How much horsepower do you gain if you remove the air conditioning? Im trying to find cheap ways to make horsepower, i dont have a lot of money cuz i make MINIMUM WAGE!!

 

I guess i should tell you what i already have. I have a 1986 T/A WS6 with a "new rebuilt" 350 TPI. I also have:

-Mild Cam (268* i think)
-Custom Chip
-Magnaflow muffler (2 1/2'')
-High Flow cat.
-180* thermostat

Thanks!

 

maybe a couple hundred extra watts of power if there is alot of friction in the idler pulley. Honestly, though, most people just take it out either to clean up the engine compartment or because it no longer functions.

 

I think the power steering pump has more static parasitic load than the idler on the AC compressor hub. You might gain a little performance from the weight reduction, but you'll remove less total weight than the equivalent in six gallons of gasoline (about 40 pounds). If you want to test yout theory, hop on a chassis dyno and remove the belt between runs. If you have converted to the single poly-V belt like some have, you'll add back an equal amount of friction in the idler on the tensioner, which is still a negligible load. In other words, beyond any weight savings, it isn't a performance enhancing modification. Just like removing the A.I.R. pump doesn't help power output one bit. The only gains are six fewer pounds and more space in the engien compartment. On a really bad day, the A.I.R. pump might suck 1½-2 HP at peak engine RPM - maybe.

Instead of ripping out the AC, change to synthetic lubricants for a definite gain in power, not just a "maybe". Or for a real gain, try tweaking some EPROM parameters to get the mixture and timing optimal for your engine.

 

Hot Rod magazine had an article on that a few years ago i think it said about 5 horsepower per belt driven acc. But if you have a modified motor I would think it would be alot less horsepower gain. The benifit would be making your car lighter but you shouldnt stop at the ac. compressor, that alone wont help much. You can strip the whole ac system, power steering all carpet & insulation, stereo, etc. maybe you could lose about 200 lbs, but is your car going to be as enjoyable to drive? I didnt see headers on your list of mods, they would be a big benifit, better flow and lighter then manifolds.

 

performance minded people don't remove ac for horsepower, they remove ac for weight. i think it's 65lbs off the front end? compressor, a/c box, condensor...thats alotta weight.

parasitic powerloss is minimal.

 

Im thinking about getting headers as soon as i finish my new stereo system. I thought about getting a kit from summit racing. Its the Edelbrock kit #EDL-6872. It comes with all the things i need to put them in including an o2 censor. Would this be a good kind of headers to get? Here's a link for them: Edelbrock Headers Thanks for all the replys.

 

I have those on my 88 Formula 350 and the only thing i dont like is that they are not ceramic coated.

 

Ditching the A/C is not going to do a thing for you in the real world except make it very uncomfortable in the car come summertime. If the car was built for the track thats a different story. If it is a fun street car/daily driver vehicle keep the A/C....later..

 

Yea the ac removal is not worth the effort and is nice to have while sitting in the staging lanes in 100* weather only person on the track with windows up. Headders will reduce about 25 pounds and the gain in flow is worth the money to most people, I personally dont care for them. Vaders suggestion about changing all oil's to synthetic is worth real power if you change all of the fluids/oil's over. Roller tip rockers are worth a few extra HP even if there only 1.5 ratio the reduction in friction is worth at least 15hp, 1.6 ratio for $20 more bring out an avrage of 30hp gain, I noticed quite a difference when I swapped my stockers for the Comp's especially between 3-6k.

 

lol, i didn't know there were tracks that allowed you to run a/c, my track doesn't. And it's plenty comfortable in the summer without the ****. When did a/c become hard to remove?

 

 

usually 1.6rr change lift to be about equal to two cams up in the series/line (ie: xe268 would go to xe284) but thats just a general rule of thumb, no hard evidence. If you have you entire setup ready and matched for a 284 and you have a 268, you might notice 20-30hp, but why bother? why not just buy the cam that gives the lift you want with 1.5's?

 

It isn't really the extra lift that adds hp but rather the increased duration. That's why 1.6 rockers on add 5 or so hp, whereas a cam will do a lot more due to the extra duration.

 

I have my AIR pump removed and my entire A/C system except for the evaporator and compressor. I'd like to find an A/C delete setup so I can get rid of both those things for less weight. I don't mind driving and sweating at the same time. I like the fact my engine bay has more room and because there is no condenser, the radiator gets even more airflow and the engine runs a lot cooler.

As far as headers go I recently purchased Edelbrock set #6876 for my 91 Formula 350. I haven't installed it yet though but I did take one manifold out to compare weight and the header set will not only help with the better airflow but also the fact it weighs considerably less.

P.S. I'd rather not have to pay for an A/C delete airbox to cover the hole in the firewall where the evaporator is so if there's anyone in here that has done it another way, plz let me know. thanx.