Is the evaporator surface freezing up? I've seen systems where that happens and it reduces cooling effectiveness. Some systems have a temperature or pressure sensitive anti-frost switch that is supposed to prevent that. But if your hose is freezing internally and blocking refrigerant flow it seems like there has to be moisture in there. Maybe Scotty or another pro can chime in? (I don't want you tearing everything apart just on my say-so!)

I don't think i can really see the evap with everything reassembled. It does put out lots of water to the ground though while running. When the air decides to "bottleneck" inside the dash, there is a VERY faint whisper of air that still comes out of the vents and it is cool though not as cold as when it is blowing correctly through the vents. When this "bottlenecking" occurs i check under the hood and sure enough the low side line has a nice layer of ice on it. Again, shut down the a/c and fan for a few minutes, then restart it and poof-nice cold air through the vents again..

That does suggest then that the evaporator is icing up, the ice would be blocking airflow. In that case it has nothing to do with moisture in the system, it has to do with the evaporator getting so cold that atmospheric moisture condenses and freezes on it. (The outside of that hose freezing up would just be a side effect, not the cause, in this scenario.)

To give you an example, on one of my older vehicles the evaporator temperature (and thus the outlet temperature) is controlled by an adjustable thermostatic switch that measures evaporator temperature and cycles the compressor. It has a probe that is inserted into the evaporator. There is a "desert only" setting that lets the compressor just keep running, but if you do that in a humid location the evaporator will freeze up and cause the situation you are describing.

Modern AC systems control temperature differently but they still would have some means of preventing the evaporator from freezing up. That's the area I'd be checking into, see what is being used to control evaporator temperature on that AC system. You may have missed installing or connecting an anti-frost switch when installing the evaporator.

I labeled and counted everything i unplugged when removing the dash and console so i am confident i reconnected everything i knowingly unplugged 😋  with the exception of the trunk switch and pocket light which both run to the pocket as i have not reinstalled it yet just in case i need to get to that area for some reason. i wouldn't think those have anything to do with the a/c system but the complexity of electronics in todays cars who knows right lol
I do like the idea of that desert only switch but if it doesn't bode well for humid environments, i'm guessing using it here in the deep southeast would be a no no 🤣 

That's the problem, on modern automotive HVAC systems it's not enough for all the plumbing and mechanical parts to be good, the network of modules and electronic devices have to be working properly. In the example I gave it's a very old car that has no computers and the AC is operated via a simple electrical setup that doesn't even have a low pressure cutout, just the thermostatic switch. Much simpler to troubleshoot. (An old-style compressor with a sump is used so a low pressure cutout is not needed.)

Anyway, if your evaporator is indeed freezing up, which appears to be the case, whatever in your car's network of sensors and electronics that is supposed to prevent that from happening is not working. It may well take a fancy (expensive) bidirectional scan tool like Scotty uses so often to figure out what's going on with the electronics.

Thanks chuck. From what i recall i only noticed the one switch on the drier though it seems i recollect being told it had something to do with the high pressure? I wonder if mr. scottys mid-level scan tool would be useful in this case as i have been thinking of purchasing one anyways. Oddly, just before the compressor failed the a/c/system in the car worked flawless lol
side??--being that this is my daily driver and i am in the swamp air and heat that's the southeast 😆 i'm wondering if it will damage anything to run the a/c as is until i can figure it out? of course shutting the a/c off as soon as i notice the air "bottlenecking" and allowing things to thaw before using it again...thoughts?

Usually the switch on the drier is the low-pressure cutoff to protect the compressor if system pressure falls below the point where oil circulation would be affected (usually triggers if pressure gets below 20 psi).

Yes, until you get the problem figured out you could for now get into the habit of just shutting off the AC periodically to prevent evaporator icing.

