Do you need AC in the PNW?
 

I'm wondering if I will need AC in my FD when I move to WA. I heard it is wet all the time, so having AC might be nice for the moisture reduction, but it will be garage kept and will not be a daily driver. My FD has all of the components for AC, but it is currently not charged and working. Do you guys from the PNW regularly use AC in your cars, or would you be fine without it?

Its nice to have. Not absolutely mandatory, but If I had a choice, I would want it.

^ I second that notion. I don't use it all the time but if it does get hot or I take the car to a driving event or something it's nice to cruise home with the A/C on. Like, real nice. A real added bonus as you mentioned is the moisture reduction for the defrost/defog. If you only drive it when it's sunny, then not a big issue. But when I drive in the rain or cold, my windows fog up a ton until I put the A/C on. As mentioned above, not mandatory, but it's one of the little niceties that makes the car more enjoyable.

If you have the components already, maybe just spend a while up here as the car is, and see if you feel charging the system is necessary after that.

its not as needed on the west side of WA in the seattle area, but there are still plenty of days in the 80s+ in summer, the FD is quite the armpit of a car, and seems to heat up excessivly inside like all other rotarys.

i ended up putting mine back in and am glad!

You are absolutely right that the FD cabin gets wayyy hotter than any other car I've ever been in. I've put a sound/heat barrier around the most vital parts of the cabin and it has reduced the cabin temps significantly. I'm going to give it some time and decide if I need it or not, but you guys have had some good input. I've had no AC in some hot climates and it was absolutely miserable, but WA seems to have much cooler temps.

It can get pretty damn hot in the summer, plus these cars are known for excessive heat transfer through the transmission tunnel. I'm looking to retrofit some sort of electric AC (prius) system in my FC.

You should be able to pick up a whole used system and replace all the orings and get a reman compressor,and a new dryer, and convert it to run an r12 alternative, or 134a

107 projected in central Washington on Thursday if that helps

Unfortunately, I converted to a side mount alternator on my peripheral port. Still, I have a friend with a full set-up that I may commandeer to mock up a compressor bracket on the exhaust side.

Western Washington is MILD

I use AC full time in the winter for my daily driver, keeps the windshield clear.

The RX-7 is for nice days. I don't even have operational HVAC controls and bypass the coolant past the heater core.

In the summer it gets a little warm inside the car but I keep the windows down, it's fine.

In the winter it gets a little warm inside the car but I keep the windows down, it's fine. :)

The RX-7 is built for speed, not comfort.

Central and Eastern WA.... AC is a must-have in my opinion.

As for electric AC, the factory AC is probably in the 2-3 ton capacity at cruise rpm. This may seem high, but automotive AC systems are designed to bring a small, terribly insulated, area (car interior) down to cool temps extremely quickly. The best 12v automotive AC system I have found so far is the rencool, but it is expensive.

Hey I saw you sold your FD, I always saw your posts around, and just wanted to say thanks, more than once they had some good advice and perspective on topics.

Do you do UTVs also? I think I saw perhaps a YXZ in the for sale photo off in the corner?

Thanks for being so helpful when you had info to contribute!

I have clear memories of intentionally removing the A/C from my FBs and then being stuck in rush hour traffic on 405 in the middle of August with the fan only capable of blowing hot air back at me on a daily basis. Windows wont do a bit of good as you are inching along in traffic. After those cars, I swore, never again. A/C stays.

An A/C system also works as a dehumidifier, which really helps on crazy rainy days to keep the windows from fogging up. Something else to think about. In modern cars, the A/C system is regularly used even with the heater on to keep humidity in check. That is definitely something you will hit here.