I guess the simple way is to scavenge the plumbing and controls off an a/c car. Has anyone done this? Also is there any difference in the models or will the pieces off an 85 work on a 79?

 

hmm, i have thought about doing this too, but it's alot of work from what i can tell. maybe if you can prove it to not be so bad and it works well; i'll give it a shot myself cause this summer is gonna be a hot one!

-zac

 

NOOOOOOOO! You don't want AC. Roll the damn windows down. I just removed all my AC crap and it's in good shape but needs a recharge. I NEVER use AC on any car, ick.

 

why on earth would you want AC? Especially in Canada! it never even gets hot enough to use it up there! AC is the first thing you remove on any vehicle

 

It's not as much the amount of work that's involved, as it is how much it's going to cost for compressor, evaporator, condensor and all the lines to connect it all up and I wouldn't consider a salvage yard as the source.

 

Speaking on the unauthorized behalf of Western Canadians, it gets damn hot here in the summer. I've got air and love it - especially when I'm stuck in traffic at 30+ degrees (in the 90's for the Americans) - I'll put up with the loss of power especially since I don't need a lot of power when I'm at a stand still in gridlock. When the A/C's not engaged, the power loss is similar to running an air pump (or less) - I'm not the type to split hairs on a couple of horse power so the added conveniance of air (and the minimal loss of HP) is not an issue to me.
The racers will surely object to this reasoning

 

its not the loss of power it takes to run thats the major concern, its all that added weight. taking that much weight out of the car is like adding hp. I'm still on the fence about this one. The A/C doesn't work in my car and taking it out would be nice, but here in NJ it gets hot so I'm not sure. oh yea, another reason to get rid of it is more efficient cooling, without the condenser in front of the rad the cooling system will work much better.

 

I live in mississippi
i dont have a/c in either veihicle

dont bother with it

 

There is alot to consider. the carb will need to have the idle compansader,If the car didn't have it, i'd say leave it alone. IMO.

 

i 2nd that i have a removable sun roof and 2 windows thats all the ac i need to i pulled out all that crap too, as well as the power steering, smog pump, emissions...

 

[QUOTE]its not the loss of power it takes to run thats the major concern, its all that added weight

I agree, but in the long run you are still talking loss of HP. "How much" would be the million dollar question and once determined, you can consider the trade off. IMO, if you got it and enjoy it, leave it - if you don't, then you will need to consider the above before thinking about installing.
Keep in mind guys, I drive a Jeep TJ as a daily driver and it has Air - this is one vehicle that probably doesn't need it but I LOVE AIR
I'm also an old guy that has learned to enjoy the luxuries of life and my opinion is not one that is likely shared by the die hard FB owner (Bring on the bells and whistles). This is truly a topic that relies totally on opinion and personal preference - based on the thread starters post, I think he just wants to know if he can install air and how to do it, what parts are interchangeable, and so on - sorry, I can't answer any of those questions

 

PARTS NEEDED:
COMPRESSOR
CONDENSOR... tubes that go to the engine bay
evaporator...
HYDROLIC LINES...
FREON...or those R stuff...

mine engages, but doesn't get cold at all... you need to remove a cap that covers a hole by the EXHAUST MANIFOLD area... then you'll need to add that condenser...

 

IT'S good to have A/C... its part of the luxury this car came with... POWER STEERING TOO... its great to have POWER STEERING ON a 85 and earlier car... some people don't believe me that I have cruise in my car... cuz itz an 85... its really good to have some luxury if your using the RX-7 as your DAILY DRIVER... but if its a RACE ON THE WEEKEND... then that's a different story...

 

Power steering is almost as bad as AC. Removing them both will probobly net you a solid half second or more in the 1/4 mile from the combined gain in horsepower from the removal of the pumps and the huge weight reduction.

 

ok, i can understand A/C, but power steering? jeez these cars are too light to need that. You'd have to be really weak to not be able to steer a FB

 

yeah, with the lame steering ratio and huge steering wheel, i can parallel park my non PS car with one hand. of course, it suck turning corners with one hand, because you have to turn the wheel so much.

 

hehe, when i pulled all the useless crap out of the front of the car, and had the hood off, and took it for a test drive for the first time, it felt like I had power steering because it was just ungodly easy to steer Its awesome, manual steering OWNZ

 

I have all the stuff you want. What are you willing to pay? The compressor mount I have is off of a 13B. The rest of the stuff should work out ok. I havn't removed my condensor yet but I may do that this weekend. Everything else is out and in excellent shape. I believe it needs a recharge thats all.