Cadman-iac Posted August 22, 2023 Share Posted August 22, 2023 (edited) I have had this since the early '80s and I have no idea what vehicle it came from. I thought it was for a mid-'50s Oldsmobile, but I'm told by people who own them that it's not from an Oldsmobile. I have completely disassembled it to clean and lube it, and to check for any kind of identifiable markings, but it does not have a single number or mark on any of it. Can anyone identify what this fits? Many thanks, Rick Edited April 29 by Cadman-iac (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOM H. S. Posted August 28, 2023 Share Posted August 28, 2023 This appears to be from an early 1960s car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocketraider Posted August 28, 2023 Share Posted August 28, 2023 "REC" cast into the control for the "AIR" lever makes me think it may be for airconditioning. Possibly aftermarket or dealer installed. General contour suggests late '50s/early, '60s Chevrolet. The way this post is formatted I thought at first there wasn't a picture and ignored it until I saw a reply. So I scrolled and scrolled till I finally found the picture. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadman-iac Posted April 24 Author Share Posted April 24 I'm sorry it's taken me so long to reply here; I forgot I had posted this here. I honestly don't remember if the car it came off of had air conditioning. I suppose it's possible, but the only electrical part on this is the resistor coil on the back of the fan switch. Would the air conditioning on a '50s or '60s car not use any electrical components on the control unit itself? Here's another picture of it/them. I have two, but the second one doesn't have any cables on it. These are really well made. The parts are not pot metal like what Chevrolet had used in the '55, '56, '57 cars or their '55-59 trucks. I know they're not from a Chevrolet from the '50s to the '70s. And it's definitely not from a Cadillac. But I'm not familiar with the '50s Oldsmobiles, Pontiac,s and Buicks. Could it be from a Chrysler product, or another '50s independent manufacturer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadman-iac Posted April 24 Author Share Posted April 24 On 8/27/2023 at 8:44 PM, TOM H. S. said: This appears to be from an early 1960s car. I don't suppose you could narrow that down a bit could you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldtech Posted April 24 Share Posted April 24 The REC is for recirculate, as opposed to fresh air. Shuts off the outside air intake. Doesn't look GM to me. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldsfan Posted April 24 Share Posted April 24 (edited) I'm guessing this is late 40s to mid 50s because the wires for the blower resistor are attached by screws rather than a push on connector. Sure looks like it would fit a '55 Chevy, but their controls don't have those big knobs. Wish I could place it. Edited April 24 by Oldsfan (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadman-iac Posted April 24 Author Share Posted April 24 When I first got it, I had planned on using it in my '56 Chevy, but the way it's supposed to sit in the dash didn't match up with the Chevy one. The curve goes farther up on the dash of whatever this came off of. Meaning that it fit, but the knobs are aiming slightly downward when in the Chevy dash. I really wish I could remember what I got it out of. The second one I found at a swap meet, but the guy who had it didn't know what it fit either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
28 Chrysler Posted April 24 Share Posted April 24 The knobs are like the ones on my old 1955 Chrysler. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldsfan Posted April 25 Share Posted April 25 What if you were to loosen the allen screws and remove the knobs? Might there be a number on the back of the knobs, or down in the rim of the housing that the knobs are hiding? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadman-iac Posted April 25 Author Share Posted April 25 When I cleaned it up, I completely disassembled it and inspected it for any kind of numbers or markings that would indicate who made it. Unfortunately, there is absolutely nothing on it that would so indicate. I'm wondering if it might be from a Packard, Kaiser Fraser, Nash (kinda doubt this one), or another lost marque from days gone by. It's got me pulling out my hair. Is it a Chrysler/ Plymouth/ Dodge piece? I'm fairly certain it's not Ford, they clearly mark their stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadman-iac Posted April 25 Author Share Posted April 25 I'd like to add here that I thought the knobs looked very similar to the 57 Chevy, but are much heavier, these are a cast piece, not stamped out like the Chevy stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hook Posted April 26 Share Posted April 26 Chrysler product. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldsfan Posted April 26 Share Posted April 26 The fan and defrost knobs, and the temp and air levers look very 1953/54 Plymouth/Dodge. 1954 Dodge has a similar panel but there is a third lever for vent, and the fan and defrost knobs are elsewhere on the dash. Also, the defrost knob on the '54 Dodge just says "DEF" and is an electrical blower switch rather than a cable drive like this one. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadman-iac Posted April 29 Author Share Posted April 29 Is there a book or website that has pictures of dashboards for all the different vehicles over the years? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted May 4 Share Posted May 4 Closely resembles the 1954 Dodge item and knobs.... 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadman-iac Posted May 5 Author Share Posted May 5 Yes, it's close but unfortunately not correct. The curve is different on the Dodge at the top of the control panel. If you look at the picture I posted of the 2 units I have, they are laying on their sides and you can see how they curve from top to bottom. Could it be something from the 60's maybe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadman-iac Posted May 5 Author Share Posted May 5 On 4/26/2024 at 7:13 AM, hook said: Chrysler product. Can you narrow that down just a bit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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