to air or not to air

Mike Stevens

PCS Member
The saying goes, 'to err is human'. The other saying goes, 'when it is 90 plus degrees and you are driving a black car you want AIR conditioning'. I just talked to a guy that does Vintage Air installations. He says he can install an A/C unit and change just one or two pulleys on the engine in my 61 M-M. Trust me it gets very hot in my coach in the summer time. Yes, even with the windows down. At around 80 degrees the 2/60 rule does not apply. 2/60 rule? Roll down 2 windows and drive 60 miles an hour. Keep in mind I put about 2000 miles a year on my coach. That is April or May to October or November driving.
Would you add A/C to a coach that never had it? Have you added A/C to a vehicle? What were the pros or cons?
Mike
 
Last edited:
Pros........ you are going to be driving in modern comfort...

Cons........you are modifying the vehicle from original...

It is your car, so I can't advise you what to do. If it were mine, I would want it to look as close to original as possible. That would mean that I would find original mounting brackets, and the original type of compressor, pulleys, and OEM reproduced condensor for in front of the radiator. I would also look for a good used under dash unit so the whole thing looks period correct.

This is an exact NOS reproduction condenser
 

Attachments

  • 1961.jpg
    1961.jpg
    27.1 KB · Views: 328
The saying goes, 'to err is human'. The other saying goes, 'when it is 90 plus degrees and you are driving a black car you want AIR conditioning'. I just talked to a guy that does Vintage Air installations. He says he can install an A/C unit and change just one or two pulleys on the engine in my 61 M-M. Trust me it gets very hot in my coach in the summer time. Yes, even with the windows down. At around 80 degrees the 2/60 rule does not apply. 2/60 rule? Roll down 2 windows and drive 60 miles an hour. Keep in mind I put about 2000 miles a year on my coach. That is April or May to October or November driving.
Would you add A/C to a coach that never had it? Have you added A/C to a vehicle? What were the pros or cons?
Mike

Mike,

I own a 1960 Impala..
I purchased it from a 88 year old gentleman in Dubuque Iowa a few years ago.....he was the original owner and always garaged/covered it...for the last 2o years he only took it out to the local 4th of July parade.....

That being said...it is ALL original inside and out.....and loaded with options...continental kit,348 Tri-power GM compass,Wonder-Bar radio etc.
I pretty much did nothing to the car except mechanical service and new whitewalls.......AND VINTAGE AIR

It has won over 60 awards including 2 best of shows.....all in "ORIGINAL" class ........and MOST people cannot tell the difference !!! :cheers:

There is a minimum of wiring and ducting..it uses your heating ducting/vents
that are already in the car....or you can add new if you prefer.... as far as the engine area goes....you just have to change the pullys and add a bracket and compressor...they are great to work with and very helpful if you have trouble or questions......

My friend also added Vintage air to his 57 Bel Air...and he loves it....!!

Hope this helps you decide !!

Good Luck and Stay Koooooooool !! :specool:
 
one other option if your going to have to go with the hanging unit would be to mount it behind the seat. lots of room back there and it out of side but will still cool the cab just fine. your putting that many miles on one might as will do it in comfort. keep things as stock in the engine room as you can and enjoy the car. not a lot of options out there for a caddy. I'm thinking the only one would be a hanging one even from Vintage air.
 
Since it only gets 1000 miles a year Im not sure if it would be worth the expense. If you plan on using it more I know I would put it in. I have been debating for along time of putting it in my 49, but with the wings and floor vents as long as the car is moving you are ok, plus it helps I do mostly highway driving.
 
Mike,

I know that a lot of the driving that you do in your coach is long road trips, and even though your coach did not come from the factory with A/C, I think i would go with the Vintage Air. If your going to drive it, you want to enjoy it. There are many many antique cars that have Vintage Air.

Josh
 
Another option is to add factory air. Find a donor car, and strip it of the AC system. Cut the holes iin the dash for the vents.

I personally dont see a problem with adding an aftermarket system, as long as it blends with the interior. Vintage air has a great under dash unit.
 
