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Some tips needed on A/C Install

3K views 12 replies 7 participants last post by  Dick Z 
#1 ·
Aloha everyone, I need some advice from the guys who've been down this road,I have done a lot of searches and looked at some photos of others installs but i haven't found a similar set up yet, I really don't want to have a bunch of do over/ f**k ups, Ive got the vintage air unit from FFR with the compressor on driver side of a Levy 347.
So far I have the condenser and evaporator installed as well as the compressor.
1) when is the best time to route the hoses? before or after the body is on?
2) before or after the radiator aluminum is installed?
3) suggested routing and location of drier unit would also help.
Thanks, Karl
 
#2 ·
Well, I've got a roadster but I'll tell you what I did anyway as it may help.

I made a mistake with one hose getting too close to my 'J' pipe. I didn't have the 'J' pipe mounted on my mocked engine and ran the hose that ran from the lower condenser fitting to the drier on the passengers side footbox. Later in the course of working on the engine I added the 'J' pipe and realized it was too close to that hose. I had to get a longer hose and fittings and get them swaged again.

Moral of this story is to test fit as much as you can or make darn sure you know where the engine is or the body is or the electrical system runs and more so you don't have any interference.

Mount everything the hoses will run to.

  • The compressor on the engine
  • The drier
  • The evaporator
  • The condenser on the mounted radiator

Since this is the coupe you have the great advantage of being able to have the front of the body more fully out of the way after the body is on so I would opt to wait till the body is on. Especially, if the evaporator fittings are exposed in the engine compartment for easy access. That would also mean the engine with the compressor, radiator and condenser are also mounted.

As stated, I mounted my drier on the front of the passenger footbox. Remember too, that you'll have to run the trinary wires from that drier to different locations. One goes to the A/C controls, another goes to the compressor depending on whether or not you have EFI, and one to ground. Another goes to your engine cooling fan system, depending on your cooling management system. My cooling system didn't require it as it is already linked into the A/C system in another way.

George
 
#4 ·
I mounted all the hardware, compressor, plenum, ect, first. I then made a plate out of .060 aluminum and mounted the drier, fuel pressure regulator, and radiator overflow tank on it. It's mounted on the X member on the engine side. I installed the body and then installed the headers. I ran the hoses for the a/c out the front of the pass side footbox to the compressor and drier. I made a heat shield for the hoses over the pass side header as the hoses can get a great deal of heat there. Consider mounting the heat a/c control panel up in the dash and not in the panel below the dash. The cable for the heat can get bent in too tight a radius and not work correctly. I made this mistake and had to mount a electric servo heat valve and slide position control instead of the cable control. A bit of extra work there.
 
#6 · (Edited)
#7 ·
Thanks for all the input I 'm thinking I should route it to the driver side now since I can't seem to find a fitting that will make a u turn and go out the passenger foot box . Dccobra Where did you find the nice bulkhead fittings? I think I need those. I'm trying to use only what FFR provided but as you all know it's difficult that way.
 
#10 ·
You Guys are the best, Thanks!
 
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