I was wondering if anyone had all the information needed in order to take a/c out of my car. I live in ny and dont really need it. I got t-tops and it never really gets hot anyways. I mean it works but im not gonna use it and i would prefer just to get rid of it. Thanks

 

Ditto! and for the same reason..... if it ever gets hot enough I pop the tops! I was lookin at the whole set-up and I'm not sure where to start. I'm gonna put the A/C delete pully in as well as the A.I.R delete pully to aid in my header install and get rid of s**t I don't need..... I figure that this is the best place to ask to find out how to pull the whole works. I've seen what it takes to pull the A.I.R. system pretty simple from the looks of it, but no one has detailed how they pulled their A/C maybe there's a link out there???

 

yeah i got the belt setup for the car without the a/c just wanna know how and what i need to remove and what i need to look out for. Thanks for any help.

 

Simple process once you start tearing into it. I did it without directions.

AC:

Have the system properly discharged.

Take the belt off.

Remove the AC compressor and hoses.

Next start unbolting all your fittings that the hoses attach to. There'll be a few screws that hold the hardlines onto the sheet metal near the sub frame.

You can choose to leave the condensor in front of the radiator or pull it out. I yanked mine out. To pull that out I went ahead and unhooked the fans, drain coolant, removed radiator holddowns, and hoses to the radiator. Pull the radiator out of the way and pull the condenser out. Reinstall the radiator.

Next step is to start removing into the parts by the firewall. Basically you'll be unbolting most the stuff in the area. You'll be removing the accumulator (aluminum canister) and unplugging the connections around it first.

I unhooked all the connections on the box next (power/ground to blower and the resistor) and removed the upper bolts for the heater box. There should be 3 or 4 on the top the fourth is partly hidden by the heater core hoses. It's a stud with a nut you have to remove on the right corner of the box. Good luck on that it usually rusts up bad.

I then unbolt'd the blower, removed it, and removed the upper half of the box. That let me pull the evaporator out of the box.

The lower 2 attachments for the heater box are within the car itself. You'll have to pull the carpet back a little bit on the passenger side to see them better on the firewall. There are several there but you only need to remove 2 of them to pull the box out. Their the ones with a large metal washer and some rubber washers. I did trial and error till I removed the right ones.

After that the I was able to yank the box off the firewall.

Reassembly is fairly easy. If you're using a 1LE box you can not use your AC fan unless you follow the spacer instructions on this site. Basically the AC fan is about 1" or so longer than the Non AC. One member used weather stripping to provide the extra space needed. If you go that route you'll have to figure out how to hook up the blower cooling hose to the 1LE box. The AC box had a fitting for the hose to slip on the new 1LE box does not on the box itself it has a plastic fitting that's attached to box. So you're project could be more complicated if you're missing that. The AC resistor will bolt up to the 1LE box, you might have to clearance to the box a little to get it to fit in the hole.

Either way if using the 1LE or AC blower I would still use the AC resistor and harness. If you use the 1LE blower you might have to modifiy the harness a little bit. The 1LE blowers used a 1 prong (power) and a ground to the blower plate. Your AC harness may have this earlier style which should then just bolt up or may be a 2 prong connector. Of which mine had a 2 prong, which the purple wire was the power and the other is the ground. So a new connector on the purple wire and grounding out the blower plate with the other fixed the problem.

If you want to do a true 1LE conversion you'll be chopping up the wires a little bit to use the non ac resistor and harness, which can get a little complicated.

As for the added relay you can leave that if you want it won't hurt anything. The AC motors had a 4 speed setting while the Non-AC had a 3 speed.

So if you get the box from a JY:

Be sure to get the entire thing: blower, wheel, box, and the resistor if you want to use it instead of the AC one.

Lots of people make the mistake of just grabbing the box and leaving the blower and wheel. A lifetime warranty version of the blower and wheel can be purchased from parts stores but look to shell out $20 for the blower and another $20 for the wheel.

I'm in the process of building some fiberglass 1LE boxes. It's been a slow going project.


You'll need to install your new pulley, radiator again... etc.

As for AIR removal:

Basically you'll be unhooking the Air tube connection hoses and using cap ends to close them off. You don't want to leave them open to vent out under the hood.

