Air Condition for a Z

[Frogdog]

Hi all, I have not been to this site for a while. I just acquired a nice 74 Z, this is my 3rd Z, and it doesn't have A/C. I live in Florida and A/C is almost mandatory.....OK for me it is mandatory. Anyone who has added A/C to their Z, a Z that never had A/C I would very much appreciate any and all info you could give me. Where you got your A/C parts, problems you had etc. , any and all info would be a great help. My e-mail is ( frogdog@cfl.rr.com ), you could send the info here if you prefer not to clog up the Z discussions , my phone number is 321-254-3681 if you would prefer to talk. Thanks, Pete

[psdenno]

Do it! Got mine from MSA. There are lots of threads on the topic if you search the forum for"air conditioning kits".

Dennis

[Yellow78]

Just rebuilt my A/C system. If I was going to do it agin I would just put in a small Vintage Air unit. It may end up being a little more money but you have great unit.

[hr369]

if you're going factory nissan parts the hard parts to

find ^new are the expansion valve and compressor.

The expansion valve is no longer available at any dealer for quite a while. If you will settle for used parts

then there are quite a few available on ebay or other zcar websites.

The hitachi a/c compressor was used on other cars. Don't limit yourself to just the datsun part number. 80's and 90's subaru's used a very similar hitachi's. I used a mjs170 from a 300zx. I had to change the high and low pressure fittings on the compressor but new hoses had to be built anyways. Condenser I used was aftermarket parallel designed for R134

An idea i was toying with was putting the zx evap into a s30. Its bigger and would have better cooling and the expansion valves are still available new.

Lastly,

if you don't like tinkering with cars then i recommend the a/c kits from

vintage air or msa.

Edited November 9, 2013 by hr369

[djwarner]

I replaced the factory heater core in my Series I with a VintageAir Mini GenII. Fit neatly in the space without crimping the passenger leg room. Mounted the compressor in the air pump location and used its v-groove for the belt. Works well in our Florida summer heat. Figure to spend about $3K if you aren't doing the work yourself.

[Dr. 240Z]

I replaced the factory heater core in my Series I with a VintageAir Mini GenII. Fit neatly in the space without crimping the passenger leg room. Mounted the compressor in the air pump location and used its v-groove for the belt. Works well in our Florida summer heat. Figure to spend about $3K if you aren't doing the work yourself.

Having AC is appealing even if it is very limited seasonal use here.

Just curious: Did you install it yourself? If so, how difficult was it to do?

George

[djwarner]

I replace the air handler, modified the center control panel to accept the modern control, mounted the condenser coil and ran the electrics and the heater hoses. Went to a local Z expert for the compressor mount plate, compressor installation and to fabricate the hoses.

I went to the trouble to modify the air handler fan location to fit under the fresh air vent and fabricated a vent mechanism that dropped down onto the fan for fresh air and with an internal door that closed when the mechanism was raised for the recirculation function. If I were to do it again, I would use the stock air handler and purchase a gate valve used in sawdust capture systems from a woodworking supply store. VintageAir air handlers do not have fresh air venting built in.

I was able to use all the existing air/defrost vents and yielded a clean installation. I did pull the dash to facilitate fabricating the fresh air vent mechanism. I understand you can pull the heater box without pulling the dash.

Routing the heater hoses proved problematic because I bought bulkhead fittings with 90 degree elbows. Doing it again, I would use the existing grommets through the firewall.

[Dr. 240Z]

I replace the air handler, modified the center control panel to accept the modern control, mounted the condenser coil and ran the electrics and the heater hoses. Went to a local Z expert for the compressor mount plate, compressor installation and to fabricate the hoses.

I went to the trouble to modify the air handler fan location to fit under the fresh air vent and fabricated a vent mechanism that dropped down onto the fan for fresh air and with an internal door that closed when the mechanism was raised for the recirculation function. If I were to do it again, I would use the stock air handler and purchase a gate valve used in sawdust capture systems from a woodworking supply store. VintageAir air handlers do not have fresh air venting built in.

I was able to use all the existing air/defrost vents and yielded a clean installation. I did pull the dash to facilitate fabricating the fresh air vent mechanism. I understand you can pull the heater box without pulling the dash.

Routing the heater hoses proved problematic because I bought bulkhead fittings with 90 degree elbows. Doing it again, I would use the existing grommets through the firewall.

Thanks, Dale, for your insightful response.

I'm going to send you a PM

George

[ZcarFanMan]

I'm looking to doing this also. djwarner, do you have an installation thread on this task? Any pics?

Thanks!

[djwarner]

Here are a few pictures of the build.

These compare the GEN II Mini and shows the vent/door configuration.

In order to align the fan with the vent, I inverted the fan and added an air box made from a Radio Shack Project Box. I cannibalized a lever from the OEM heater control to construct the fresh air - recirculate control.

One point I should make, modifying the air handler probably voided the warranty. If I were doing it again, I would have used a woodworking dust exhaust gate and built an air box that moved with the gate leaving the air handler stock.

Edited November 24, 2013 by djwarner