THE

BASICS
Air Conditioning Theory
the driving belt. Sliding the compressor, or
using an idler pulley mounted on an adjustable
eccentric are the simplest ways to adjust belt
tension. On the driving belt, there is always a
tight side and a slack side. The tensioner must
always be installed on the slack side of the
driving belt. This increases the bearing life of
the idler by putting less load on it and reduces
belt flop, which is always greatest on the
slack run side of the belt. Second, the bracket
should also allow enough belt contact on all
pulleys that are driving or driven by that belt.
This area is called the "arc of contact. And
finally, the entire mounting system must be as
rigid as possible to eliminate rotational harmonics. Even tiny movements of the drive
components can eventually cause metal
fatigue and bracket failure. See Pages 65-69
for a complete selection of our engine-specific
mounting brackets. And for the ultimate
engine accessory drive systems, check out our
street and track-tested Front Runner Engine
Drives on Pages 58-63.
Selecting The Right Evaporator
The evaporator unit, which mounts inside
the car, is called that because it absorbs heat
from the warm air inside the cab which evaporates the refrigerant running through the
evaporator coil. That heat is carried off with
the refrigerant to be given off to the cool air
flowing across the condenser at the front of
the car. Whether the system is a built-in,
behind-the-dash unit, or a below-the-dash style
Gen II ComPac

unit, the job is the same.

Since the rebirth of street rodding in the
70s, the goal of most car owners has been to
conceal as much of the air conditioning system
as possible purely for appearance considerations. Our challenge has always been to build a
compact enough evaporator unit to fit behind
the dash in smaller, early model classic cars,
trucks and street rods. When component size
was reduced, compensation for efficiency

became necessary. Blower motors can turn

faster and evaporator coils can be fed better,
but in most cases when component size was
reduced, capacity also diminished. However,
after thirty-six years of engineering and testing,
we have overcome most of the early limitations. Through our incorporation of computer
modeled virtual flow testing, servo motordriven air doors (a Vintage Air first), and super
Gen IV Magnum

efficient cooling and heating coils, we can now

deliver performance far beyond the earliest
aftermarket systems. Our proven Gen II and
our revolutionary Gen IV systems can perform
as well as any OEM system today. See Page 11
for further explanation of the benefits of our
revolutionary Gen IV technology.
Installing The Evaporator
When installing the evaporator, it must be
set in the car with the drain pan and tubes
down so the condensation will drain. The dash
air outlet louvers should be positioned so they
blow on the driver and passengers directly,
under or through the dash when possible. The
louvers should be as close to the evaporator
as possible. Other locations usually produce
disappointing results. In all cases you must
not block-off any air outlets on the evaporator
case to avoid internal air turbulence and
reduced performance. If used, the thermostat
capillary tube should be inserted at least 4
inches into the evaporator coil fins. The blower
should always recirculate the inside cabin air.
Introducing outside air is not necessary and
will cause the system to work much harder to
maintain comfortable temperatures. Where
your refrigerant hoses must pass through
sheet metal, use either a refrigerant hose
grommet or a bulkhead fitting. See Pages 78
and 80. Your drier should always be positioned to produce a "liquid seal" at the pick-up
tube (this will be vertical for most driers). We

also recommend mounting the drier inside the

passenger area whenever possible. Where
your suction line and liquid line run parallel,
they can be tied together. The difference in
temperature will actually help the refrigerant
in each line do its job.
Insulation Is A Must
An air conditioner has to remove heat faster
than it is added into the cabin of the vehicle,
so it is important to reduce the heat entering
the vehicle. Just like reducing weight on a race
car so the engine can do more, we reduce
heat load in a car by insulating thoroughly,
sealing doors and windows, and even tinting
the glass. This should be a mandatory step
when adding an air conditioning system to any
vehicle and will ultimately determine how well
the system performs. (See Page 90-91)
This information should give you a basic
understanding of automotive air conditioning

and aid you in selecting the proper components for your particular needs. We encourage you to call one of our distributors or our
technical staff with any questions you may
have about air conditioning your classic car or
truck, street rod or other special vehicle.

The Inventors Of Performance Air Conditioning

OEM SUPPORT PROJECTS

Vintage Airs OEM development division partnered with Ford Motor
Company to design and supply the climate control systems for the
exciting Ford GT. The GT system incorporates the same proven
Gen IV technology and performance available to hot rodders with all
of our Gen IV Custom Fit and Gen IV SureFit systems.