Keeping Our Cool

When you're a young hot rodder, having air conditioning in your classic truck is the last thing on your mind. How fast and how low your ride is are the priorities, and there isn't much time or money budgeted for anything else. After a few summers of driving out to shows and cruising, however, most of us (especially here in the sweltering Southwest) come of age pretty quickly and decide that an air-conditioned cruiser is less of a luxury and more of a necessity. The same obviously holds true in the sunshine state, where over 26 years ago, Al Sedita began supplying OE-style A/C units for non-equipped Mustangs.

Today, a quarter century later, Classic Auto Air Manufacturing Co. has a massive inventory of factory air/heat parts and model-specific climate-control systems for nearly every popular year, make and model car or truck from the '70s and up. When searching for an A/C system for our '67 Chevy longbed, we quickly settled on Classic Auto Air's Perfect Fit Series climate-control system made just for this body-style truck. The in-dash heat/cool and defrost system replaces the old heater/defrost box, cleans up the firewall, and achieves the sought-after factory air look. This kit is also available with your choice of factory-reproduction, trick billet ball, or under-dash mounted louvers for those not wanting to drill their dash. Kits come complete with the heater/A/C unit (also known as the power pack), ducting, flex hose, firewall block off, louver kit and components to modify the existing control panel, condenser, receiver lines, fittings and hoses, and even a new glovebox lining made of ABS plastic. Classic Auto Air also recommends the use of a Sanden air compressor for their many superior qualities and supplies them with any of the necessary bracketry from Alan Grove components.

Once the system arrived via UPS, we wasted no time outfitting the '67 in our Tech Center. With the last fitting tightened, we tested the system and were truly impressed at the amount of air blowing out of the ducts. All that was left was leak-checking and charging the system, which was left to the professionals and their mobile charging unit. For more information on this or any unit available from Classic Auto Air or their restoration service for all factory A/C units, be sure and contact them using the information in the source box.

This Perfect Fit Series climate...        read full caption This Perfect Fit Series climate control system from Classic Auto Air is made specifically for '67-72 GM trucks. It comes complete with the heat/air condition/defrost power pack, along with all the necessary ducting, flex hose, factory-style dash louvers, firewall block-off plates, a new ABS glovebox, and all the necessary hardware to modify your existing control panel.

Included for the engine side...        read full caption Included for the engine side of the install are the condenser and receiver, all hoses, lines and O-rings, and the pressure switch and hardware. Also pictured is the Sanden Compressor that Classic Auto Air recommends to get the most performance from all their systems and the brackets from Alan Grove Components necessary to mount it to the passenger side of a small-block Chevy engine.

The first step was to remove...        read full caption The first step was to remove the control unit from the '67's dash. It is held on by two large Phillips screws from the underside of the dash.

Next, the three stock cables...        read full caption Next, the three stock cables were removed from the unit.

Then the old ducting was unbolted...        read full caption Then the old ducting was unbolted from the firewall and removed.

Now the screws around the...        read full caption Now the screws around the heat distribution box were removed and the entire unit, along with the attached flex hose, was removed.

The blower motor and heater...        read full caption The blower motor and heater case were then removed from the engine side of the firewall.

As per Classic Auto Air's...        read full caption As per Classic Auto Air's detailed directions, this section of the firewall was trimmed out with a cut-off wheel and discarded.

Next the smooth firewall block-off...        read full caption Next the smooth firewall block-off with insulated backing was installed using the supplied hex-head nuts and bolts.

The inlet block-off was installed...        read full caption The inlet block-off was installed next using 3/4-inch long tek screws.

Now the power pack was placed...        read full caption Now the power pack was placed on the bench for final assembly. First the defrost duct was attached to the back of the unit with two screws. Just above that, the control cable was attached to the door crank arm.

As per the diagram, the harness...        read full caption As per the diagram, the harness was attached to the thermostat, blower motor, and micro switches. The other end plugs into the new switch for the control panel.

The other supplied control...        read full caption The other supplied control cable was fed through the small hole in the block-off plate. Then the insulation was cut so the heat and A/C tubes could slide into place.

With the unit held up in place...        read full caption With the unit held up in place on the firewall and in a level position, it was attached with the two screws in the upper support and one in the lower mount.

Since we opted for the factory-style...        read full caption Since we opted for the factory-style in-dash louvers, as opposed to the under-dash versions, we had to begin our dash cuts. With the supplied templates, we marked out the driver- and passenger-side cuts and drilled accordingly with a 2 1/4-inch hole saw.

Both louvers were then installed...        read full caption Both louvers were then installed into the dash and backed with 2-inch flex hose adapters.

The center louver, located...        read full caption The center louver, located just above the radio, is a bit more tricky. After marking out the area with the template, 1/2-inch pilot holes were drilled at each edge of the cut. Then a cut-off wheel was used to cut through the top and bottom portion of the area.

Then the edges were ground...        read full caption Then the edges were ground back evenly, being careful not to remove more material than necessary.

