The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The HiPo Shop Air conditioner Question

Has anyone installed an air conditioner from a car instead of buying one of the vintage air type systems
I,m thinking about giving it a try.thought maybe someone else may have tried this too.

I looked at a complete set up from a Subaru at a swap meet this fall. It was a factory option kit, had all the pieces a mechanic would have needed to add a/c. It looked like all a fellow would had to done was build a small box around the evaporator and add some air ducts. It was very small and compact. I passed on it since the fittings were not the standard type. It had all the hoses and even the compressor, but the belt was serpentine and the hoses were short and made for a specific car. He was asking only $200, but I just couldn't see that I would use anything but the evaporator.

Look at how you would adapt the fittings, once you over come that, the rest will work no problem. Adding freon would be the next thing, it would be trial and error getting the correct amount, but a good a/c man could figure that out.

Head to the import yard, I would bet you can find a wide range is styles and sizes for cheap, and the older late 80's still had a/c as a option so you should be able to just take one out of the dash with all the heater attached to it.

Joe

There are two problems with using late automobile units.

When you find one that looks to be about the right size, it will have the heater hoses go through the firewall directly behind your engine. The firewall will be flat instead of the concave area you have behind your engine.
When you find one with heater hoses on the passenger side, it will have a large section (suitcase) that has to be mounted on the outside as well as the unit that mounts inside.

I did it for my '67 which has more room than your '51 using a ford unit. It works great, but never again. Many, many more things had to be modified or fabricated than I had anticipated.

The compressor, condensor and charging the system is the easy part. You can source the wrecking yard for those items. I used a Sanden 508 from a VW and a parallel flow condensor from a '00 Chrysler. I had NAPA make up the hoses.

Next one will be an aftermarket type AC/Heat/Def unit.

If you do the charge Flush the system first. there is a flush made for it. Pull a vacum on the system, see if it holds. Then just get a charge kit. 2 big cans of 134A should be enough. Get a nice hot day and charge slowly, when it starts to condensate( drip out of the passenger compartment coil)you will feel cold air out of the vents. Your done. I'm useing a 72 celica system a lot of retro fitting. I'm running the compressor on a 12VDC motor, not the engine. It is a lot of work and a real challange to make every thing fit. Good luck. Most R12 systems will convert.

Thanks everyone for your comments, I,m always up for a challenge and it sounds like this will be one.
John

You'll be far ahead in money and time if you just buy the aftermarket kit. I found the same thing with wiring and a basic heater.