Vintage Air installation in a 1968 Satellite

[68 Sport Satellite]

Greg, we've also got the vertical sliding ash tray door location we could hide behind.
Cosmetically, this panel below is my favorite. Yes, it's horizontal slider, but it looks more robust, has a better layout and is easy to read.
Not sure where it could mount
Summit Racing Part Number: VTA-49110-SHQ

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$105.99
Vintage Air Gen-II Base Model 4-Lever Controls
Control Panel, Aluminum, Black, Gen-II, In-Dash, 4-Lever, Kit
See More Specifications | Check the Fit


In Stock (more than 10 available)

Estimated Ship Date: TodayWould you rather pick it up? Select Location

 

[Kern Dog]

Not sure, but I think you have the apron side j-bolt in the wrong upper hole. Try the other one for better alignment? I might be wrong.

What other hole?

My red car.

Jigsaw.

This isn't a hole.

 

[Kern Dog]

No, I'm not taking the car to their shop to have them finish it. Too expensive and too long of a wait queue. Greg will get it working fine.

Yeah, I hope so. This project has really tried my skill level.
The ash tray area is at an angle. Any panel mounted there would be at that angle and may not work or look good. That 1968 model ash tray is super cool too! I'd hate to eliminate that.

Charger:

Your car:

It was mentioned some manner of custom bracket for the Ford controls...by guys that build custom cars including cars for Tim Allen?
Hey, I appreciate the faith but come on....I'm able to ratchet stuff together, make a few modifications but those guys are way more skilled than I am.
"Calibration" was also mentioned. I know nothing about that. It isn't mentioned in the instructions. These instructions are written like Online maps...information and some details are just not mentioned.

I don't see any knobs or anything on this control panel to adjust for what I assume is the calibration of the controls, just heat/cold, fan and direction of the air flow on the display face.
One option....The Vintage Air panel could be installed in the stock location just to get this done for now, then you could work on the mounting for the Ford Panel at another time.

 

[Kern Dog]

This worked because there was a flat face to attach the control panel.

Different strokes for different folks. Me personally I like the looks of the vintage air control panel for the satellite in the stock location a lot better than those knobs.

I do too.

It isn't my decision though.

Will this panel above the steering column come out and have room for this switch unit?An oval hole would have to be cut into it OR maybe 3 smaller shaft holes...

I saw the picture and added the red and blue drawing to it. I don't know if metal is behind that or if it is just the plastic of the dash piece.

This would be something I'd try on my own car but If I screwed up this panel, I'd have to look for another one to replace it.
I do appreciate the input, maybe something will start to make sense.

 

[68 Sport Satellite]

What other hole?

View attachment 1623732

View attachment 1623733

My red car.

View attachment 1623731

Jigsaw.

View attachment 1623734

This isn't a hole.

View attachment 1623737

haha, no I meant the hole in the black rubber coated upper portion of the battery hold down clamp. There are 2 holes. Try the other one so it's like the clamp on the engine side.

 

[Kern Dog]

Oh. I don't know what difference it will make but I'll look at it. The whole battery is shifted forward from before to clear the A/C hose.

 

[1 Wild R/T]

This worked because there was a flat face to attach the control panel.

View attachment 1623754



I do too.

View attachment 1623755

It isn't my decision though.




View attachment 1623759

I saw the picture and added the red and blue drawing to it. I don't know if metal is behind that or if it is just the plastic of the dash piece.

This would be something I'd try on my own car but If I screwed up this panel, I'd have to look for another one to replace it.
I do appreciate the input, maybe something will start to make sense.

that is the spot I was referring to in post 331... That panel is diecast metal... And there are plenty on Ebay... Saw the first one listed was $45... So worth picking up to experiment... If you have room behind the dash... Might have to trim the metal frame behind the bezel...

Getting a clean hole through the bezel is the tricky part... Also, is the space big enough?

 

[68 Sport Satellite]

Gentlemen, I may have had a change of heart...

Greg and I got to talking by phone late last night. I'm open to suggestions on this control panel, but had my preference of using the rotary control based on the supposed ease of calibration. I've read that the VIntage Air units require calibration, while the Classic Auto Air units ship pre-calibrated to some fixed range.
@1 Wild R/T - do you know what this calibration entalis?

