A/C cab ?

[ryanroo]

so i did some searching, but i didn't find an answer. outside of the obvious dash vents, is there a significant difference in the cab for an a/c truck vs the non a/c i.e. the firewall?

i was planning on using an aftermarket system, but i am a little sketchy about not having fresh air, and i want a good heater. it gets pretty cold here and id rather not worry about having foggy windows.

my truck is a non a/c truck factory, but i was going to buy the inside and out dash boxes and the controls etc. is this going to be a headache?

thanks
Ryan

[Graham57a]

As for the firewall I'm pretty sure they are identical with the exception of a few extra holes. Now running aftermarket AC systems, they usually use different designs on the engine side of the firewall. Most guys who do custom truck and want vintage air or something similar start out with a non ac cab so they can make it how they want it. I'm pretty sure when you get a kit from vintage air or a company like it they design their kits to fit non ac trucks as well as stock ac trucks. Hope this helps

[WIDESIDE72]

The firewall holes are different. Someone on the parts board was looking for an AC firewall piece behind the plenum to do a swap such as the one you netion, but you don't need the wholepiece, just make a patch.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=407652

[Andy4639]

Graham57a,
See if this works. You will need the AC when we head out in June for the Power Tour. Texas will be a little warmer than here I would think.[ The humidity should help a lot though.
Thanks to member
john for the picture. Most aftermarket AC/heater kits have no engine side boxes just the hoses that come through the fire wall.





Here is a picture of one.

[SS Tim]

The service replacement cab was not offered in an A/C version and required modifications as listed to give an idea.

[WIDESIDE72]

[QUOTE=Andy4639;5781307]...You will need the AC when we head out in June for the Power Tour. Texas will be a little warmer than here I would think...



GUARANTEED!

[Andy4639]

[quote=WIDESIDE72;5781372]

Originally Posted by Andy4639

...You will need the AC when we head out in June for the Power Tour. Texas will be a little warmer than here I would think...



GUARANTEED!

I'll have mine tuned up for sure with extra freon with me!

[ryanroo]

Thanks Guys!
that was what i was looking for! sometimes it seems like whenever i do a search i get a lot of threads that have nothing pertinent to my search in them.

ryan

[mrein3]

Since it appears that Frontier fixed my intenet connection, let me post some pictures to help you see what you need to do if you want to convert a cab from non-A/C to A/C.
First of all, the picture Andy4639 posted isn't perfect but it worked for me when I did this. The red and yellow holes actually line up in real life. The person who made that picture didn't get it 100% perfect but it gives you an idea of what you are in for.

First note that in a non-A/C cab, there is one of the two heater core pipe holes cut. There is a dimple for the other one. (This is my truck by the way, the AC is up and running after the mod.) I used a Greenly (sp?) hole punch to make a nice, round hole.

[mrein3]

Then using the A/C heater box and your firewall with two holes in it, make a template. Use the two holes for the heater core to line things up.

[mrein3]

I marked up that template Andy4639 posted...

[mrein3]

Happiness is a wet spot (make sure your drain on your new A/C box isn't plugged).

[ryanroo]

Originally Posted by mrein3

Happiness is a wet spot (make sure your drain on your new A/C box isn't plugged).

it usually is right?

my firewall has both heater tube holes in it already. your info is wonderful, and i'm glad i have some footprints to follow! thanks

Ryan

[Dieselwrencher]

Great info Mrein3!

[1972RedNeck]

Originally Posted by ryanroo

so i did some searching, but i didn't find an answer. outside of the obvious dash vents, is there a significant difference in the cab for an a/c truck vs the non a/c i.e. the firewall?

i was planning on using an aftermarket system, but i am a little sketchy about not having fresh air, and i want a good heater. it gets pretty cold here and id rather not worry about having foggy windows.

my truck is a non a/c truck factory, but i was going to buy the inside and out dash boxes and the controls etc. is this going to be a headache?

thanks
Ryan

How are you going to use the stock box with your hacked firewall?

[BigRed76]

Does anyone know how the aftermarket A/C & Heater kits utilize the blower motor under the dash so there is nothing mounted on the firewall?

[Dieselwrencher]

Originally Posted by BigRed76

Does anyone know how the aftermarket A/C & Heater kits utilize the blower motor under the dash so there is nothing mounted on the firewall?

