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More 99 AC thoughts Posted by Gary Stottler [Email]  (#1463) [Profile/Gallery]
(more from Gary Stottler) on Wed, 18 Jul 2012 07:15:03
In Reply to: Re: Cool AC parts!, Luke, Tue, 17 Jul 2012 07:21:48 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
Hey Luke, That would be great - I sent you a note off-line to work out the details.
My experience has been that if the condenser don't leak, one just needs to straighten the fins and go. However, for the moment I'm mainly interested in getting it so I can identify the fittings and take a look at the dimensions. I have the idea that one may be able to get a condensor made, and if 30+ years of advancing technology have perhaps made it possible to make a slightly thinner condenser with the same fittings, then it may be possible to make one that packages better with an enlarged radiator and modern fans and thus eliminate the cooling problems that were the main issue with AC equipped 99s (partly because those brackets block off part of the airflow to the radiator, which was marginal enough as it was!).
We've already seen pictures of Oren's installation using a 9000 compressor with the improved belt tensioner, so if one is willing to make that concession to originality, I think you can end up with a system that works very well and does not compromise the servicability of the engine bay and the cooling in the ways that the original system did. If one wants originality, the original York compressor works just find, only makes it a bit difficult to get the spark plugs out on the Turbo.... I find that the parts inside the car actually work very well if they are properly fitted together and installed.
That said, I am rapidly coming to believe that most of the problems with the original system that gave it a bad reputation had to do with poor/inconsistent quality of the installation by dealers and distributors. Since the stuff was not factory installed, Saab had no control over the quality. For example, the bugaboo in my 77 EMS is that the compressor pulley is not even close to being aligned with the alternator and crank pulleys, so while the refrigeration function works great, the belt drive squeals and eats belts like crazy. I'm about to pull all that apart and drill/file/cut/space the brackets until they fit properly. But the original tech who put it in there (on flat rate) did not take the time to do that - maybe a major reason why the car got retired the barn with only 14,000 miles on it!
Stay tuned for more on how that works out! I guess I must really be getting old - in my youth I didn't see why one would want to bother with AC, but now the heat (and especially humidity) really cuts down my energy.
Gary
posted by 198.208.15...
_______________________________________ Gary Stottler
, Mon, 16 Jul 2012 18:45:52, Wed, 18 Jul 2012 07:15:03 <-- Viewing This Message, Thu, 19 Jul 2012 18:39:04
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