I thought the AC had stopped working. I think the tuning on the temp control does hot and cold well enough; in between not do much.