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Just following this long, sad thread about the 850 A/C evap brouhaha; lots of right AND wrong, as is the case in many situations, automotive and otherwise. Having helped my mechanic do a few of them, I have seen, and heard from him, most of what the problems are. For one thing, the 740 A/C evaps are a snap to replace, not $1,000 (US). The cab forward'/transverse engine design severely limits accessibility, which necessitates removing the console, dashboard, steering wheel, etc. That means time, which means money. Also, from what I have seen, the replacement evaps 'appear' to be made by the same company as the original (bad) ones. Also, the lack of a cabin air filter in the first years of 850 production exacerbated the problem. At some point, the wily Swedes began not only installing cabin air/pollen filters in the later models, they ALSO (key point, methinks) began to make available a retrofit kit, including an adaptor, for the earlier models. To my way of thinking, this points to KNOWLEDGE on the part of VoVo that they KNEW there was a problem. WITHOUT the filter, leaf particles, dust, any other number of things that can drop into that confined, nearly-inaccessible space which leads to decreased efficiency on the part of the evap unit. In an industrial setting, with access to be able to spray 10K psi water over the fins WILL contribute to a unit's efficiency, implying that it adds to its longevity as well; it's just not a one-for-one comparison to THIS shituation. My indie mech says that the tannins and other acids that leach out of the debris that sits up against the evap actually corrodes the metal, eventually leading to most of the causes of them eventually leaking. (I don't know enough to say that he is right, but inevitably, upon seeing the removed unit, there is always a big wad of leaf/plant material detritus sitting on the fins, and apparent corrosion---I do NOT know if there are actually any holes in the metal.) All in all, it sounds like the bottom line is that VoVo MAY have rushed an unproven or poorly-tested 134-capable unit into production (through the manufacturing sub-contractor/supplier), but if the units hold up for 'X' miles/years, they have fulfilled their warranty. Perhaps not morally, but probably legally. That is life in the big city. The bottom line seems to be the sage who suggested voting with your feet, or with your checkbook, or however you want to put it: go to someone else. Personally, I have a very unglamorous older (it gets worse) diesel 740, and am happy as a pig in s**t. My 850 friends in Atlanta have so many sad songs to sing about their 850 that they,,,yes, bought a Japanese car and are v-e-r-y happy. If ya can't take the heat, get outta the kitchen. Sad, tough, not nice, but true. Ford will have a lot of catching up to do. But they know that there are a lotta fish in the sea, so prolly as many people who drop OUT of VoVodom will be replaced by starry-eyed newbies...and the beat goes on. Sorry to take up so much space. It's just food for thought.--PD.
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