I am looking for ideas and input from experienced C2 owners that have real world knowledge. I purchased my first C2 in November, a 1966 Laguna Blue Coupe, numbers matching L79 4-speed, factory AC, power steering and power brakes. The AC was not functioning when I purchased at the auction, along with a number of other things that I have worked on since purchasing. All the parts are there, but the previous owners had disconnected the heater core by just looping the heater hoses and some of the AC connections were disconnected. I have gotten the car running and operating the way I want it, and this week took the car into a local Hot Rod Shop to address the air conditioning, as I certainly need that here in Texas.
My questions surround the effectiveness of factory AC in modern times. I know there are lots of vintage ac conversions and kits available that use more modern components, and I am not 100% opposed to them, but since my car is a factory AC car, I would really like to stick to using those components where possible. How effective is the factory AC system, will it function to the point of actually keeping the car cool? I assume that they will need to upgrade the car to R134, if it hasn’t been already. How does this impact the effectiveness of the system? I have an A6 Harrison compressor on the car that I don’t know the condition of, that is what the shop is supposed to determine. I know that there are replacements available if mine is no good, but are there better alternatives that I should consider if my A6 isn’t working? I am not looking to have the car judged, so total originality is not the issue. I want the car to be an enjoyable and comfortable driver, with an effective AC system that I can live with. If they can make my factory system work effectively, I guess I would prefer that, but I also don’t want to go down a rabbit hole of having to keep the system completely stock if it isn’t going to be effective.
Are there any tips, suggestions of what people have done to factory systems to update/upgrade them for better or effective operation? Can I expect that a restored factory AC system running on R134 will be something that I will be happy with, performance wise? As the shop is going over the system, I am looking for information and ideas that I can suggest to them or maybe just to better inform myself so that if they just come back and say that my factory system is junk and the only thing to do is upgrade to vintage air I will at least have some knowledge to help guide me in which way I proceed.
Thanks in advance for any ideas, thoughts or suggestions.
I have a 67 L79 with factory air but I replaced it with a LS3 and Vintage Air. The factory air was so temperamental that I never felt that it worked much at all. So, the Vintage Air is so much better but that is mostly due to the original not working well. The Vintage Air and the Holley mid mount accessory drive have a modern Sanden compressor which work exceptionally well and are proven items. I did a lot of research on A6 and factory air before the LS swap. Pro6ten and some others make A6 replacements. Sorry to not be much help but I thought it might not be bad to let you know my experiences with it.
I have a '64 with factory air. That will be my last item to hook up after my restoration. I have the original R-12 system and bought 2 20 pound tanks of R-12 in the 70's. When the system was charged, it worked well. One of the advantages to a C2 is that the area to cool is small as compared to a sedan. I have no experience with the 134A swap. My $.02
I have a stock 67 convertible with factory AC charged with R12 and it works fine for me. The unit puts out air that's about 40*F (measured with a thermometer). On the hottest days here in NorCal (90+*) the AC "takes the edge off" the temperature but is not as cool as a modern car, but at lower temperatures it does the job, but it takes longer to cool the cabin than does a modern car. It would keep the cabin even cooler in a coupe, without half the cooled air leaking out the window and top seals. I've heard that 134 cools less well than R12, but haven't seen a comparative test.
I live in Tampa Fl and as most of you know it gets extremely hot and humid here. I have a 1967 Corvette Coupe 327/300 with original AC. The only thing not original on mine is the compressor. After several seals leaking and other issues I decided to replace it with a modern compressor that works fantastic. I had this work done by a local shop that I trust and after a year its still working great. The temp at my vents is 39 degrees using a IR Gun so I have no complaints. I've owned my car for 30 years and I'm an originality freak so I wanted to keep the original AC. If I ever sell it I will give the new owner the old A6 compressor.
A properly running, fully charged, non-leaking factory A/C system filled with, either, R12 or converted to R134 will freeze you out of your coupe. Many years back when my factory compressor started to leak on my '67 L79 coupe, I installed a Pro6Ten compressor and converted over to the more readily available R134. The system performed flawlessly. I sent my original A6 compressor to Domenic Tallarita to be rebuilt. When I received it back from Dom, I put it in storage because the converted system was working so well and I had no desire to change out the compressor just cuz. When I sold my coupe 18 months ago, the newly rebuilt A6 went with the car to California
Hopefully Larry aka Powershift will chime in. At the very least, sounds like your heater core is leaking. Replacement is doable, but a giant pain in the *** on a factory AC car. If you change out the core, consider purchasing and installing all the seals. Dr. Rebuild has, in my opinion, the best seal kit. A stock system works well when set up correctly with the aforementioned seal kit installed. Do some research on the forum to determine if you want to go the stock or hybrid or aftermarket like Vintage Air. I installed a VA system in my 66. It works well here in Florida on my black/black coupe. Jerry
Hopefully Larry aka Powershift will chime in. At the very least, sounds like your heater core is leaking. Replacement is doable, but a giant pain in the *** on a factory AC car. If you change out the core, consider purchasing and installing all the seals. Dr. Rebuild has, in my opinion, the best seal kit. A stock system works well when set up correctly with the aforementioned seal kit installed. Do some research on the forum to determine if you want to go the stock or hybrid or aftermarket like Vintage Air. I installed a VA system in my 66. It works well here in Florida on my black/black coupe. Jerry
Why would the "heater core" be leaking?
Just get the original working. Less trouble me thinks and worth more w/the original stuff in it.
VA is fine for non-AC-equipped cars, bu C60 is a very valuable, rare option that you want. Especially in an L79 car (I'm biased).
Easy to hookup a vacuum pump and see if there's a leak. If no leak, then check the compressor.
Get a new one, new drier, flush the system, and re-fill with R12 or R134a if no leaks anywhere.
Not Corvette data; however, I grew up in the back seat of Dad's 65, 66, and 69 GM air conditioned cars that used R22 refrigerant and A6 compressors. You could hang meat in those cars, and the registers blew out air so cold you could see the condensation fog in it, and those were much larger interiors in cubic feet than a C2. In the rural South, including trips to Florida in the summertime, it was almost too cold in those cars.
Not Corvette data; however, I grew up in the back seat of Dad's 65, 66, and 69 GM air conditioned cars that used R22 refrigerant and A6 compressors. You could hang meat in those cars, and the registers blew out air so cold you could see the condensation fog in it, and those were much larger interiors in cubic feet than a C2. In the rural South, including trips to Florida in the summertime, it was almost too cold in those cars.
The big advantage to OEM AC is that it uses a blend door...so you can control the temperature well. Does any Vintage Air system do that? Not the ones I've messed with.
