Gentlemen:
My new 1955 CDV has A/C. My question is how long should it take for the air to blow cold? I've only ran the system for a few minutes and although everything appears to be working as it should the air never gets cold...its just slightly cooler than the outside air. Do these systems take a while to cool down or am I in need of an refrigerant charge?
When your 55 air system is working correctly, it will freeze you out of the car! They are extremely effective. The air should blow cold very quickly after starting up. So it needs attention. Start by cleaning the filter in the evaporator box (the big gray unit in the trunk). If the filter is gummed up with tar and won't come clean, try to get new material to make a filter from a home store. The range hood over a stove uses a very similar metal mesh filter material. Next, take it to a shop and have them check the R-12 level. Be prepared to pay about $300-$400 to charge the system -- R-12 has become very expensive these days.
Thanks Art. I was told they are quite cold. The car was converted to R-134A according to the previous owner. He said he had it charged last year but he rarely used the A/C or the car so I'm wondering if it leaked out (which is another issue within itself. The longest I've had it on for is about 3 minutes.
In general, these systems are not terribly prone to leaks. Mainly the compressor is the usual culprit for leaks. The system components are very heavy-duty. Case in point -- I once bought a wrecked 54 Fleetwood that had sat outside for untold number of years. When we cracked open the A/C lines at the compressor, it was still holding a full charge of Freon!
Hmm wondering why its not blowing cold. Ill take a look at the filter first like you recommended. It could be handy considering its been in the 90s here and humid as hell.
Quote from: 57shark82 on June 01, 2018, 05:24:06 PM
Hmm wondering why its not blowing cold. Ill take a look at the filter first like you recommended. It could be handy considering its been in the 90s here and humid as hell.
Tim,
Checking and cleaning the filters as Art suggested is a good and easy start, I recondition both on mine with just one 12â€x14†filter (left old, right new), I may had found a dinosaur fossil encrusted in one of the filters. ;D
Do you have the original A/C compressor or did the previous owner changed it?
If he keep the original compressor hope he used the correct oil viscosity compatible with R-134a, the old R-12 system used 525 viscosity.
You would need to make sure the system is fully charged, unfortunately there is no pressure switch on these as older systems, so the compressor would engaged regardless of the Freon charge.
Do you see any bobbles or fluid circulating on the sight glass? This can give you a visual indication if there is any charge on the system. :(
There is one item expansion valve (on the evaporator you need to remove the cover plate) which I’m not sure if it would need to be re-adjusted for R-134a. ??? This valve can be adjusted and it may need to be after the system is changed depending on how the cooling coil reacts after recharging the system.