This is an old subject that I have to pick up again. Please scroll down to the last post.

Thanks



I have a 1970 Duster slant six with an ac that according to the previous owner, has not worked for many years. I've been thinking about removing the whole unit. I live in Sweden and I really dont feel that I need an ac in the car. Also I like working on the enginge and the thing is always in my way (Not a big mechanic but I'm learning and enjoying).

I've been searching the forum here on how to remove, and what to think of. I dont know if it's dry, I do think so, but is there a way for me to check this without me ore the enviorment being in danger?

There are two big hoses going into the ac unit. What shall I do about theese if I remove. Of course I want to keep the opption to get the car warm inside, so is there anything I need to reconect to get the heating working if I remove the ac?

I want to ask all these questions before I go and do anything of course. I wish I had a factory manual, All I have is a darn Haynes.. So if anyone could point me to diagrams, pictures, exploded views, or anything that could help me I would really apreciate that.

Robert

Is this a factory A/C unit that is integrated with the heater (five pushbuttons OFF MAX A/C HEAT DEF plus one slide lever (cool-warm) in the dashboard? Or, is this an under-dash "add on" unit?

To check if the system is empty, without the possibility of releasing refrigerant, ask an auto A/C service tech. If there's any pressure in the system, you'll have to have it evacuated by him, anyhow, before you can remove it.

Once you are certain that there's no refrigerant in the system, it is an easy matter of unbolting and removing parts.

What-all you have to remove depends on whether this is a factory or an add-on A/C.

As for a FSM, have you checked with the source given in this thread?

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

There should be a couple of schrader valves (look like large tire stems) on the hoses somewhere.

Give 1 of them a quick push and see if anything comes out

KEEP YOUR EYES OUT OF THE WAY


If nothing comes out, the system is empty and you won't have any problems.


If something comes out, make a deal with a AC auto repair shop....... Tell them they can have the freon in the system, if they remove it and don't charge you anything.......

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Ed
64 Valiant 225 / 904 / 42:1 manual steering / 9" drum brakes

Well, because your car is a 1970 you may have one of several "factory" a/c setups (factory installed or dealer installed, and there are several dealer installed variations). Your car may also have had an aftermarket (a la JC Whitney or Sears etc...) A/C system added as well. The only thing you really need to worry about is if the heater controls are incorporated into the A/C control. MOST A-body A/C units were bolt on affairs completely independent from the heater controls. However, some a-bodies had factory A/C systems which used vacuum operated doors and had the A/C controls incorporated into the heater controls. If your A/C is of the add-on or stand-alone variety, you can remove it. If it is incorporated into the heating system you can remove the compressor and underhood stuff, but to remove the under-dash stuff you will have to completely gut the HVAC system of the car and replace it with a non-A/C system.

How do you tell? The stand alone units had a separate fan control and the vents bolted to the bottom of the dash.

The stand alone systems can be removed by unbolting everything under the hood (make sure you go to a service station and have the system discharged properly first) then unbolting everything under the dash.

The two large hoses will be removed with the rest of the equipment under the hood.

Thanx for quick and great replyes. I will try to explain how it looks.

I think it might be a factory unit. I have the pushbuttons over the radio in the dash OFF MAX A/C A/C HEAT DEF etc, and a slide lever under thoose, there is also a button for the fan there.

However, if I understad what "the vents" mean correctly, there are vents bolted to the bottom of the dash.

Also, the large hoses I mentioned earlier, one of them goes from the radiator, into the compressor, then from that into the firewall, and then I dont know where it goes from there.

All I really want to do is to remove the underhood stuff and the hoses which then might be unnecesary. The under-dash stuff I can live with, if it dont need to come of aswell. But, If this cant be done without keeping the heat in the car the ac will stay on I guess.

Yep, that's a factory unit. Your heater is integrated into the system, so as Reed said, you can remove the underhood stuff if you want, but you'll need to leave the behind-the-dash stuff in place so that your heater and defogger continue to work.
Yep, that's part of the factory A/C system. A-bodies never got fully-integrated factory air with vents in the dashboard; always only ever with the slimline vent unit under the dash. The dealer-type A/C was a much chunkier unit (narrower and taller).
Not actually from the radiator. It goes from the front of the compressor to the condenser, which is in front of the radiator. Then, from the other end of the condenser, there's a hard (metal) line that runs from the condenser along the right inner fender, then it makes a 90° turn and runs along the firewall, to the expansion valve, and from the expansion valve into the car interior. The larger-diameter hose goes from the rear of the compressor to the firewall.

