Defrost with restomod AC systems - cold climate

[Joyridin]

Originally Posted by 72-k20-burb

I know this topic has been covered a few times, but I wanted to narrow down on the cold climate guys who have swapped.

It seems the rub is that new AC systems (Vintage Air, etc) all use recirculated air. I don't think there is a new kit out there that pulls from the exterior.. so the question is this.

How bad is it?

This is my family road trip vehicle. 95% of our driving is road trips through hot states. But we inevitably end up in Alberta, or the Rockies somewhere and I don't want to be blind.

I had a POS sedan in high school where the defrost didn't work and the passengers job was to continually wipe the windshield on the inside. I don't want that.

For reference: I have an LS swap with new compressor so no more r12 anyway. And this is a factory air suburban, but the rear air isn't really part of the issue.

Side note.. the new electronic controllers all look like 90's plastic crap. Anyone find a controller that looks somewhat original?

So my brother has a VA system in his car and he has driven it everywhere. I asked him about the issue with the window fogging. He said if he just puts the controls on defrost, yes, the windows can fog. He has one of their universal smaller kits in his car, not the size we would use in a truck. He said you can slide the control over to kick on the A/C with the defrost a small amount and that fixes the issue.

I have a VA kit in my truck and have never run into the issue. I usually open the kick panel vent and allow some fresh air to enter. It is very close to the inlet for the fan, so I have never had an issue. The unit blocks the vent from opening all the way, which is fine.