Be that as it may, I told Greg I would mull it over and dig out the stock looking Vintage Air slider control that they shipped with my kit. I intentionally kept it behind here at the house so that Greg would use the 3 knob rotary control. Well I found the unit and opened the box and realized that this had been included as part of the Gen IV kit, but that I had never actually unwrapped this particular control unit to look at it. I had just assumed the slider controls were just like stock, only solid state with no cables. I was wrong.
The stock unit has two front to back sliders, one on the left and one on the right, then one left to right slider. The front to back slider levers are what broke on me twice before.
This Vintage Air control at a glance looks like the same footprint, but the controls are actually three left to right sliders. None of them are front to back. This changes everything. I'm not opposed to using this unit now. The sliders are smooth and seem like they'll last. I apologize for not knowing this because I made a wrong assumption and never opened the darn package!

There are only two drawbacks, but I think I can live with them - visibility of which control is which is ok, but still not as good and intuitive as the 3 knob setup. Then there's the calibration. Maybe it's no big deal compared to the rotary style. We shall see. I'm still interested in hearing if anyone else can confirm the calibration thing being different in simplicity for slider vs rotary controls.

This sure makes the install a lot more straightforward. I'll ship this out to Greg today. Stay tuned...

 

[68 Sport Satellite]

Here is a stock heater control for a 1968 Plymouth Satellite like my car:

Here is the Vintage Air unit:

 

[Dennis H]

Gotta get on the Kern schedule. I want these lines fabbed like pretzels and out of my sight!
That easy access drier looks like it will be visible thru the grill.

 

[Kern Dog]

I think it will be visible at times. A few spritzes of semi-flat black Rustoleum would help.

 

[68 Sport Satellite]

No black paint please. I don’t mind the look and with my grill style it’s barely noticeable

 

[68 Sport Satellite]

Here’s a bottom view of the vintage air stock replacement piece with 3 left to right sliders

 

[Kern Dog]

That panel isn't "show car" fancy but looks functional. The stock A/C controls for the 68-70 had the same idea....function over form.
I like the simplicity of it.
The Classic Auto Air panel in mine:

I like the slide in the center. That makes sense to me. The fan switch on the right being fore/aft isn't immediately evident to me which direction is high or low. Moving the switch tells you right away.
The left switch though..... The red and blue graphic doesn't translate to exactly which direction is which. The label is vertical, the switch is mostly horizontal. How do you interpret that when the directions change?
You know how when you get in a car and want immediate COLD or WARM air? You aim the switch toward the direction you want and sometimes have to wait a moment for the system to catch up.
That is great IF the system responds quickly. Mine lost the A/C refrigerant and I wasn't sure which direction was blue/cold. I went back and forth and the compressor never engaged.

 

[Kern Dog]

The firewall plate…

Lacked the sheen of the actual firewall.

Dwayne said his paint guy didn’t clear coat the engine bay but it does have a shine to it. You may have noticed that late model Challengers and Chargers have no clear coat in the engine bay, inside the trunk and the door jambs. The underside is matte too. I’m guessing that was a cost saving measure.
The engine bay here has about half the sheen as the outer body so guess what ??

I had this on the shelf. I used it on the K member and other parts when I had the engine out of my car in 2022. The amount of sheen it gives depends on the ratio of reducer/ activator that is used.

Four to one it is!

The reflection you see is the white trim and fascia on the front of the shop.

Three coats for adequate protection and BOOM, it is done.
This ought to match nicely.

 

[1 Wild R/T]

Did ya get a professional out to spray it? Can sez it's for professional use only... Gotta follow instructions...

 

[Kern Dog]

Technically, if you’re paid for a job, you are a professional.
It didn’t state that I had to be good at it.

 

[1 Wild R/T]

Calibration is pretty basic... Set all three controls to the specified setting, ground a wire... Blower motor should run, Move the controls to second position and unground the wire... Blower motor should run a second time... Done...

 

[68 Sport Satellite]

Calibration is pretty basic... Set all three controls to the specified setting, ground a wire... Blower motor should run, Move the controls to second position and unground the wire... Blower motor should run a second time... Done...

What is that second position? Full on or anywhere from off to on? I bet it tells you in the instructions…
So why would an installer say that their experience with rotary control calibration and performance was much better than the slider version? I do notice the rotary knobs have tactile notch clicks throughout the rotation while the sliders are smooth with no indicators to repeat position.

 

[Kern Dog]

I'll bet it doesn't state it in the instructions that I have.