AC requirement and retrofitting for an imperial

[napalm00]

Ive been digging deep on the AC topic and would like to confirm my findings , all opinions welcome!
In order of desirability and ease of repair assuming buying an imperial with the AC not working :

1) Best case for serviceability and function is a early imperial without autotemp I/II also known as manual AC
A) Code H51 on the fender tag
2) Autotemp II car is the next desirable as the parts can still be found for a factory style repair without hacks
3) Autotemp I car is the least desirable in a non-functional state as the parts are No longer available



All that being said what i dont know is the viability of replacing the compressor, condenser, evaporator ect with a kit in ANY model year. Like this vintage air kit:

Gen 5 Magnum MAX ™ Evaporator Kit

Parts would be in the $3500 range with tons of custom fab.


Long story short I need AC in Vegas. I can either buy a non-functional car and hack it to work or do a kit. Thoughts?

 

[HOT FURY]

Ive been digging deep on the AC topic and would like to confirm my findings , all opinions welcome!
In order of desirability and ease of repair assuming buying a car with the AC not working :

1) Best case for serviceability and function is a early imperial without autotemp I/II also known as manual AC
A) Code H51 on the fender tag
2) Autotemp II car is the next desirable as the parts can still be found for a factory style repair without hacks
3) Autotemp I car is the least desirable in a non-functional state as the parts are No longer available



All that being said what i dont know is the viability of replacing the compressor, condenser, evaporator ect with a kit in ANY model year. Like this vintage air kit:

Gen 5 Magnum MAX ™ Evaporator Kit

Parts would be in the $3500 range with tons of custom fab.


Long story short I need AC in Vegas. I can either buy a non-functional car and hack it to work or do a kit. Thoughts?

what car is it for? I have a full A/C system out of a 66 sport fury, it would need you to send it out to have it gone through and cleaned up but have everything you should need if its a 65 or 66 fury including the dash with vent cut outs and vents. Was going to put it in my 66 but plans changed with engine bay stuff and can't use it anymore.

 

[napalm00]

Imperial !

 

[HOT FURY]

gotcha sorry didnt see model if it was in your post

 

[napalm00]

gotcha sorry didnt see model if it was in your post

I appreciate your help though

 

[volksworld]

at the risk of sounding dumb, if you don't already have a car...buy one where the a/c works...however much more you may pay for a car with functional a/c will probably still be cheaper than trying to get a non functional one to work...many of those 'universal' kits are designed to put into a bare bones hot rod and may not fit under your dash in the first place

 

[napalm00]

at the risk of sounding dumb, if you don't already have a car...buy one where the a/c works...however much more you may pay for a car with functional a/c will probably still be cheaper than trying to get a non functional one to work

Definitely not sounding dumb. However, maybe 15 to 20 cars will go up for sale in a year for fuselage body imperials. And most of those the AC doesn't work.

So I kind of have to take what I can get

 

[CBODY67]

Seems like there was a thread in here about a week or so ago about some of the ins and outs of troubleshooting and repairing an ATC I car? Definitely some kinks in how that system works, it seems! All things considered, the earlier ATC I system was probably more complicated than it needed to be, especially as it was pretty low-production in other C-body cars, plus the lower production of Imperials. Probably is a MasterTech program on it at www.mymopar.com?

As to the many non-working a/c systems on "for sale" or at auction cars, I wonder if a lot of them just need some freon in them? IF they have ATC, non-working, that can also mean that NOBODY wanted to touch them. ATC being one reason, "Chrysler" being another thing.

As to basic upgrades, you can find parallel flow condensers from several places. Universal, but seems like I found one for my '70 Monaco somewhere? Price was good, too. Might take a little finesse in getting it to look decently OEM, though. Then aim for an SD-7 Sanden compressor to replace the RV-2. Most kits have the SD-5, rather than the 7-cyl SD-7.

On the inside, make sure all of the vac lines going to controls/actuators are in great shape. THEN put some new foam seals where the ductwork slides together. Making sure that all of the air flow gets to the dash/floor vents rather than "behind the dash".

The ATC II controller was also used on several years worth of Mercedes models. They can be had NEW for a decent price. I believe you should be able to use the OEM EPR valve and keep the existing "non-cycling compressor" orientation of the existing car.

Understand that R-134a barrier hose is stiffer than the old R-12 hose, so it will not bend in quite as tight of a radius. Plus the related hose fittings and clamps. I'm thinking that these upgrades can be done for well UNDER $3500.00 in parts without all of the related install labor!

Just some thoughts and observations,
CBODY67

 

[napalm00]

I hear you for sure. Ive converted six non-mopar from non-functional AC or no AC to working AC over the years. What has me worried are the imperial specific electromechanical controls in the ATC I. GM and Land rover vehicles i have worked on either make more sense and can use universal equipment or are easlity converted because there is tons of space for aftermarket equipment


TLDR im concerned that an ATC I car may be nearly unrepairable without going completely custom. Am I off base here ?

 

[CBODY67]

As a general rule, many people stay far away from ATC cars, period. The systems do tend to be more complicated (and mis-understood) than the GM Comfortron systems. Not everybody wants to get into a learning situation with a used car, so they run and hide from them. Just like I do from a Rim Blow steering wheel.

Sometimes, it seems, Chrysler's desire for engineering excellence probably went a bit too far and accounting would not approve the quality of parts needed to make it work well. NOT a good recipe for long-term durability.

Somewhere, I have seen Chrysler manuals on how to diag and fix each version of Chrysler's ATC? Especially the ATC II book.

Some of the Vintage AC systems now have electronic controls and actuators. Might some of that be interfaced with the Chrysler OEM items?

CBODY67

 

[napalm00]

Yeah I saw the both vintage air and old air. Both have electronic controls now which makes things much easier. I don't really particularly care if the existing controls on the dash don't function as long as I have AC. What I am worried about is fitting an aftermarket unit underneath the dash in a way that does not look ridiculous. I know there's a lot of space underneath with an imperial but it is a complex vehicle compared to say a c10