A little update-- today i rechecked pressures under the shadetree at 76degF underhood and they were static at 78#; a/c on at idle=32L/120H. Let car run for ~75 minutes and had no pressure changes (normal fluctuations with idle-2000rpms), COLD air, no icing up and overall no issues whatsoever. Also checked for leaks with blacklight and sniffer again and no issues. Water noted dripping, not pouring, from evap area under car. I did notice I couldn't hear the compressor cycle off when the rpms were raised-is that just and older car thing? Finally I will note the dew point is down today to mid50s 😎 instead of the more seasonal mid 70s ❗
Then, Went for about hour or so ride in the country, minimal stops (3-and i popped the hood to note an ice free low press side each time), cruise set at ~65, car shows 82 degF, a/c on, recirc on, fan alt between 1/2 and full speed and again no issues. (The air usually does the "bottlenecking" around 25-35 mins at interstate speeds). The only real difference today is the slightly lower ambient temps and definitely lower humidity. Now i AM confusion lol Did the ghost in the system work itself out lol? Tomorrow's weather is supposed to mimic todays and i have a long interstate drive to work so I guess that'll be the actual test.

Higher humidity means more condensation on the evaporator and more ice. With lower humidity you get less icing. A little frosting won't block airflow the way thicker ice will. It will probably start acting up again on hot, humid days.

That's along the lines of what i was thinking-less h2o in air, less h2o on the pieces parts to rid of or freeze. So i'm guessing if higher humidity and the issue returns this more likely points to a temp/switch/sensor of some sort that may be acting up (or not plugged in 😳 )?
Or could there still be excess moisture in the system that would require a drier replacement, vacuum etc. Any chance I maybe got a faulty expansion valve-was new and denso branded. (hope not, it's in a spot that agitating to replace the o-rings lol)? sorry so many??, just kinda "thinking out loud"

I think that the system not icing up in lower humidity is confirmation of the theory that the evaporator was freezing up. This has nothing to do with moisture in the system which would cause an internal blockage, would not block airflow from the vents, and would not change with a change in ambient humidity.

So don't take that system apart again unless it turns out you need to replace a sensor that involves having to open it up. All symptoms point to the problem having to do with the evaporator anti-frost system not working and that gets into sensors and electronics. As I said it before it may well take a fancy bidirectional scan tool to find the problem.

after sifting through schematics online i found this https://parts.conicellinissan.com/oem-parts/nissan-2003-2020-nissan-a-c-evaporator-temperature-sensor-27723ag000?c=Zz1odmFjJnM9ZXZhcG9yYXRvci1hbmQtaGVhdGVyLWNvbXBvbmVudHMmbD0yNiZuPUFzc2VtYmxpZXMgUGFnZSZhPW5pc3NhbiZvPWFsdGltYSZ5PTIwMDcmdD1zJmU9Mi01bC1sNC1nYXM%3D
and this one that i think shows the attachment of the sensor
From what i can read, it attaches to the rear ("trunk") side of the evap. oddly, when i removed the oem evap i didn't find anything connected to it but there was one small area of deformed fins-appear to have been pushed in by something that may have been "attached." So i'm now kinda wondering if the oem sensor didn't just somehow fall off over time...maybe still in the hvac box/evap area, maybe is still operational just not in the correct place to operate correctly. Thinking at this point I may just continue to "manually defrost" the evap cause i really don't wanna pull that dash again...at least not right now lol (but i do like things to work correctly 😎 ) (tried to embed the pics rather than links but the add comment box just froze)

Yes, it would be that sensor with the wiring and circuitry associated with it that is supposed to keep your evaporator from icing up. Typically those mount on the evaporator or have a probe that goes into it. I think you're on the right track.

Hate to resurrect old thread but i'm a closure liking guy lol 4 years and 3 deep south hot/humid/wet summers now and altima a/c has seemed to have fix itself icing up since '22. No idea how, as I've done no further repairs, simply drove her. Noticed all was good after just trying not manually cycling using the button....--I dunno, shrugs shoulders, but I'll take it LOL-- Keep a center vent thermometer in it and she holds a nice 37-39 F on full blast/recirc during summer driving with no icing up or "bottlenecking"/performance issues as before. Thanks again Mr. chuck for all the advice