A/C Removal. Trouble?
 

Alright guys I bought an 1983 with a 12a motor,a/c on it, the a/c dont work anyways and I want to drop it, according to the pro's among you guys its good weight loss. now if yall could tell me what im getting myself into would be great.
Is it tons of trouble to do it? Anything I should worry about?

I am a car mechanic and have the right tools to drop it, just want to for see all the problems that may come up.

No real problems except letting the pressure off. I generaly crack a line and let it leak out.

I took the a/c off my 79 this morning. The biggest issue was the large bolt under the compressor. The clutch and pulley had to come off first. It was giving me fits, so I used a huge crow bar and pried it off! Anyway, I'll cap the lines on the firewall and be done. I can't say it's that much weight reduction though. Not enough to make a difference anyway. Good luck.

what all needs to be removed? i was planning on removing the compressor, lines and the cooler infront of the radiator. anything else i should worry about?

remove compressor, condensor (radiator in front of radiator), lines, dryer next to condensor. that's about it.

i know it does get hot in colorado in the summer but go for it.

yea it gets hot for about a month or so, highest is like 100 with no humidity, but thats only a day or so if we get lucky. im not really worried about my comfort, just put down the windows and go fast. :p:
dropping the a/c tomarrow. will let yall know how it goes

its not a bad job, takes a few hours at most. I weighed everything after I was done and its just about 40 lbs, not bad I guess, but I was hoping it would save more weight.

I need to get mine refreshed....im tired of the damn sweat baths(texas)

I have just removed my A/C yesterday, and I was just wondering if i have removed everything that I possibly could. I removed the compressor, condensor, lines, and the dryer next to condensor. But I would also like to know if I can remove the bracket that was below the compressor and what ever is underneath that bracket.

I think it's 3 nuts and a bolt that hold the bracket on. Pull that thing off. It's a good 8-10lbs!

ok alls removed, everything went well and its all out. took that bracket that jasons is talkin about too. thanks tons guys.

Dude, the evaporator inside the car (sort of under the dash) weighs another 5-8 pounds, and can be removed safely (I don't know if that will mess with your heating ducts, but I didn't notice a difference).

^what he said.

You can take the evaporator out of the big plastic box that it lives in and seal up the holes OR replace the whole box with a lighter duct piece from a non-A/C car. I've got an extra one if you're interested.

Why don't you remove the heater core at the same time? And the fan as well. Removing the heater core, fan , hoses, and clamps will further reduce weight.

i would remove the heater but, you must understand this is colorado, it gets cold and snowy, need it.
hmm gonna see if i can find one off a non a/c car.
if i cant ill give ya a pm wankleguy.

If it is not a race or track car, just disconnect the AC drive belt. The weight savings even 40 lbs will not make a significant difference in normal driving. Removing the AC will decrease the resale value.

well i removed the a/c so i could get a nice clean look, dont like my stuff cluttered.(removing rats nest this weekend) heh im a 70's chevy lover so i love room and cleaness. i already removed it and i dont plan on ever sellin this 7, its my first so far and im lovin it.

Good luck, I've only ever found two in ten years... :wink:

back from the died...!!!!!!!!!!!!

i tryed taking my a/c off over the weekend and i could not break those lines going into the firewall on the passenger side......i tryed and tryed on that first big top line and i could not is there any help with this

cut the hose with a hacksaw or simialar tool. Then, remove the heater duct piece, gut it and put duct tape on the holes (of box maybe firewall too) and reinstall.

you just need to hold it with one wrench and turn with another. if you are not going to use it again then just use a hacksaw.

well i dont wanna use it again but i wanted to do it the right way just incase i maybe do want to put it on so........i gusse i will just cut it......

I use 2 large ajustable wrenches. One is big enough and heavy enough that a tap on it with a rubber mallet will break the fittings loose. It would also break my foot if dropped. Just make sure the wrenches are adjusted snugly on the fittings.

40 lbs removed from any car is significant improvement especially when most of it is in front of the front wheels, this will help your car's balance, performance and braking.

I've done two this year and they take about an hour once you know what to remove. Take the cover off in front of the radiator top first to give good access and remove the A/C radiator it's blocking your regular radiator.

its pretty easy... my compressor was already off when i bought mine but it took me an hour or so to get everything out