Has anyone fitted air conditioning as an after thought?

Post by **Lanciaman** » 28 Apr 2015, 11:08

Not been able to find anything on the forum or wiki regarding this.
There are units on the market that appear to require mounting on the roof, with an aperture cut out to suit. That puts me off straight away, so does anyone have any experiences to share?
Some T25's had a/c I believe, so in theory I suppose this could be retro-fitted, and might be better than a roof -mounted job, if parts could be found (USA???). If plumbed into the car heater system, I think this would be better, although sounds like that would be a major campaign. What do we know?

Website · Post by **CovKid** » 28 Apr 2015, 17:53

As we don't get anywhere near the temperatures in the USA (or at least not for long), its not been a hot topic. I did look at this some years ago but its not cheap and just drags down your MPG even further. Just open a quarterlight if you've got opening ones.

Post by **silverbullet** » 28 Apr 2015, 18:07

I wish that our a/c had been working last summer in central Germany...
I have a full kit to fit into our syncro, along with a webasto. Summers will get hotter and winters will get colder.

Post by **Kent Joker** » 28 Apr 2015, 18:29

I also have a complete system that I bought to retro fit in my Westy but haven't made much in the way of progress, the system mounted on the roof are 240v and normaly for static use, the type that was fitted to T3s was useable when the engin is running

Post by **busbuddy** » 28 Apr 2015, 18:45

rooftop ones.....I did look at these a few years ago just out of curiosity

they usually need a 400x400 hole, weigh 25-50kg, cost £1-2k, some are low consumption so can be run from solar panels if you have a few up there

there are free standing ones now for about £500 but still 240v

non starter on anything other than a big gin palace imho

Post by **printmonkey** » 28 Apr 2015, 19:51

I've got the early factory system in my Westy. The system is completely empty though and I can't find any R12. I'm trying to justify the cost of converting it to newer gas, but reading the AC threads on thesamba makes my bank balance shudder. The summers need to get much hotter to make it worth the cash, I'm with covkid, open a window and drive in your pants!

Post by **silverbullet** » 28 Apr 2015, 21:08

Get it leak tested first. There are conversion gases available, you need an a/c man who works a lot on classic cars, theyvhave seen it all before. I would tale a lot of the samba with a pinch of salt.

Post by **Lanciaman** » 29 Apr 2015, 05:51

Interesting replies, thanks all. Bit of a non-starter it seems. Think I'll keep the anti-perspirant stocked up.
Agreed don't need it in UK, but I want to do a grand tour of Europe one day (don't we all!!) and reckon it could be useful if we got as far as Spain etc. trouble is, got used to it in the car etc, so I'm getting soft in me old age

Post by **lloydy** » 29 Apr 2015, 06:01

What I found makes a massive difference is installing windows that open in the back (ones above rear arch) with the front window and the rear window open you get a lovely breeze into the back.
It's also nice to crack it open at night. Yes the windows that open are expensive, but way cheaper than a/c

Post by **discipleofsketch** » 29 Apr 2015, 09:54

About £13 off fleabay if I remember correctly. Makes lots of noise and provides a weak blast of reasonably cool air when sat in hot traffic jams. We usually take a normal household mains fan for when on hook-up in france

Post by **bootie3367** » 29 Apr 2015, 10:34

Living where I do, I thought about this.
Plumped for a 12v fan mounted on the passenger grab handle and currently going to fit opening quarter lights.
The fan was OK-ish last summer. Looking forward to the addition of the quarters this summer.
I didn't know about the opening rear windows, might be a worth while addition.
As for driving in pants, not sure SWMBO would be happy with that! :run

Jon

Post by **printmonkey** » 29 Apr 2015, 11:15

Ok, so maybe pants is a bad idea. Speedos??

Post by **RogerT** » 10 May 2015, 13:01

lloydy wrote:What I found makes a massive difference is installing windows that open in the back (ones above rear arch) with the front window and the rear window open you get a lovely breeze into the back.
It's also nice to crack it open at night. Yes the windows that open are expensive, but way cheaper than a/c

Are these the double glazed plastic caravan type windows, or something else? Struggling to imagine what would work...

Post by **broutta** » 09 Jul 2015, 16:43

Anyone thought of using a freestanding 240v one and hooking it up to an inverter?
Obviously take it apart and put it in a cuboard

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