Air conditioning

Would you get more enjoyment out of your classic if it had good a/c? If so, how much would you be willing to pay for it?

A/C in a classic. Probably would stall the engine at the lights when it would kick in ;)

I have parked my BMW 2002 for the last month and a half mostly because it has been so hot. If it had AC I woul've kept driving it to/from work. As it is, I have switched daily driver duties to my Miata.

Same for the Mini. I've driven it a couple times the past few weekends.

I do not want AC in the Mini. I would like AC in the BMW - it was an option, but my car doesn't have it. I don't think I would be willing to pay enough to get it though. If I really wanted it, I would search for another 2002 with AC and get rid of the one I have before I would try to retrofit it.

Yes.
Good A/C has been in the plans for my Valiant ever since I took out the period aftermarket system during an engine overhaul. The cool-my-car-once-more fund keeps getting diverted for food, mortgage, ER runs, silly things like that.
Living in West Texas, yes, I'd say A/C is a good thing. I like to drive the car to work often. Getting into a car that's been baking all day is bad enough without facing that convection all the way home. And even with all the vents open, long runs in the Spring through Fall can be tough. Too tough for the wife and/or the grandkid.
The plan includes a Sanden compressor, parallel-flow condenser, early-Mustang style evaporator, all in R134. Of course, an electric fan and some other support stuff will have to be included in the project. Adding A/C will return the car to all-weather service.

In reply to David S. Wallens:

We've had a particularly hot summer this year. While I normally consider my classics "open-window" cars, I've not driven them much at all this summer, opting instead for a car with A/C. I don't really like the idea of A/C in a classic (closed windows, additional weight, cluttered engine compartment, etc...), but if this is the way our summers are going to be, then they'll get A/C. Fortunately, I'm a mobile A/C engineer!

YES!

The nice 1800ES pretty much sits all Summer because the car gets too hot for my g/f to want to drive it. Ditto for her Spitfire. One of the main selling points for my E30 is that it has working a/c. My truck also sits during the summer unless I absolutely need it since the A/C doesn't work.

I have plans to scavage the major a/c parts from my crusty ES and install in her car. I even found a R134 kit for what I think is a reasonable price:

http://www.nostalgicairparts.com/air-conditioning/universal-ac-system-select-an-evaporator-451.php

I think that price is quite reasonable... my g/f, not so much...

For a complete soup-to-nuts a/c kit, I'd say around $1000 is a reasonable cost. That's about what many dealer-installed kits were back in the day.

There was areally nice GT6 at a car show last w/e that has a/c (not to mention a PRI engine to power it along with a host of other upgrades). It was even for sale. Unfortunately, the owner wants $14K for it.

I have stopped short of installing a/c several times. I finally gave my scrounged 1984 Fiat system away. The plan is to install a new modern ($1000) system that will work better than an outdated one. I still have not done this since it comes with increased load on the cooling and electrical systems which at the moment operate very well. I would say that 95 degrees or more will keep the car parked. My 93 Miata has good a/c and I can use that. On Sunday I took it for a 40-mile run along the interstate. It was 103F degrees and I monitored the engine temperature that climbed higher than ever before at 70 mph with a/c but not into the overheat zone. It did drop nicely as I cruised to my destination at in-town speeds. I rather expected temps to rise higher in town and go down on the highway but this was not the case at 103 degrees.
Cheers Ron

I have a second-gen Miata (with air-con) and a '69 MGB.

Guess which one I have been driving on these brutally hot, muggy days?

the MGB gets run in the cooler evenings and will see more use in the Fall

There is no way I would ever put AC in my TR4, or Morgan...

However, In a year or so the wife and I would like to get an Elise. I dont think Id want one with out AC.

Leo

My Triumph sits during the summer months because it's misery to sit in it. The Miata gets driven instead, it's got A/C. I'm sure there's a corollary there.

But would I put A/C in my classic? Maybe. Though by and large, probably not. I certainly haven't so far, and I've got a whole system sitting out in the shed that I've had for years.

The a/c on my '86 911 is dead at the moment, but plan to resurrect it this winter. I won't use it unless it is really hot or it if I am on the interstate at steady highway speeds.

It depends on the car. Both my Mini and my '65 Ford truck have excellent ventilation. The truck has vent windows and ankle vents. Once I ditch the vinyl seat I doubt I'll ever mind hot weather in it again. The Mini has cloth seats, opening quarter glass and roll up windows. I haven't installed the dash vents and honestly not sure I will bother. If it had sliding door windows, that would be another story...

When I had my Fiat 124 Spider I confess that car was miserable in the summer heat. Being a convertible doesn't make it a more pleasant hot weather car by any means. Poor airflow, black vinyl seats...ugh.

I want to get the AC working in my car just to say it works and to be comfortable in the heat. This summer in the SF Bay Area has been really stupid cold. I really don't get a hard on for AC though, I'd almost rather sweat.

The problem is that it will cost upwards of 1000$ to upgrade the AC system to 134a. The AC they put in when my car was imported is a York POS, so I guess a Sanden conversion is the way to go. But to get the AC working everything has to be up to snuff and my car doesn't have an Aux fan or aux water pump. This means the radiator need to be in great working condition.

AC is nice, but it doesn't really get hot long enough here to justify retrofitting it into a classic that doesn't have it. We get temperatures in the 90s, but it only last about a week, and driving the MG with the top down in that weather is refreshing.

Dave

http://www.oldairproducts.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=1_31000000_31000020_120132044

I just finished looking at this when i decided to hop over and see whats on classic motorsports website, and saw this thread. As soon as i find something to fit in my sunbeam, ill put AC in it. I live in the gulf south , and with the humidity, 3 or 4 months of the year is too hot to drive a car without AC..but the 2nd convertible season of the year should be starting in a month or so, so i cant wait for that.

When selecting a system, just remember that R12 is a more effecient refridgerant and in a round a bout way is safer...Cause its a bigger molecule. It leaks less.

134A is better for the enviroment like a hybrid car.

Leo

Can you still get R-12?

Dave

In reply to David S. Wallens:

I'm in the process of doing this now on an '81 Fiat Spider. With ungrades to radiator, fan, and electrical system, the generic parts I'm using will probably run $1,000+. The bigger cost will be my time on both design and installation.

I'd looked at both the original kits that dealers used and a more recent attempt by an aftermarket supplier before deciding to design my own. The condensers and evaporators were too small for modern a/c performance on R134. Also, evap placement and hose routings would have badly complicated the kind of maintenance and repair a 30 year old hobby car receives.

Richard

R12 is actually cheaper now that it was (and 134a is more)... less demand. I would not convert an R12 system at this point.

I converted the system in my '70 Delta 88 'vert to 134a and was never happy with the performance.

I installed a modern R134 system in my '67 Mercedes (and mated to an OEM underdash unit) and it worked okay.

Over the winter I plan to add a turnkey 134a VintageAir unit to my '60 Bentley... I undertsand they work better than OEM.

My only experience with a converted system is my E30, which has a replacement compressor. Cooling performance is adequate at best, although judging by our past E36 and current MINI's, older BMWs don't always have the greatest AC systems.

I hope to convert the g/f's nice 1800ES to 134a, but plan to use a new compressor and condenser with the original evaporator. Most have said this set-up works pretty well, given the limited space for the condenser in an 1800 and the large greenhouse of the ES version.

For my own ES, I plan to completely convert the entire HVAC system to an integrated evaporator vs. the add-on set-up that was dealer installed OE.