adding A/C to a subaru conversion

[skills@eurocarsplus]

[danfromsyr]

are those orange Tic tacs you want to keep wintergreen?
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[skills@eurocarsplus]

I don't like my tic tac's to stick

I like the cool refreshing "ahhhh" of the wintergreen you describe
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[vwwestyman]

[samwise]

It will be interesting to see how much cool air does make it to the back of the bus, presumably with airflow between the front seats. A lot of modern cards (the majority?) don't have a/c outlets for rear seat passengers, although I do like the idea using in modern minivans etc, with the air vents in the headlining panel.
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Ben
1979 7-passenger bus
Harvee the Wonder Bus' pics

[babysnakes]

That is sooo fuckin sceaming "single cab".

[skills@eurocarsplus]

[SGKent]

let's all remember that these are 40 year old collectible vehicles. expecting them to work 100% the same as modern SUV is equal to trying to make a 1982 Commodore 64 computer work just as conveniently as a new 2016 IPhone. When we start complaining that the folks in the back don't get quite the same cooling... . Opening the vent windows is how VW envisioned that would be solved. Really. This forum gets so unrealistic at times. We should feel fortunate someone still makes AC kits that fit.
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“Most people don’t know what they’re doing, and a lot of them are really good at it.” - George Carlin

[skills@eurocarsplus]

[captincanuck]

[skills@eurocarsplus]

got it

conventional wisdom would stack the assembly, as in a "normal" car with a radiator/condenser mounted up front.

and I would consider it, however it's a big girl and her chubby self stands proud of the frame rails, making mounting it a tad difficult if I were to attach it to the radiator.

this lays flat(ish) across the frame as it would in an aircooled arrangement.

only difference is instead of being mid ship, it's towards the front more. so take that photo and shove the condenser to the front of the bus some.

does that make sense?

and yes, both units have fans, main and sub condenser, that is
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[skills@eurocarsplus]

well, day 1 of testing....

it's rather sticky out there on I 95

so far, so good

the actual temp gauge is off some from it's "normal" swing, which is about 3*. sorry for the blurry pic, but the ecu is happy happy happy at 185*

I had a clearing and brought it up to 85 mph for about a mile. never broke 190*

as we get hotter over the weekend, I will do more testing on I 95 into RI. it's a good long loop I do and lets me push it hard as traffic allows. I have a feeling my location of the main condenser and a couple of tweeks I have done will yield fantastic results with adding the a/c to the Subaru conversion.

this will be the best I can do, seeing I simply can't duplicate the texas heat. should be in the mid 90's over the next few days. now mind you, I am pushing this bus way harder than it will be driven on a regular basis.

I am not beating on it per se, but just really making it work harder than it normally would. trying to duplicate real world conditions is a challenge, but must be done to insure a good outcome
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[webwalker]

Lookin' great, buddy. AC is somewhere down on my 'before I die' list, but its good to know you'll have solved it! Good job!

M
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"Consistent maintenance with quality products is the cheapest warranty you'll ever need."
1977 CE1 Transporter Deluxe, Subaru EJ22, Skills Cooling, Steedle HD 091 w/ GuardT .82 4th
Click to view image

[Ride_On]

Go Skills!! That's awesome!
The back seat performance is of interest to us for the little guys. Car seats are none too breathable. We end up tying the rear vent window open to ensure air flow for them. AC would be luxury for sure, and a nice one at that.
Keep it up Skills!
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1977 Westfalia 2.0 FI Skills EJ25 w SubaruGears 5sp
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=687254
2018 Golf Sportwagen 4MO DSG (Dieselgated 2013 Golf Wagon TDI DSG)

[skills@eurocarsplus]

I am willing to bet over time, the rear seat/cargo area will cool off just like that in a dodge caravan, or any other car with front a/c only.

my predictions are:

once the evaporator cools down, and the dash unit cools off there will be almost instantaneous cooling for the front seat area, then it will creep into the rear.

the one disadvantage at this point is, the bus is like a panel van...with windows. there is zip for interior in it so the unit will be taxed from the gitgo, but so would any other unit with no interior.

you guys need to think of it this way....your car when you hit the switch cools you off pretty quick....then bleeds into the rest of the car. we are trying to cool a small apartment here, not a closet.

when the time comes, I can record a min/max average using my DVOM and see how long it takes to cool the bus down, but first, I have more windshield time with the current arrangement to see how the condenser placement affects airflow to the radiator.

I will be back in the saddle this afternoon as the temp heats up
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[vwwestyman]

Skills is probably out driving around right now.

So, at the moment you've just got the condensers mounted and are testing whether they would affect the engine's cooling?

As I said, I'm excited to see how it cools in the back, and I suspect it'll be like Skills suggests, that it'll cool off the front seats rather quickly and then eventually get the rest of the bus.

In my Westy, an underdash unit really is the best choice, I'm sure. And that is the Bus with an AC compressor hanging off the engine.
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Dave Cook

President, Wild Westerner Club

1978 Champagne Edition Westy, repowered to '97 Jetta TDI
1973 Wild Westerner
My Thing

[skills@eurocarsplus]

[skills@eurocarsplus]

todays testing went very well.


Link


bonus points for the name of the situation comedy in which that line was used.

fixed the temp gauge, turns out it was a bad ground on the back of the cluster.

I think one more day of freeway travel will get me where I need to be, then on to the rest of the install....
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[captincanuck]

I almost said Laverne & Shirley, but it's the mary tyler Moore show. Do I get 10% off a Skills AC install in my Subaru Bus?
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1979 Westfalia "FireFly" Subaru 2.2 with Subaru gears 5spd.
Build Thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=634777&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

[lolight70]

Hi
Is the bus light or dark colour?
Any insulation under the roof?
Tinted windows?
Trying to cool an old car/van is never easy
Make sure it's parked in the shade at all times 👍🏻