After the MG

Once the MG was gone, I was able to turn attention to another car that had been in residence far too long. A great philosopher (I think it was Dennis the Menace) said, "One can't tell how deep a mud puddle is from the top".

I was asked about an A/C leak. It was a fairly new car (Noble). It shouldn't be too involved. After poking around with the leak detector, where it seemed the leak was nowhere and everywhere, the conclusion was that the leak was inside the evaporator unit which is located under the dash.

At least the windscreen didn't have to come out....;>)
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Hi WPOZZZ

You put your finger on the problem. The owner could not get it registered here and it has been sent back to the mainland for sale.

 

The stain on the evaporator was a strong clue. Given the amount of work necessary to remove and replace the unit, I wanted to know for certain what the problem was. I made some temporary fittings so that the core could be evacuated and charged on the bench.
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The dye made it very clear where the problem was. The evaporator core is aluminum and there was an area where there was sealing foam that had corrosion. The corrosion was from the outside, in. I guess there was something in the foam or the glue that was used that reacted with the aluminum. It may also have been that the foam held moisture and salt from the air against the aluminum. The rest of the unit was shiny and clean.
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I gave some thought to repairing the evaporator core, but the thought of having to take it all apart again gave me nightmares. I was able to get a new evaporator assembly and, save for a few minor issues, it actually fit.

The Noble is an interesting car. There is a lot to like about it. It is quick, good looking, easy to see out of, and fun to drive. The workmanship is quite good, but there is a definite "kit car" aspect to it. It is not an easy car to work on.
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The engine management system has a port to plug in a laptop. I didn't need to go there, but I understand that one can get and install alternate mappings for the computer.
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Gil, you are right. The car has not gone through the Federal certification process.

A new Noble was purchased as a rolling chassis and a separate engine/gearbox package. This "self assembled car" exemption seems to work in most mainland states. The argument didn't work here. The car was assembled on the mainland and came over with valid mainland title and registration.

Hawaii makes allowance for hot rods and replicas. DMV here said that the Noble was a new car and wasn't a replica of anything.