The former owner of my car put a separate ac unit in the overhead .....never had it on until the other day when the painter had turned it on ....felt good but cranking the windows would suffice for short distances !
 
A/C

Another option is to add factory air. Find a donor car, and strip it of the AC system. Cut the holes iin the dash for the vents.

I personally dont see a problem with adding an aftermarket system, as long as it blends with the interior. Vintage air has a great under dash unit.

This is what I,am doing on the 61 .I bought a 62 limo I sold parts off of it and have the a/c , dual master cylinder and alternator to put on the 61. I still have other parts that I can use on my 61 and 62. The early a/c are not integrated like the later ones , they are almost 2 separate units one a/c one heat.
 

Attachments

  • DSC01752.jpg
    DSC01752.jpg
    60.5 KB · Views: 178
  • DSC04080.jpg
    DSC04080.jpg
    63.5 KB · Views: 194
  • DSC04082.jpg
    DSC04082.jpg
    55.8 KB · Views: 180
What I did...

Mike, I did to my '60 Eureka what Dan is doing to his car. I bought a '62 S&S combination that had factory a/c and reinstalled them in my car. Several of the components required some rebuilding or replacing, but I was able to get the job done, including factory dash and controls. '62 is the year of choice to find, because it's the first year for the wonderful GM A-6 compressor, a workhorse up until about '78 when GM went to the crap R-4 compressor, the round one that looks like an alternator. Funny thing is that Cadillac was one of the first to make that change, and Chevy took several more years, keeping the A-6, so it still quite readily available.

You can install all the engine-related stuff and have your a/c man just install an under-dash unit, utilizing the components already in the engine. Just to give you an idea, I'm estimating I had about $1000 in the job (including buying the car) and about 40 hours of my labor. Don't forget, I'm in refrigeration, so I had a distinct advantage in charging it with R-12, etc. Lots of work, but worth every cent and every hour. Originality? Points at a PCS Meet? At 104 degrees as here yesterday, I could care less! Tom
 
Would you add A/C to a coach that never had it? Have you added A/C to a vehicle? What were the pros or cons?
Mike

HELL "YES" man. The occupant needs to stay cool and it is not like we have $100,000 cars and by adding A/C ruins it for most of us anyways.

Mike Baruzza added A/C to his 74 flower car. Gene Williams added A/C to all his vintage cars. And I think I finally got mine to a point where it cools as well as one can expect and driveable now in Florida in the summer.

I have two toggle switches under the dash. One to activate the compressor and the other to turn the blower fan on. The charge lasts about a month then I need to add 3 cans of freon, working on that leak.

But, it cools and technically modified.

Put it in man! :myopinion:
 
Just a caution folks,do not know if its widespread but up here a lady went to use her A/C found out the freon had been drained,I gather its rather expensive so be on your guard.the pond scums will steal anything.:smileflagcan:
 
More likely it leaked out. Freon is expensive, but so is the recovery equipment necessary to take it out. Not everything that goes missing is stolen.
 
Not a car, sorry,Niagara on the lake Ontario,surveillance video shows a man approx.30 ride up to a store,removes chemical container,proceeds to the A/C unit an leaves with what police say is a full container,police and A/C people say they have never heard of this in 20years,now for the kick you while your down the cost to the lady $800. insurance would not cover it,
 
OK... I found the news article... click here

You never said that it was a commercial air conditioning unit, and being that this website discusses automobiles, I naturally assumed that you were refering to an automobile air conditioning unit. The news article also said
“The accused was working in the heating and air conditioning industry,”
which changes the dynamics of this theft dramatically. The average theif wouldn't have the equipment, or the knowledge of how to "reclaim" refrigerant from a air conditioning system.
 
all A/C at some risk

I guess all types of A/C are at some kind of risk. From leaking exspensive refridgerant to actual theivery. There have been several incidents here
where the pond scum backs a truck up to a new house or a newly installed
whole house A/C unit and makes off with it. They just cut everything at the wall where it enters the house.
Mike
 
Ive heard of the refrigerant being used in drug making. I know around here its very common to have anhidrus ammonia stolen, so at least they leave the air alone.
 
Back
Top