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For my 82 LS3 swap I have a Sanden compressor with a parallel path condenser. I did replace the accumulator and make new AC lines as well. Everything else is stock C3 components.
For my 82 LS3 swap I have a Sanden compressor with a parallel path condenser. I did replace the accumulator and make new AC lines as well. Everything else is stock C3 components.
Would you mind sharing with specific condenser and accumulator you used? I’m glad to see the stock unit will still allow the LS to fit!
I deleted the factory AC as it was a huge mouse house, stuffed absolutely solid. You can buy 'delete plates' from various suppliers. Frankly, if I ever get another C3 it'll be one that didn't have factory AC. My big feet get caught up in the duct work if I'm not careful.
The space saving alone under the hood is worth it, I'd never put it back. If I wanted it I'd go Vintage Air under the dash but that's entirely subjective. I am a reptile - bad in the cold, just fine in the heat. Never even use the AC in my daily drivers. Yeah, it's hot in the summer in southeast NY sometimes with the top down but that doesn't bother me.
I am going to need to postpone redoing the AC system until later, in order to get the engine swap done on time. So until then I’d like to know if I can just remove my hoses and cap the system as it exits the dash, but keep my stock heater and my stock fresh air working.
If I simply disconnect the wires from the compressor, and remove the condenser and compressor and cap the hoses, will my system still work when I select the Fan option to give me fresh air? Will the heater still work?
Seems like this way I preserve the components to allow for an easy upgrade later, but don’t waste time on it now. I’m just not sure if it will still be functional.
It's been a few years and I admit the details are spotty. Also, what I will show you here will probably be considered heresy by some. Feel free to clutch your pearls and shriek all you need to. This stuff is neat and works just fine.
You can see the AC delete plate and how much room it'll give you. Personally, if the motor's out that's when I'd be doing this and also give some thought to how old that theater core is while you can easily lay your eyes upon it. I believe the hose routing is different on factory AC cars heater cores necessitating changing the core from the engine bay where non-AC cars can be done from the inside. If I remember my thinking at the time all the duct work for a factory AC car remained inside so I just replaced my core like for like.
You may already know this but .......
The fan switch has four positions it can run in. The first three run all the amperage through the switch and the fan speed is controlled by the blower resistors. When you delete the AC that'll be swinging in the breeze so it'll need a new home. Goofy looking thing, I put mine in the bottom of the delete plate. You can see it in the second pic, it's the red arrow on bottom of the first pic.I don't recall rewiring anything for that.
The fan switch High position uses a relay because it's asking for more amps than the switch will handle. You can see I mounted that on the AC delete plate in the first pic, top red arrow. That needed rewiring but my harness had been a bit hacked. That's why there's also a ballast resistor sitting there - nothing to do with the heat or AC.
It's been a while but none of that was particularly difficult with a factory service guide schematics. They have been indispensable to me.
On your console climate control selector there is a factory 'octopus' fitting with several vacuum lines that operate various vacuum motors to open your heat/defrost diverter, etc. The hot/cold wheel on the right is a manual coaxial type cable, just leave it on H when you want air to pass over the core. IIRC you'll be removing a vacuum hose when you delete the AC from a valve I barely remember. Cold water valve, something like that? Just cap it off, assuming it was working in the first place and wasn't a leak to begin with.
In Answer to your question. Yes you can cap off the remaining components of your air system and everything else will still work just fine.
Try to cap things off totally and completely air tight to keep moisture from getting into the system.
all your other HVAC controls and system will still work as normal as long as you connect the vacuum line when you swap the motor.
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