Adding A/C

General discussion about our beloved Tercel 4WD cars
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Devin
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Joined: Sun Oct 03, 2010 4:08 pm
My tercel:: 1985 SR5
Location: Wheat Ridge, CO

Adding A/C

Post by Devin »

I really need A/C in my car. I can get by ok but my soon to be wife is not as willing to sweat it out. Not to mention sticking a baby in the backseat. My Tercel never had A/C but I am wondering how hard it would be to pull the whole A/C system off a junkyard car and put it on mine? I know that even then, I would have to convert it to the new gas. Has anyone ever attempted this? Does the aftermarket have anything available?
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Petros
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My tercel:: '84 Tercel4wd w/extensive mods
Location: Arlington WA USA

Re: Adding A/C

Post by Petros »

I have done that on a T4wd I got locally (in Seattle) that did not have A/C, but delivered to my daughter in Austin TX. She really wanted the a/c. I had several A/C units from parts cars, so I installed all the comments, no problem. It was all simple bolt in, was actually easier than I anticipated. than I took it to a local a/c place to install new seals, check for leaks (and fix if necessary) and than charge it up.

you will need the compressor and mount, belt tentioner, double front pulley, the condenser and dryer, all the hoses, and the evaporator unit with the controller assembly for under the dash (it replaces a section of duct between the blower and the heater box). and the switch that is mounted on the center heater control console. there is also a little widget for the carb that speeds up the idle when the a/c is engaged, but I just set the idle high and left that off. it can be done, but it is best to have a donor car to get all the brackets, mounts and screws, as well as the major components, but I managed without a whole car since I had scrapped the parts cars years before.
'87 Tercel 4wd SR5 (current engine swap project)
'84 Tercel 4wd (daily driver, with on going mods)
'92 Mazda MPV 4wd (wife's daily driver)
'85 Tercel 4wd DLX auto(daughter's daily driver)
'01 Honda Civic (other daughter's daily driver)
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splatterdog
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Location: Minnesota, USA

Re: Adding A/C

Post by splatterdog »

I thought the drivers side motor mount bracket was different for ac also.

Try to find some R12 for it for best performance.
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rer233
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My tercel:: Multiple

Re: Adding A/C

Post by rer233 »

It is. As Petros noted, you pretty much need a donor car to successfully do the conversion.
if it aint there, there's a good chance it won't break!
83 SR5 Silver/Blue (Snowmobile/work beater)-totaled but drivable
85 SR5 Blue
88 SR5 White (the 'good' one)-not anymore-totaled
87 fwd silver wagon a/t
87 4wd dx Cream (a/t- not anymore- now m/t)
Devin
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Posts: 90
Joined: Sun Oct 03, 2010 4:08 pm
My tercel:: 1985 SR5
Location: Wheat Ridge, CO

Re: Adding A/C

Post by Devin »

Thanks for the replies. Petros, did you have to convert it to r-134? If so, what did that consist of?
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splatterdog
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Re: Adding A/C

Post by splatterdog »

It is best to keep an R12 system R12. A proper retrofit is rather involved. Some just jam R134 and some oil in. This can work ok, but usually that's on bigger cars with condensers as big as the entire front of a T4, that can deal with a small loss of efficiency. Properly done involves thoroughly flushing the system with really expensive solvent, replacing all O-rings and the receiver/drier. Maybe new hoses, although I've read a seasoned R12 hose can resist leakage thru the inner liner. Sometimes additional parts may be needed like pressure switches with different specs or even a bigger/higher efficiency condenser.

Yes R12 can be expensive. It can be found for much less if you look. I found an unopened 30 lb'er at a garage sale for $100. Craigslist frequently has deals. Demand continues to drop as the cars that use it are disappearing. Street rods and other classics usually have R134 now because the new chrome/polished compressors and custom systems are designed for it.

Toyota or field engineered? My money is on Toyota.

Could be worse. Had a 09 Nissan Rogue last fall that needed a blower motor and the AC evaporator replaced. It landed at about $1700! I hate dash pulls..
teranfirbt
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My tercel:: '86 SR5 4WD, 5AFE, lifted rear, 195/70/14 tires
Location: Seattle, WA

Re: Adding A/C

Post by teranfirbt »

I've been running evirosafe industrial in my AC, it's a direct* drop in for R12 and cools better than R134a.
*legally you have to covert to R134, but that really just means installing the correct fittings.
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irowiki
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Location: Farmington, NM

Re: Adding A/C

Post by irowiki »

I had my 87 Tercel converted by Midas, and they botched it real good, put the ports on the wrong side, it works great except when the temp goes above 95.

My 92 Camry was also converted by Midas, and it works excellent, like a champ, it can be 100 degrees out and the AC works just as well as if it were 80. I think that might be more because Toyota knew the conversion was coming and designed it for both 12 and 134.
Former Tercel Enthusiast (not a practical family car anymore but they still have a place in my heart)

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