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73-87 Chevy _ GMC Trucks => Interior & Equipment => Heating, Ventilation & Air Conditioning (HVAC) => Topic started by: 2tone4by on September 24, 2018, 06:30:20 PM
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I have a 1978 k10 that does not have air cond. has anyone pulled the components from a salvage unit and installed them on a non air cab? Thinking about doing this, just wondering if any of you guys have done this and how much work is involved.....any thoughts appreciated
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I've done it. Not hard, but it will take some time to complete.
My $0.02, your best bet is to find a complete system in a donor truck and not try to piecemeal things as there were differences between the years (i.e., 73-75 was a different setup than the 76-up)
You'll want to get everything in and out of the the donor vehicle. That includes parts in the passenger side of the cowl, the passenger kick panel assembly, vacuum lines, carburetor kick-up, a/c vacuum lines, a/c wiring harness, underhood plenum, inside plenum assembly, cables, HVAC control unit, A/C instrument bezel, A/C dash vents and trim, undercolumn plenum and a few other parts I can't think of at this time.
Take your time removing parts and don't cut vacuum lines or wiring. Carefully disassembling parts from the donor truck and reassembly will be much easier later.
Make a template of the donor vehicle firewall and hole location as the firewall differs between the a/c and non-a/c trucks. A new hole will need to be cut for the a/c and a patch placed over the original firewall hole.
If you got everything from the donor, once the heater parts are removed and holes cut in the proper location the reassembly is pretty straight forward.
Other things to consider: Check engine cooling system -radiator cooling capacity, fan clutch and shroud, thermostat, replace/refurbish heater core, replace heater hoses; flush or replace evaporator and condenser; new accumulator/drier; new refrigerant lines; rebuilt (or swap to newer style) compressor
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Thanks Jason, good advice.
I'm working on an '80 C-10, doing just that. I found an '84 and like you recommended, took everything out, however, the vac lines were already jacked up. Do you know if there are replacement hose assemblies?
Also, the factory assembly looks like it is just a larger footprint on the firewall- what patching is needed per your comment?
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Hi 2tone4by:
If you want to go to OEM setup then yes, best is to find a donor truck that is a model year close to yours to get all parts...there is a lot. Best to consult your year manual and go to the AC section and print out all the sheets showing the components. Other components that Jason did not mention are the unique brackets that hold the compressor to the engine and you probably have to change one or two of your pulleys as your existing pulley most likely does not have the extra groove to run the compressor belt...typically the belt routing scheme is different from the AC vs non-AC trucks. You may want to investigate aftermarket AC as a possible alternative if you are not concerned about keeping your truck OEM.
This may not be a big job for Jason, but as a shade tree mechanic who only rebuilds an engine once every 5-10 years, I think it is a big job in that there are a lot of little details that will have to be addressed as you go along if you dont find a donor truck for your exact year with all parts intact.
Regards,
Henry
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Unless you are going for a factory look, an aftermarket AC system will probably give you less hassle with a lateral cost. To Henry's point, unless you have a welder, fabrication skills etc it may be easier to go aftermarket. It does have a cleaner look as well although I've never been a fan of the aftermarket control panels. Jason S has the right idea but you must possess the skills and tools.
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X2 on aftermarket. There is a gamble that the parts off of the donor vehicle are in usable shape. I just finished refurbishing the system on my 1977 k10. I was within a couple of hundred dollars of an aftermarket. Since you are installing the labor would be the same as any system and you would be installing new not used ( with unknown history ) parts. I will be going aftermarket with both my 1970 Monte Carlo ( not an a/c car ) and my 1972 Corvette ( original a/c car )
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Also, the factory assembly looks like it is just a larger footprint on the firewall- what patching is needed per your comment?
The thru-firewall plenum hole on the non-a/c truck is in a different location than on the a/c trucks. The firewall will need to be patched over and a new hole cut out.
See photos in this post for a comparison of differences:
http://forum.73-87chevytrucks.com/smforum/index.php?topic=28986.msg241935#msg241935 (http://forum.73-87chevytrucks.com/smforum/index.php?topic=28986.msg241935#msg241935)
the vac lines were already jacked up. Do you know if there are replacement hose assemblies?
I don't know of a source for the vacuum lines, short of trying to find NOS or used. If the connectors are available, perhaps new lines could be fabbed?
FWIW - I haven't had experience with the newer aftermarket A/C systems. Appears that several on here really like them.
I have installed and used the older system style that retained the factory heater setup with the evaporator above. A/C controls (temp & fan speed) were separate from the heater controls and mounted beside the right dash vent above the heater controls.
That older system worked okay, certainly better than no A/C. It used a sanden compressor, which didn't drag the engine much. However the compressor brackets weren't that great and if I remember correctly it required swapping pulleys (which had to be obtained separately). Install time still took a while to complete.
Compared to the older aftermarket systems, I think factory is better. That being said, I can't speak about the newer systems.
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Thanks again Jason!
Pics really help, looks like I have more work than I thought. Air will be worth it though.
This original unit looks like it has the radial compressor instead of the tubular Frigidaire. I am interested in less drag: any comment on the radial pump from anyone?
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Thanks much guys, y’all answered my question.. I put a Sears hang on unit on it 30 some odd years ago, but the inside evaporater does not blow well, so I guess I could just replace that part. I wanted the factory setup,but way over my head at my age at this point😂