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re: GT6+ question -- A/C ??

To: Triumphs@autox.team.net, jones_c@ociweb.com
Subject: re: GT6+ question -- A/C ??
From: "William Hooper" <rotoflex@hotmail.com>
Date: Mon, 29 May 2000 07:47:43 GMT
There's no mention of factory A/C option in any parts manuals that I've 
seen.  All the GT6's that came from the dealer with A/C (that I've seen) 
were aftermarket installations that the local dealer had done before selling 
the new car.  There was usually a little sticker somewhere on an interior 
A/C component for "Auto Air of Squeedunk" or whatever.

It may be that there was some supplier to aftermarket A/C firms which made 
"kits" for GT6's.  Most installations I can think of were identical.

A condensor (radiator-looking thing) about 1/3 the height of the radiator, 
mounted in front of the radiator (let's cut down some of the radiator area 
from a British sports car in the US, to see if things can get more 
interesting!)

A compressor & an idler pulley.  The idler pulley was mounted on a bracket 
which was fabricated to fit in the holes where the front engine lift eye 
originally was mounted.

An evaporator - mounted inside the car, behind a very basic sort of thick 
black plastic fascia that was vinyl-grained.  The whole shebang was mounted 
where the passenger side parcel shelf would have been.  Two holes of varying 
artfulness were punched through the firewall in the passenger-side footwell 
for the lines.  The fascia was L-shaped,about as high as the parcel shelf 
opening, and continued beneath the evaporator for about a foot or so.

Whatever that thing is; I can't think of the name of it - it's a little 
cylinder with a sight glass on top, goes in the engine compartment.

A replacement *metal* cooling fan behind the radiator.  I have forgotten how 
many blades.

A *little* control panel: black, plastic, about 3" wide by 2" high, with two 
eentsy rotary switches, knobs about 3/4" dia.  One knob for fan speed, one 
for temp.  The panel was just a little piece of plastic front & a bit of a 
lip to hang beneath the driver's side of the fascia crash pad.

A few more of those ball-type outlet vents already used in the GT-6:  2 more 
in fascia over the evaporator, one in a wire bracket hanging naked in one of 
the corners (can't remember if left or right) beneath the driver's side 
parcel shelf.

Bunches more of the same diameter hose & those 'Y' things used in the stock 
ventilation system.  The A/C was tied into the existing ventilation system's 
dash vents in some baffling design.

In the gulf coast states, the A/C lowered the summer GT6 cabin temperature 
from about 8,000 degrees to about 6,000 degrees with a little breeze blowing 
on your knee.

It seems like it should not be hard for a local A/C shop to help you 
assemble an aftermarket A/C for you GT6 which *very closely* resembles a 
vintage one.  It may even work better, with any amazing new advances in A/C 
technology (but I doubt it, since nothing seems to have surpassed the A/C in 
Impalas & Chryslers of the late '60's & early '70s - you cannot understand 
unless you were there, or were a mastodon frozen in the tundra somewhere, 
then you'd understand).  Most of the parts I would think would be off the 
shelf, but you'd need to come up with some additional vents from a scuttled 
GT6.

I don't know what you'd do about the metal fan.

I removed the A/C from my GT6 (second owner) a long time ago; it had "dealer 
A/C".  Poking through the boxes recently, I found that most of it was still 
there, & thought about re-installing & upgrading some bits - then found that 
the bracket & idler pulley were missing.  That's a job for an A/C shop that 
can fabricate such things.



Original message follows:
==============================
I'm new to the list, and am the second owner of a 1969 GT6+. I hope I'm
not offending purists with this question, but does anyone know if A/C
was ever an option on the GT6+, and more appropriately, is there an
aftermarket kit small enough and economical enough to be able fit a Gt6?
I haven't been able to find any information, and the couple of A/C shops
I've asked have no idea.


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