(I would also take issue with the notion that "most" A-bodies with A/C had dealer A/C rather than factory, but that doesn't really make a difference in this case.)
OK, that's not hard. Have the system evacuated of all refrigerant and then just start removing components! The hoses and hardlines connecting the compressor, condenser and firewall can all be removed. The condenser can be removed. The compressor and brackets can be removed. You can bypass the heater control valve mounted on the right inner fender; simply run the heater hose directly to the firewall and disconnect/plug off the two vacuum hoses running to the heater control valve, which will no longer serve any function (it closes off the water flow when "Max AC" is selected). It won't do any harm to leave it in place, but it presents a couple of potential problems (water flow blockage, water leakage, vacuum leak) that you can eliminate by bypassing it.

If you want, you can also remove the vent from under the dash. It's held to the underside of the dash with two screws, and will no longer be used except as a vent. You can leave it on if you want.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Actually, that is not true. I once owned a 74 Valiant sedan, not a Brougham but just one step below, that had A/C and it had an in-dash vent system. There was no under-dash unit, and strangest of all it had no under-dash vent doors! I looked and the part of the cowl where the vents hangs from was solid metal, never been cut. Only one I have ever seen, but it was factory.

As for venting man-made chemicals into the atmosphere, it is generally a bad idea that is to be avoided when possible.

I would like to thank everybody for their help. I see that this thread has taken another turn, thats ok with me. I got lots of good information here now and I think I know how to remove the unit without any problems. I'm going to run by a service station to let them check if the ac really is dry, I'm not in a hurry, so that is the best.

Thanx again for all help and advice, this is easely the best source for a beginner like me!

Ohh forgot to say. I wont be throwing the unit away. I will store it nice and safe, and some day it might be back on there working

Robert

Reed, you know how I hate to correct your recollections (you did own the car, after all) but I must do so again this time: There were no A-bodies factory-equipped with A/C vents in the dash, ever, in any market, in any year. All of the factory A-body A/C had the vent under the dash.

Perhaps some previous owner got very creative (and/or very extravagant) and fabricated an in-dash vent system, though with so little unused space on the front face of a '74 A-body dash, I have a hard time imagining what it would've looked like. But if you had factory A/C in your '74, it had the slimline vent duct unit under the dash.
'74s with factory A/C mostly didn't get vent doors.
Sorry, it wasn't. The factory did not make one-off A/C systems! (Too bad for us they also didn't make other stuff people remember having in their old Mopars...383 Hemi V8s, 240 Hemi slant-6s, pushbutton automatics in their '67 Valiants, etc.)
Right as rain.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

I try not to have an ego so i don't care if you correct me Dan, in fact I would rather be corrected than have bad information floating around. I freely acknowledge that most of the stuff I post is based only on my limited personal experience. I am not a mechanic, nor am I any sort of technically certified person. I am a lawyer for crying out loud, not a service tech. SO please feel free ( an dthis applies to anyone) to correct me if I am wrong. But I am fairly certain that it was a factory installation. It was a Mopar compressor and all the fitings, hoses, and controls looked to be period correct mopar. It had A/C and vent outlets in the dash. Then again, maybe someone who was really handy adapted something. But it would have been the cleanest retrofit i have ever seen.

Anyway, the point I was making is that if the A/C system is integrated then it will be very difficult to remove.

Could really use some help on this matter again. A friend helped me check that the ac was dry, so I have unbolted and removed "all the underhood stuff" as mentioned above.

I really took my time and havent touched anything thats not related to the AC (I hope!!)

Well, now the electrical system is completely dead. I was gonna take it for a drive and when I put in the key there was a just a fast weak bzzz from the key buzzer. Then nothing. No lights.. no nothing.

There were just a few wires under the hood related to the ac. One on the compressor, two on that "tube" attached to the inner fender close to the generator (I dont know the right words for these components, sorry!) I just followed those and took them off exept for one that I think went into the firewall. There was also a big ground cable going from the battery to one of the brackets holding the compressor in place. I attatched that to the engine.

I've tried to move that ground cable around but to no succes. A week ago the battery was tip top so I dont think it's that, but I will check that tomorrow.

Any advise would really be great!

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1970 Plymouth Duster

This is a complete wild guess, but will not cost anything to check. Can you attach the big ground wire you moved to the car body instead of the engine? Maybe that is not grounded on the engine.

Sounds like a dead battery. Charge the battery and try again.

Will check the battery, but I really dont think that is the problem unfortunatley.

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1970 Plymouth Duster

To me, it does sound like a bad connection somewhere... battery poles, or "the big wire"

I would try a set of jumper cables from the battery to the engine, and to the big stud on the starter, I guess... maybe...