Technical Adding A/C to ‘63 impala from junkyard

Save your mental state and use the new under dash unit. You will not be sorry.

 

And if you want to take the "not at all traditional, but Im sick of my bum sticking to the vinyl seats" option, I see there are electric air con units available too.

 

Where there is a will, there is a way.

Don't let the easy money route deter you. Learn, adapt, overcome.

 

my '64 SS convertible was 6 years old when i bought it; it had an under-dash setup that was worthless. i took it out and sold it at a swap meet.
dad bought a '62 new and the factory air was an under-dash setup. you had a throttle knob that you had to pull out when you used it!

 

Had a 64 Bonneville that had a under dash unit that worked really good.

But I guess when it's a 100 degrees outside any a/c is better than no a/c.

....

 

Hello,

Back in the old days, if one found a 63 Impala in a junk yard, it would have been ok to buy the complete A/C unit. They were simple removal and install proposition. But, they were popular items when ordering a new Impala two door sedan.

My friend’s dad was in the market for a new car and we took him to several Chevy dealers in Long Beach. He wanted a “spiffy” car with two doors. Now, that both of his sons were teenagers and had their own cars, getting in the back of a family car was not an option. It was the same for my dad’s choice of a daily driver and so called family car. We drove our own cars to a large family gathering, weddings or funerals. So, a two door was the choice of the “old” dads.

He wanted a 1963 Chevy, so we tried to steer him to a 409 with a 4 speed and got laughed down at each dealer. Finally after not buying one with both of us in tow, we left it at that. Then several weeks later, I drove over to their house and low/behold a new light green 63 two door Impala was sitting in the driveway. Immediately, the son grabbed the keys and said we will be right back… Ha!

Several hours later with the A/C on full blast we came back home from a full tour of the teenage hot spots in our area. The salt water coastal bayfront, drive-in restaurant parking lots and down the main drag of the beach towns along the coast. It was ok, because his dad had the 55 Chevy parked on the street in front of his house, if he needed an emergency transportation.

Jnaki

Now, if a junkyard A/C unit was to be put in a hot rod, it would have been fairly easy. But, with the latest crapola involved with all of the wiring, tubing and connections, it is a nightmare. For the cost of a Vintage Air A/C unit, it would be worth it to spend a little to get a lot. Plus, you would still get a rotary motor that would take up little space in your compartment. Back then, the factory used the vertical York compressor and it was front and center on every motor compartment install.

We had one on the 327 powered 1940 Ford Sedan Delivery and the York was a troublesome unit. So, bite the bullet and get a new Vintage Air unit with the small rotary compressor and you will be rather cool… pun intended…YRMV

 

My better half says it's imperative that I have A/C in my '62 Chevy II before the Route 66 anniversary in Tulsa, OK next year so I'm looking at putting a Mark IV under dash unit in with a Vintage Air unit under the hood. I think that's a pretty slick way to go. Should be just as slick for a '63 Impala!

Larry

 

I’ve got an original dealer fit under dash unit in my Merc, it’s the coldest ac I’ve ever had in a car but it’s cost me close to the price of a basic vintage air unit to get it working. Just buy the vintage air one it’ll save yourself a load of hassle and looks pretty much the same.