Installing a Vintage Air A/C System - Cool Off!

Headed out for a cruise, making the trek to an event or simply showing off for friends, most of the fun we have in our vintage Pontiacs comes in the summertime. The kids are out of school so travel isn't a problem, the weather is generally great and all the salt and/or sand of the winter and early spring has been washed from the road surface by April showers.

In May and June all is right with the world. Bright sunshine combined with moderate temps and liveable humidity have you out and about in your Pontiac like it's a daily driver once more. You may even take it to work a few times just to show your coworkers and boss that your talents extend well beyond the job title the company has bestowed upon you.

Then come the dog days of summer: July, August and early September. The temperature rises, as does humidity, and your non-A/C Pontiac isn't as much fun to drive anymore. As you peel your thighs off of the sizzling Morrokide after just a few minutes behind the wheel, you realize that your vintage Pontiac could certainly benefit from an aftermarket A/C system.

Fear not; we have a system to show you from Vintage Air that will get the job done. Far and away better than the knee-knocker A/C system you used to get from Sears back in the day-and also better performing than most all-factory units in vintage Pontiacs-the Vintage Air system can blow ice cubes once it's set up in your ride. Soon you will be driving your Pontiac in sweltering temperatures in air-conditioned comfort. There will be fewer heat-related complaints from passengers and you may even be able to attend more events that you would have never considered before.

In the last issue, we started the engine swap of an LS1 into a '69 Firebird at Classic Restorations, which is also an authorized Vintage Air dealer and installer. Part of that swap includes the addition of a Vintage Air's GEN-II universal system. Car and shop owner Melvin Benzaquen related, "Our experiences with installing Vintage Air systems have been very good over the years, so when it came time to install an A/C in my Pontiac, I went that route. I didn't choose Vintage Air's Firebird Sure-Fit system that retains the factory look inside the car because my '69 will be totally custom from the dash to the LS1 engine under the hood, so I felt the universal system would offer more choices for mounting locations, options and accessories."

Since the Bird is still apart, we have easy access to show you some of the hidden parts, like the evaporator unit that goes behind the dash. We also have access to Doug Tornello's '67 GTO. You may recall it as HPP's April '07 cover car. Doug has been running a GEN-II universal Vintage Air system that provides A/C, heat and defrost for a few years now. His Goat will be used to illustrate a clean installation on a vintage Pontiac with a Pure Pontiac V-8.

This story will not be a nut and bolt install since most of you will have the system professionally mounted anyway, and the amount of choices for placing items, upgrades, options and accessories will most likely make your install different from ours. Instead, we will discuss the highlights of the products, tell you what comes in the basic kit, show you the options we chose, tell you why we chose them and discuss other upgrades that you should consider that go beyond the basic A/C package.

Highlights
In GEN-IIs, the air doors are operated by electronic solid state servo motors that provide much more door travel than a vacuum system, thus offering more precise temperature control and more airflow when combined with a system, which is designed around them. To that end, the virtual flow testing with Pro Engineering CAD/CAM programs used to design this system also aid in producing an evaporator case that provides maximum airflow and improved defrost. Since the fully electronic system requires no cables or engine vacuum for operation, the control panel can be mounted in many different locations and engines with big cams and low vacuum are no problem. The GEN-II also features true bi-level operation for heat and A/C. If that's not enough, a new GEN-IV evaporator adds even more features (see the Web site for details).

The included Sanden SD 508 compressor requires less torque to operate due to the fact that, "its load is distributed over multiple short stroke cylinders," according to Vintage Air reps. It's offered in a myriad of configurations to best match your installation and aesthetic requirements. These include plain, polished or black finish, top or rear exit outlets and a serpentine or V-belt pulley. The good news for those who like to run fairly steep rear gear ratios without overdrive is that the unit can be safely operated up to 6,000 engine rpm. An included safety switch protects the compressor from failure due to excessively high or low refrigerant pressure in the system.

Vintage Air says its parallel flow condenser has 25 percent more capacity than the tube and fin design of the same size. A unit that will cover the greatest amount of fin area of the radiator, yet will still fit within the confines of the core support opening in front of the radiator, will be chosen by the company for your project. Vintage Air A/C systems carry a 3-year warranty.