Governance change and air conditioning

[robert d adams]

I was reviewing the past January's bulletin and noticed a governance change in allowing air-conditioning in Classics.

1) Does anyone know of a 6-volt after market air conditioner product on the market?

2) If anyone has put in an air-conditioner into a stock Classic, were there considerable changes that needed to be done to the radiator or generator?

Thank you very much.

Robert D. Adams

[Guest Chuck Conrad]

Old Air Products in Ft. Worth, Texas and Classic Auto Air in Tampa, Florida can probably help you. Both sell lots of conversion systems and would be worth talking to.

I have an air conditioner on one of my Classics (I bought it that way). It does make the car run hotter. I had the radiator re-cored with what was supposed to be more efficient coils, but it still runs warm on those 100-degree days. Some people resort to an additional electric fan to adequately cool things. Of course, that means more electrical draw.

I do know that some people have done 6-volt add-ons, but I think you can get into some severe electrical problems very easily, especially if you add an auxiliary cooling fan. Most people I know convert to 12 volts and add an alternator. Of course that is an authenticity deduction if you have the car judged, but so is adding an air conditioner.

As you point out, it is now acceptable for CARavan use.

Now if somebody just made a 12-volt alternator that looked like a Delco generator....

[Guest bkazmer]

or there is a narrow solution that has no authenticity issues - a 40-42 Packard with factory air. (seeking parts for system now).

[Dave Mitchell]

The 40 - 42 Packards with air are great, I had a 40 and now have a 41. They won't freeze you out, but will cool things down. What parts are you looking for?

packard12s@hotmail.com

[Pierce66]

Here's something to think about. Air conditioner blowers, if they are going to be large enough to push enough air fast enough to handle the incredible heat loads of cars of earlier eras, (especially if they are of darker, as in "radiation absorbing" colors), are going to take a LOT of electrical power.

The largest 6 volt generators you normally find in typical production cars produced around 32 amps. That would be the same electrical power as a 12 volt system prodcing 16 amps. Ever seen a 16 amp. 12 volt system (either generator OR alternator...!) See my point ?

The solution ? Those small highly reliable internally regulated "small case" Delcos from the 70's produce SIXTY amps - most cars today have MUCH MUCH more electical power in recognition of the high power drains of air conditioning.

As Chuck notes, some people have figured out a way to make an air conditioning system work on 6 volts. I do not know how they do it - never seen one myself - I have a lot of questions on how well this actually works out in service.

Biggest problem, as noted above, is the question of raw electrical power - again, you are going to need a LARGE system to competantly handle the heat loads.

Then, on top of the power demand of the blower, what about the magnetic clutch for the compressor? To my knowledge, no such thing as a 6 volt compressor clutch.

The pre-war Babcock system used in those Packards and Cadillacs so equipped, were "direct drive" units, in which the only way to turn the compressor off, was to disconnect its drive belt. I do not know how they did it on the '53 - '53 Packards - which, of course, were 6 volts - perhaps someone with one of these with "factory air" can tell us.

I concur with the other posters in this "thread" who suggested adding a 12 volt alternator. The "small case" Delcos you can find in any auto parts store for about fifty bucks are internally regulated. You should be able to cobble up a bracket to mount the compressor so it wouldnt intefere with or look too out of place. You wouldn't need a very large battery - as once the engine is even idling, you'll have enough electrical power to run the system.

Yes, there IS going to be some ingenuity required to fit a large enough condensor in front of the radiator. And I concur with Chuck's notes about cooling capacity issues.

A quick point on cooling capacity. There is a REASON why the older cars had such massive cooling systems. Has to do with thermal effiency. The lower the compression, the more energy comes out as heat, and the less comes out as mechanical energy. You will HAVE to revise your cooling system with a modern heavy duty radiator core, and build a radiator shroud if your car dosnt already have one.

You will also need a "fast idle" system to add throttle when the compressor engages. Modern cars do this thru their computer systems - cars of the 1960's had a system you could probably adapt - a vacuum powered throttle advance.

Going to be an interesting project - keep us posted !

Dog Spot

[Guest Chuck Conrad]

I think most of the people who have tried to install a 6-volt air conditioner have had very poor results. I?m pretty sure that auxiliary batteries, jumper cables, battery chargers and a long extension cord are all involved. <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

[Harry Van Arsdale jr.]

Having a large old car I love to drive and being sensitive to heat I had a brainstorm! My car has a roomy leather covered trunk,too much room since all I ever put inside was beer,sparkplugs and oil treatments.

I couldn't sleep one night and thought of an independant AC system not running off the 12 Cyl, motor.

Like alot of guys I got friends in many fields.

The upshot is that I got a wonderful AC system with the ductwork and vents artfully incorporated into the woodwork and it is powered by a 4 hp Briggs and Stratton engine that drives the compressor in the trunk! electric start too!! just like my chipper/shredder!!! All you hear is a quiet putt putt on account of the large silencer I put onto it.

Hey, Pierce 66,you got John Libaire's old 66??