The pump itself is bolted under the AC compressor. Remove the pump and other attachments. I tied my electrical connections back instead of cutting them incase I wanted to ever convert back. You can use the SMOG delete pulley or use a smaller serpentine belt. https://www.thirdgen.org/newdesign/t...rpentine.shtml

Don't forget to delete or cap off the Lines coming from the Cat(s) also.

You can find more information from https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...hreadid=228712

That being said I might have left something out, but I'm tired of typing now.

 

SWEEEEET!!!! THANKS FIRETURD350 that pretty much says it all! Couple of questions for ya though......
I can still leave the A/C box on the firewall can't I? I realize that it won't have the same purpose but do I have to take the whole thing off??? If I understand correctly, I will only have 3 speeds on my interior heater fan right? I don't find that a big deal as long as it works it is the Great White North.... I guess I'll have to plug some holes on the original box if I leave it.... That shouldn't be a problem. I ask because as far as I can tell the 1LE option was pretty rare up here and finding parts is pretty hard in the junk yard. The same could be said about any third gen around here....
Thanks Once Again.... I love this site!

 

Yeah, I guess you could always just remove the evaporator (don't need it anymore, it'll be added weight now) and plug up the holes on the box itself. Well the boxes are just called 1LE heater boxes, but actually that's just the fancy name for it. Any 3rd gen car without AC has the desired box, not just the 1LE option cars. 1LE heater boxes makes them sound more High performance so sellers have no problem getting $75 to $150 out of a metal shell on Ebay.

If you just plug your holes you'll reassemble the AC box again and you will beable to retain the 4 speed AC blower, provided you do not delete your relay. The 3 speed blowers were just in the Non AC units.

Usually the idea behind the AC delete is less weight and more free space for changing spark plugs, that's why everyone uses the other box. It makes getting to the #8 plug a little easier.

Hopefully in the near future I will beable to offer a cheap alternative to these high priced boxes for all us fellow thirdgen owners.

 

Thanks man!!! All that info really helps a Guy out. I'll be tackling this job in the next few days as long as it warms up alittle.
Funny you can't find this kinda info anywhere else.......... I'll let you know how everything turns out!

 

Umm....I live in NY too...Summers here average 90 degrees Not hot enough for you?

 

yeah i mean that is warm i guess. But with the t-tops off and windows down its def bearable not enough where i think i need the a/c

 

yeah.. but tha bad thing is, what ya gonna do when it rains? you cant roll you windows down, or take the tops off

 

Crack the windows a little bit and turn to vent with the motor in high speed. :-)

That's what I use to do around here. Only time I would ever run the AC would be if my father or GF was with me. They both seem to have the same ability of bitching until they finally get their way.

 

lol.. well on my camaro, if i crack the windows, some how water seems to pour in, so that idea is X'd for me. but at least the vent still works!

 

Hey guys..... I started pulling everything out today and noticed that there are quite a few extra wires hangin around??? Obviously.......
The question is which to keep around? I know that they are good for nothin at this point right?, but what do I do with them???
I pulled the smog A.I.R pump and I have 2 plugs that were goin to the diverter valve...
2 plugs that went into the AC compressor and 2 plugs that went in around the condensor? (AC can) by the firewall.....
I don't feel comfortable cutting them all off until I know better! Right now I'm at a standstill....
Thanks

 

well if you dont plan on using any of that stuff anymore, you would be safe cuttin them off. but if you want to do it the right way, trace the wire to its source, and disconnect it there.

 

If I cut them back will I run into problems with shorting any systems? Most of this stuff is run by the ECM right? By the way...... now that I've removed most of this stuff and it is run by the ECM am I gonna start throwing codes? I hate that little light!

 

you shouldnt have any shorting problems. just make sure you tape the ends of any cut wires, just as another precautionary. If you took off the AIR, you may throw a code, but i didnt, but i also had a 305 with a quad, but you should be ok!

 

I would probably recommend you just zip tie the wires back hidden inside the conduct if possible. That way if for some reason you ever decide to switch back or *** forbid sell the car you won't have to worry about figuring how all the different wires hooked up and finding the proper connectors for them.