Now the supplied factory reproduction...        read full caption Now the supplied factory reproduction center louver was attached. It was secured from the backside with two screws through the hose adapter.

During disassembly, we noticed...        read full caption During disassembly, we noticed that both the defrost vents and control panel had seen better days--so we picked up each of them brand new from Brothers Trucks in Corona, CA. Working with these new parts instead of the broken/brittle parts made the next few steps a whole lot easier.

All of the ducting was laid...        read full caption All of the ducting was laid out, and the flex hose was cut into the required lengths as per the directions.

The two defrost hoses were...        read full caption The two defrost hoses were secured to the adapters with a screw, which are in turn clipped to the vents. Just to be safe, we wrapped each assembly with a layer of duct tape. The flex hose for the three A/C ducts was also routed at this time.

Now the two hoses were attached...        read full caption Now the two hoses were attached to the heat defrost ducts with the supplied screws.

The face duct was installed...        read full caption The face duct was installed onto the power pack, and the three A/C hoses were attached to its specific duct according to the directions.

Before our new factory-style...        read full caption Before our new factory-style control head can be installed, it must be modified. The stock blower switch was removed, and the supplied mounting bracket was mounted in its place.

The new blower switch was...        read full caption The new blower switch was then attached to the bracket with two screws. Then the supplied linkage attaches it to the center lever pin.

At this point, there were...        read full caption At this point, there were three loose wires that needed to be attached. The brown power wire was cut from the old switch harness and attached to the red/white wire from the blower switch. Then the ground wire was screwed to a clean area of the firewall. Finally, the remaining blue wire was routed along the control cable through the firewall.

The heat door cable and water...        read full caption The heat door cable and water valve cables were attached and adjusted to make sure that each was moving as far in each direction as possible.

Our new Brothers control panel...        read full caption Our new Brothers control panel was installed into the dash and secured with the two screws. Then, finally the new ABS plastic glovebox was installed using the stock hardware. With the work inside the cab now complete, it was time to move into the engine compartment.

First to be installed was...        read full caption First to be installed was the condenser assembly. That required the removal of the battery and then the hood latch assembly, followed by the upper radiator support bolts. As per the directions, the four mounting brackets were mounted to each corner of the condenser. Then the receiver dryer was mounted to the passenger side of the condenser using the mounting bracket. The first liquid tube was attached from the dryer to the condenser using the supplied O-rings and a few drops of mineral oil. This is the procedure for all of the line fittings.

In order to achieve a factory...        read full caption In order to achieve a factory look up front, three holes must be drilled in the core support. The first of which is for the upper line off of the condenser to pass through. After test-fitting the condenser, it was marked and drilled accordingly.

With the hole drilled and...        read full caption With the hole drilled and the upper line attached, the "out" line for the dryer must run through the bulkhead. It was mocked up, marked, drilled, and attached. Now the condenser was secured to the core support permanently.

Directly in front of the bulkhead...        read full caption Directly in front of the bulkhead connector on the backside of the core support, the final hole was drilled for the line to pass through.

Classic Auto Air recommends...        read full caption Classic Auto Air recommends using this Sanden compressor with their systems whenever possible. It is supplied with brackets from Alan Grove Components for any mounting application. It makes for an easy install.

As you may remember from last...        read full caption As you may remember from last month, however, we equipped our new Pace Performance 350 with a complete serpentine accessory kit from GM Performance Parts. Since their incorporated bracket for the R4 compressor was already in place, we opted to use the GM R4 compressor for this particular application. At this point, the belt and dummy pulley were removed.

Luckily, Classic Auto Air...        read full caption Luckily, Classic Auto Air is prepared for situations like this. They next-day-aired us this adapter that works with the GM seals and attaches to the Classic Auto Air lines.

The compressor was dropped...        read full caption The compressor was dropped into place and attached with the bolts that held the dummy pulley in place. The serpentine belt was also reattached.

The liquid hose is straight...        read full caption The liquid hose is straight at both ends and first attaches to the bulkhead fitting. Just above it, the discharge hose was attached.

Then the smaller discharge...        read full caption Then the smaller discharge hose is first attached to the compressor, followed by the suction hose from the firewall.

Now the other end of the liquid...        read full caption Now the other end of the liquid hose attaches to the upper fitting on the firewall. The suction hose from the compressor attaches to the lower fitting.

The high/low-pressure switch...        read full caption The high/low-pressure switch was mounted to the port on the top of the dryer. One of the wires was then routed to attach to the blue wire that we ran through the firewall earlier. The other runs to the compressor clutch switch.

New heater hoses were run...        read full caption New heater hoses were run from the intake manifold and water pump to the fittings on the firewall. The water valve was fit inline, and the cable was attached and double-checked so that is moves from fully closed to fully open.

The clutch switch was attached...        read full caption The clutch switch was attached and plugged into the compressor. The other wire is a ground that mounts elsewhere on the compressor.

Not bad for a couple days...        read full caption Not bad for a couple days work. All that was left was our mobile technician to evacuate and charge the system with 22 ounces of 134A refrigerant.