The entire heater housing is one unit that fits behind the fire wall and the blower motor hangs down towards the floor on the 67-72 kit I believe. They don't use the cab to seperate their case halves in other words.

[SS Tim]

Since this is probably relevant I wanted to bring up the fact that there were Dealer Accessory Four Season A/C kits listed in addition to under-dash and roof mounted kits. With a ten hour flat rate install it seems only a little more difficult than an under-dash listed at nine hours. Has anyone seen one of these kits or installations? The installation instructions? Was there a block-off plate that covered the stock heater opening as part of the kit?

[ryanroo]

Originally Posted by 1972RedNeck

How are you going to use the stock box with your hacked firewall?

i didn't hack the heater box mounting area. i went just to the edge of the flat that the heater box mounts on.

if it doesn't fit, which i think it will by visually scoping it, i will do what i do best! cut more sheet metal! i can always use an aftermarket system if i need to, but that will be a fallback now. and since i know you can fit 2 turbos and factory a/c i dont have to worry about that!

Ryan

[Andy4639]

I did my non AC truck without the help of all these pictures. I took the whole heater unit out and stuck the AC outside box up to the fire wall and marked it out. It's not perfect but it works fine.

[BigRed76]

Originally Posted by Dieselwrencher

The entire heater housing is one unit that fits behind the fire wall and the blower motor hangs down towards the floor on the 67-72 kit I believe. They don't use the cab to seperate their case halves in other words.

I'm thinking about taking a factory A/C underdash air box and adding the blower motor to it so i can have all of the vents with heat, and nothing under the hood on the firewall.

[AusTx68]

I added a Vintage Air system to my non AC cab. My firewall is smooth so I couldn't go with the out-of-the-box setup.

Personally I would avoid a stock AC setup. That technology is 40+ years old. The new aftermarket systems are highly efficient and do a great job.

[ryanroo]

Originally Posted by AusTx68

I added a Vintage Air system to my non AC cab. My firewall is smooth so I couldn't go with the out-of-the-box setup.

Personally I would avoid a stock AC setup. That technology is 40+ years old. The new aftermarket systems are highly efficient and do a great job.

ive read as much as i could as far as reviews go, and while i have no doubt the a/c is fine with the aftermarket systems, i've been reading that many are less than impressed with the heaters. where i am, it is common to see below 0 and normal to have 10-20 degree mornings in the winter. i want a great heater. also the lack of fresh air bothers me. if you are dealing with snow, the moisture you bring in on your boots will fog the windshield and not go away no matter what you do if you are not bringing in fresh air. if the a/c is less than the best, i will still be a happy camper. i am not sure what differences have been made in the technology of refrigerated air in cars, but i am willing to bet that it wont be so drastic that i am unhappy. plus, if i can find the darn paperwork, i am licensed to purchase R12. ive been in many 70s era vehicles that could frost over your man parts with r12.

[mrein3]

The heater in my post stock AC mod cab is WAY better then the heater was in my pre AC mod cab. When plowing snow I usually have to roll the windows down after the truck fully warms up.
I converted the truck AC to work with R134a (easy mod). It's ok. My Chevelles - both stock AC cars, both still full of R12 - my glasses fog up when I get out to get the mail after stepping out of the car. This has never happened with the truck (134a), any of my daily drivers designed to work with 134a, or any rental I've used over the last 15 years or so since they mandated 134a. That's all I'm going to say about that.
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[ryanroo]

Originally Posted by mrein3

The heater in my post stock AC mod cab is WAY better then the heater was in my pre AC mod cab. When plowing snow I usually have to roll the windows down after the truck fully warms up.
I converted the truck AC to work with R134a (easy mod). It's ok. My Chevelles - both stock AC cars, both still full of R12 - my glasses fog up when I get out to get the mail after stepping out of the car. This has never happened with the truck (134a), any of my daily drivers designed to work with 134a, or any rental I've used over the last 15 years or so since they mandated 134a. That's all I'm going to say about that.
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Hahahaha for the longest time after the oem mandate, people thought it was better stuff. my dad had a recovery machine and was licensed and all that (he maintained our OTR trucking company and all of the refrigerated vans). he had a lot of people wanting conversions. he gladly did them and had kegs of R12 laying around. he was collecting it like it was gold. hahaha. he converted his own 77 lincoln, then converted it back!
Ryan