1964 Imperial A/C, what vents and louves where on it?

[64Imperial]

Hey I'm going to add ac to my 64 imperial. It currently only has the heat options. I want to make it period correct and I'm looking for what is the center under dash vents. I bought the passenger side vent and about to buy the drivers. I noticed it has a switch with a wire that says floor air. Does anyone have any photos or know what was connected to the "floor air" switch?

 

[Imperialist]

The "Floor Air" switch is just a duct diverter and is a very minor component in the overall factory a/c installation. This is a major project and, in my judgment, completely impossible unless you have an a/c equipped parts car. And then it would to require a major swap job including disassembly of the dash and the components on the engine side of the firewall. If you really need a/c, adding an aftermarket underdash unit with a Sanden compressor would be the most sensible thing to do.

 

[detmatt]

If you go the route of installing an entire oem system I may have some parts for you. You will need the ac version of the grill on top of the dash with the flip up vents. I’ll get some pics from my ac car in a bit.

 

[64Imperial]

The "Floor Air" switch is just a duct diverter and is a very minor component in the overall factory a/c installation. This is a major project and, in my judgment, completely impossible unless you have an a/c equipped parts car. And then it would to require a major swap job including disassembly of the dash and the components on the engine side of the firewall. If you really need a/c, adding an aftermarket underdash unit with a Sanden compressor would be the most sensible thing to do.

Hey I do agree but I'm looking to have some oem looking appearance. I'm thinking about going though classic auto air or vintage air and upgrading the whole system but use the same vents in my car

 

[64Imperial]

If you go the route of installing an entire oem system I may have some parts for you. You will need the ac version of the grill on top of the dash with the flip up vents. I’ll get some pics from my ac car in a bit.

I definitely am thinking about it! I basically want it to look oem but I'll reroute the controls to a new system. So it will appear oem but will function for the newer set up

 

[Imperialist]

Which model is your Imperial?

 

[64Imperial]

Crown Coupe

 

[Ross Wooldridge]

The AC vents in the dash for the centre are on TOP of the dash and pop up when in use, and AC equipped cars have a unique dash frame and dash pad therefore. The two spot coolers on either side are below the dash.

The HVAC control buttons are completely different, as likely will be the bezel etc.

As noted above, you're best to find a AC equipped parts car with all the required dash parts and start with that. There's a good possibility that the firewall will require different holes cut for the HVAC box as the blower motor and connection lines most likely will not be in the same places as a non-AC car.

Not a project for the faint of heart. This really requires removing the entire dash and HVAC assembly, and starting over.

However, if you're looking for a period look, many cars were given AC retrofits back in the day with underdash hanging AC systems that were added after the fact, leaving the original non-AC system in place and functional. Mark IV was a popular under dash AC add on that is still being manufactured today, available from many vendors, and can be used with modern brand new compressors and condensors etc.

If you really want to stay Mopar, well, Mopar had an enormous one made by their AirTemp division which was very effective and looked like this:

They're out there - I just gave the one in the pictures away to FCBO member @cbarge !!

Good luck!

 

[64Imperial]

The AC vents in the dash for the centre are on TOP of the dash and pop up when in use, and AC equipped cars have a unique dash frame and dash pad therefore. The two spot coolers on either side are below the dash.

View attachment 482111

The HVAC control buttons are completely different, as likely will be the bezel etc.

As noted above, you're best to find a AC equipped parts car with all the required dash parts and start with that. There's a good possibility that the firewall will require different holes cut for the HVAC box as the blower motor and connection lines most likely will not be in the same places as a non-AC car.

Not a project for the faint of heart. This really requires removing the entire dash and HVAC assembly, and starting over.

However, if you're looking for a period look, many cars were given AC retrofits back in the day with underdash hanging AC systems that were added after the fact, leaving the original non-AC system in place and functional. Mark IV was a popular under dash AC add on that is still being manufactured today, available from many vendors, and can be used with modern brand new compressors and condensors etc.
View attachment 482112

If you really want to stay Mopar, well, Mopar had an enormous one made by their AirTemp division which was very effective and looked like this:

View attachment 482109

View attachment 482110

They're out there - I just gave the one in the pictures away to FCBO member @cbarge !!

Good luck!

Yes definitely going to do the underdash system for now! The odds of finding a car with the setup will take time! That might be a future project for me, but for now definitely like a Mark system! Thank you for your advice!

 

[detmatt]

@Ross Wooldridge I beg to differ on the dash and dash pad being different. The red grille is non ac and the blue is ac.

 

[Ross Wooldridge]

Interesting, @detmatt - thanks for setting me straight. I must admit I am nowhere near as familiar with the 64 to 66 Imperials as I am with 65 66 C bodies. I was doing some surmising based on my knowledge of C bodies.

This give hope for @64Imperial 's quest for a factory look - perhaps the dash frames and pads aren't so different, and all he needs is some creative ductwork from a modern AC & heat box tucked under the dash.

@64Imperial - there are people who are much more qualified to advise you as to the particulars of doing your modifications to a 64 Imperial - however, I feel the general gist of my advice still stands - it's a big job! Get help, ask questions!

 

[garyh]

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