 

Thanks guys....... Not sure which way I will go just yet, probably the safe route and zip ties....... we'll see what it looks like
I've looked at the fabrication page and noticed that you've (fireturd350) been making the fiberglass air box(looks good by the way). I was planning on just removing the AC and leaving the airbox but the more I look at it the more I want to pull it outta there to really clean it up.....
Without getting that far I've gotta ask..... I've seen others just cover up the holes left by the AC box and that's what I was thinking of doing, but looking at the pics on the fab page I would think that the fan blows through it. Am I on the right track? If that's so it looks like I'll have to go with the non-AC air box.

 

It depends on what opening you're talking about. The circle by the blower motor wheel is for the incoming air. The rectangle cut area is for the outgoing (into the cabin). In the mean time the blower pushes air across the box into the rectangle opening. That's how the incoming air charge is cooled by the Air Conditioning (it passes through the evaporator inside the AC box). If you plugged the holes up so you do not have any major leaks on the box itself it should work in theory. Of course you'll have a fairly long slot you'll have to fix up nice and pretty (from where the old evaporator slide into the box).

You do not want to cover up the holes on the firewall if you want your vents and heater to still work.

 

Like I said earlier there isn't any reason why you couldn't keep the AC box if you wanted to take the time to plug the holes in it. But most people ditch the AC box for a AC delete box since it takes up a lot less space and sits closer to the firewall making it a little easier to reach the back spark plugs. Course that means you'll have to either buy the new box, blower motor (3 speed), and wheel. You could also make a spacer to use your current 4 speed motor and wheel on the new AC delete box. In which case you would just need an AC delete box and a custom spacer (which some members have even used weather stripping).

 

Why would you completly remove the rad. Just undo the top mounting piece, which is the fan piece and jucs pull it back to get to the condensor. Thats all I did when I pulled mine.

 

If you can get it to work that way, that's great. I was just referring to my removal step by step so I wouldn't leave out as many steps. I have 2 12" permacool electric fans on the back, a 10" permacool on the front, and a large 28k+ GW trans cooler under the front fan which are all connected on nylon ties or zip ties. Not to mention a 31" X 19" GM radiator in place of my stocker, which the tanks are so big it had to be pressed into location. So there wasn't really an option of tilting the radiator to slide the condensor out for me at least.

 

Question about this 4 speed motor and different size fan basket.......
and yes I'm still into this project!
I was gonna go with the Non A/C box I found one through a local guy although it's not in my possession yet, but I don't really know what is meant by a "4 speed" fan motor??? My fan control on the dash board only has three speeds....... did the A/C have a higher speed fan setting? I've never used it (the A/C) cause it never worked from the begining over 10 years ago........
I don't think that it should be a problem to shim the air box if you can do it with weather stripping. I would do this to keep the 4 speed motor right?
I guess I'm trying to figure out the pros and cons with this conversion..... Straight swap the non A/C box in (with 3 speeds right?) or transfer over the 4 speed motor and basket? Does the wiring become complicated.......?
I just can't believe how much room you save with this conversion..... once I saw the non A/C box I had to have it!!!

 

Yes to my knowledge the AC fans have 4 speeds. The final speed being faster than the highest on the Non AC fans. Yes you could shim the fan with weatherstripping other members have done this and have had excellent luck with it.

They should have slightly different bolt patterns but that could be fixed with the weatherstripping.

For the final speed you need the added relay (which you should already have if you have AC now). You should beable to use your AC resistor in the non AC box. That way you should beable to use your full AC wiring harness with little to no modification.

 

When I did mine I just switched the fan baskets. I kept my fan motor(AC box) and swapped the fan basket (non AC box) onto my old fan motor. Works fine and didn't have to re-wire anything or shim the non AC box.

 

Hey, im new here and wanted to know if it different for the the non serpentine belt 305 tpi? I wanna tackle this this weekend and wanted to also know if there is anything else needed or could i just take it out without having to replace anything?

 

Thanks '350/transporter for the info I'll have to dig deeper into this job and get this airbox into my hands...... I appreciate everything you've done for me and all the info I've got here!
I'll let you know how things work out, probably ask more questions along the way heheh!

 

Also, just wanted to know what i would need after i take the a/c out. Would i just need a no a/c airbox(is that the correct term) and no a/c control unit. Gotta call the junkyard 2day and find out if they have them, just wanted to know the correct terms and if i need anything else.

