Yes, they added tracer dye which led them to the leak on pressure lines. I have heard about the problems with evaporators and my Volvo repair shop (another shameless plug for Auto Scandia) has not found a problem in the past - last checked about a year ago.

I typically use the shop I went to yesterday for routine service like oil changes and seem to find that everytime I go in for something minor they find a 'big problem'. For example, when I had the car in to have a CV boot replaced, they told me that my turbo was leaking oil and would need to be replaced at a cost of $2500! After thanking them for the advice I had it checked at Auto Scandia who found nothing wrong. The good news/bad news is that you really need to find someone who works on bricks day in and day out for any repair. Too bad that Auto Scandia isn't more convenient to either home or work.

Thanks for confirming that this was either a) misdiagnosed or b) an overpriced estimate, or c) both. Next course of action may be to simply recharge it with R134 myself and see what happens. I may not be keeping this car for more than another 12-18 months and don't think that I will recover the repair cost when I sell it.

P.S. I understand about the netiquette of BBs, but I found that this site is so active that I was inundated with messages. I appreciate the new feature which allows you to receive e-mail automaticaly from posted replys.