AC or No AC

[gtx6970]

Im in southern AZ
In the heat of the summer. working AC is nice, a definite bonus

Would I / Will I add it to my current hemi car? Nope and Yes I drive my car year round , even on 110 degree days. Just tend to be trips earlier in the day
But it a lot nicer drives on those 50-80 degree days the other 9-10 months of the year

 

[Armyvet25]

My AC is wing windows

 

[OneWheelPeel]

I plan to add it to my car, part of that decision comes from that it is missing most of the factory heater stuff, so if I have to do climate control work I'm thinking go all the way.

 

[gtxdana]

I'm past the age of enjoying sitting in traffic and sweating to death. I have aftermarket A/C in four out of five of my hot rods. My V-code GTX is getting A/C. I don't care what the haters think.

 

[Axemaster24]

I put vintage air on my Big Block and I didn’t care what the part cost was(meaning it was worth every penny). In Houston A/C is just about a requirement. The tricky part for me was finding compressor mounting kits that work with no power steering, but with aftermarket heads.

 

[lemondana]

You will drive it a lot more if you have AC and if you have a woman in your life, she will probably go with you. If no AC, she will tell you "Go on ahead" I'll stay home. Wind noise on the Interstate with no AC is brutal. I'd put AC in an original Hemi car if I had one! Make sure you bring an extra shirt and underwear with no AC!

 

[RR Fan Dan]

Yes to AC. If your worried about power, turn it off to blow the doors off that Ford.

 

[Texas97]

im putting A/C in my 70 Charger, non numbers matching, modern 5 speed manual trans, 440 engine upgraded from a 383. it was not an original AC car either.

im in south/central Texas, and i love hearing the car roar but in the end , it was about enjoyment and what i will get the use out of most. i want to drive the hell out of that car, and i think AC will make it more enjoyable for me and my family.

just going down to our small town to get Ice Cream or pizza on a Friday night? windows down, no problem.

Taking my wife on a date or to an event where she is dressed nice and i dont want to sweat through my pants and shirt in June? A/C on and still enjoy the ride to its fullest.

 

[OzCharger69]

yes yes yes
I put a Classic Air kit in my 383 Charger. I don't note any drop in power with the AC running. It's a must in Aussie Summer.

 

[#41]

My younger friends all thought I'd lost my mind when I sold my Hemi GTX, and replaced it with a 440 with factory A/C. I'm 71, and don't regret the swap.

This is why I value the future of my 69 Charger 500 with factory AC and PW. These are become must haves for us as we age and for the newer generations who are used to them as standard equipment on all cars.

 

[Dennis H]

I drag race with AC on and ACDC Thunder tune. Comfy tire smoke leading up. Priceless.

 

[451Mopar]

If you had an option to add air conditioning to a big block car, would you? How much hp would you lose? How is initial investment and maintenance cost (ac unit, pulleys, belts, hoses, charging annually)? And in the end, is it worth it?

Did the Vintage Air unit on the 1969 Coronet. I like it, but things you should know are:

1. If the engine cooling system is marginal, using the A/C will make it worse. With my old radiator/fan setup when driving in 100 degree temps, I could only use the A/C for about 10-15 minutes and the engine temps would really climb, so would have to shut down the A/C for a few minutes to cool the engine before turning the A/C on again.
I upgraded to a better radiator and cooling fans, but haven't has the car out yet.

2. The fan for the A/C and heater pulls air from under the dash, so it is like running in re-cycle in a modern car and the fan noise can be a bit loud on high speed. The factory cowl air inlet is blocked off with a plate provided in the kit, so you also loose the passenger side fresh air cable.

3. Minor, but kit comes with a new shallow glovebox insert as the unit is behind the glove box and the factory box is too deep.

4. I'm not totally sold on the under the fender line routing? it is mostly out of the engine compartment, so it looks OK.

5. Things I like are the condenser / dryer setup fits nice and clean in front of the 26" radiator. Not sure if there would be issues with a 22" radiator?
The somewhat factory looking electronic controls that install in place of the factory controls is a nice touch and leave room behind the controls if using the dual 3.5" center speaker adaptor plate. The vent tubes, adaptors, and under dash vents were pretty easy to install and hook up.

Likely won't notice any power loss, and should be pretty low maintenance.
My setup is not totally Vintage Air. The Vintage Air kit comes with a Sanden SD5 compressor with V-Belt pulley and brackets to mount to the engine.
My engine has the Billet Specialities Tru Track Serpentine system that came with a Sanden SD7 compressor which I used.

​

 

[Some Car Guy]

I’ve only had cars with the ac removed, that’s like 15 cars. This 69 GTX had it factory. I had to reseal the system as some shop saw fit to leave a gaggle of the old black o rings in place when they did the 134 swap. You must do the new green o rings! They also left an old hose that is hard to source, instead of making the effort to have one made. Took a little leg work, but I found a local shop to make one. Repop hose was made totally wrong.

I don’t know that these require some crazy amount of maintenance. At least not yet. I’ve been told the compressor seal is a weak link that simply wasn’t made for 134a and won’t like it long term.

I do need to do the relay install for the fan. I’m not sure what mopar was thinking and couldn’t believe that was all it had new. I thought the blower was junk, but put 12 volts to it and it’s a hurricane.

 

[AR67GTX]

I hate AC on my 67 as it just adds a bunch of complexity and weight to the car and I seldom run it. I completely rebuilt the system 20 years ago and it’s still holding R12 with no further recharging. For that reason I’m resistant to breaking the system open to pull the engine and give the car a complete paint job. But it’s a factory AC car so it stays as is.

 

[58belvedere]

I see the 'hidden' aspect coming alive. I know a smart fellow with a 1957 Chrysler long, low, smoke /silver colored 2 door coupe. It was a POS with a HEMI, anyway it's getting an electric AC for of all things from a Pr1u$. hidden under the package shelf! Just needed to upgrade to a Powermaster alternator.

 

[Runcharger]

That will be a great idea if it works well.

 

[69 Charger]

If you had an option to add air conditioning to a big block car, would you? How much hp would you lose? How is initial investment and maintenance cost (ac unit, pulleys, belts, hoses, charging annually)? And in the end, is it worth it?

My wife and I special-ordered our '69 Charger without A/C. At that time of our lives we had never even ridden in a car with A/C and thought it was a needless additional expense to the purchase price. Later, we had a dog and he was too uncomfortable on trips back home without it so we had the dealer install a Chrysler AirTemp system under the dash. This lasted until the mid-1980s when a hose blew and I discovered what it would cost to replace it. I removed it and stored it (still have it, for what it's worth) and used the car mostly as a commuter to work anyway. I've considered the possible effect on a sales price without A/C, but adding it would be expensive, too.

 

[Moparfever65]

You're not really losing any measurable horsepower when the AC isn't turned on. The deciding factor is how it looks under the hood.

 

[68BabyBlue]

You're not really losing any measurable horsepower when the AC isn't turned on. The deciding factor is how it looks under the hood.

Years ago, when I read a road test performed by Car Life magazine comparing a '68 Hemi GTX, and a 440 with factory A/C and a load of power options, I was surprised at the results. The Hemi ran the quarter in 14.0, the 440 in 14.6. That was with full fuel tanks, and a passenger. My stripped down non A/C 440 GTX ran 0.3 faster in the quarter than the Car Life test car.

 

[Aepowell]

Yes to AC. As I get older I appreciate the creature comforts the new cars have. Cruise on a 4 hour trip would be something else that I would enjoy.

I added cruise to my 65 Coronet out of a imperial. It looked factory with the push button on the end of the turn signal arm.