 

someone else asked this question (or a similar one) before, and I'm pretty sure that this box also provides heat, so you can't remove it w/o losing your heating system...please correct me if I'm wrong, thanks

 

Yes, that box contains the blower motor that pushes the air for the AC, vent, and heater. I believe we have already solved the problem in PM'ing. Solution: Duct tape over the slot the evaporator came out from until the new box arrives. That should allow the box to work temporary.

Also make sure to pull the NON-AC blower and wheel, because your AC blower has a different bolt pattern and longer wheel. You could use the weatherstripping trick to keep the old blower if you wanted. Getting the wiring harness would be a good idea too if you plan on using the Non-AC blower.

 

Well I finally did it! Got my 1LE heater box but was confused about some of the different wiring.... I was gonna just splice in the matching colors and be done with it, but that bugged me cause I'll lose the 4th speed and really didn't wanna hack up my wires. So this is what I did.
I used my A/C blower cause I couldn't be sure that the 1LE blower worked. I couldn't use the 1LE "Hampster cage" cause the motor shaft was still too long and part of the fan would be recessed behind the fire wall. So I shimmed the motor from the box with plexy glass so that the A/C hampster cage fits level with the firewall.
As for the wires that connect towards the right side of the heater box (Sorry I'm not sure what thy are called), they must have something to do with the speed of the blower motor cause the non A/C box has 3 wires and the A/C box has 5. Anyways I took the "Resistor" off the A/C box and fitted it into the 1LE box. In this way I could keep all my original wiring and just plug them back in. Hopefully everything works as it did in the first place. I'll have to see once everything is buttoned up. Hope this works! Tell me what you think!!!

 

you just live with it

same as here in central IL its been in 90s and dry as hell no rain for a few months, sun beating down FULL force hot as %$#!@!

you just live with it

a/c never works

its rare to see anything with a/c that still works

just doesnt happen, a/c is something that works for a few years just after being new, then its junk after that and is removed, in 99% of the vehicles around here anyways

i plan on swapping non a/c boxes into the 82 and i want to convert to non a/c in the 81 c-10 i have too, can actually find non a/c trucks for parts at least my neighbor has a 79 shortfleet k-10 thats factory non a/c, ive had 10 or 12 trucks with fact non a/c, cars without a/c like just dont exist, at all,
its crazy,



good luck

 

I would just like to let everyone out there know that fireturd350 is the man!!! He was a great help with my A/C delete and I couldn't have done it with out him!!!
Thanks to eveyone else out there who helped along the way. I love this website and figured some props were due.........

 

I'd like to say the same aswell, he help me out aswell. You da man!!

 

Just thought that I would catch everyone up on this one....... I was kinda confused about the different wiring harness (or plugs) on the 1LE box this is what I did!
I transfered the resisters from my original A/C box into the 1LE box...... no problem there. In this way I could use the original wires from my car. I used the 4 speed motor from my original A/C system and the basket as well! To do this I had to make a spacer to distance the motor and basket away from the firewall because the 1LE box isn't as thick as the A/C box. I used plexy-glass, but I think that you could use just about anything. The metal screws grounded the motor when they bit into the metal on the 1LE box. I think that the only wire that didn't get hooked back up was the one goin to the condensor???

 

Sorry guys, it was almost a double post...... guess I got a pic in.

 

Looks like a very nice install. I believe the black wire on the 2 connectors to the blower is the ground at least on the later AC designs. The older motor (non AC one) I have only have one connector for power and are grounded through a ground strap (small wire) to the firewall.

 

you notice anything when u deleted your a/c? i know it removes a good amount of weight

 

New here, but i follow firebird's guide lines and got it done all correctly. Got the no a/c airbox at a junkyard for $5, along with motor and wheel. Saved alot of space, made the header install way easier, and just look better all around. Thanks Firebird350.

 

this might be a VERY stupid question...but when you delete your AC can u still use defrost? cause here in seattle it gets mighty cold in the winter

 

Yes, you can use the heater/ defrost/ vent....... everything is pretty much the same one box is just thicker on the engine side of the firewall

 

nice thank u very much what is this "box" you are speaking about any1 have a pic? im about to do this monday and i dont wana mess it up, even tho im sure u really cant..

 

does anyone have an idea at what kinda belt im guna need? because once i delete the a/c pulley, the pulley directly under it (not sure which it is) heres a pic...to show what im talking about