A/C & Water Pump replacement - 6/2022
2022 was about 'while i'm in here...' with the A/C airbox pulled from having rerouted the EFI wiring harness; decided to move to the next phase: A/C, water pump - which required stripping the accessories (alternator, A/C compressor), grill, radiator, & condenser. Spoke with JeepAir tech support to build out a complete parts list to make sure i didn't miss anything, though i did hit an issue with the hardline connecting the condenser to the receiver/drier & purchased a couple sticks of Vintage Air hardline & an Imperial Tubing Bender from Summit Racing, along with a MasterCool A/C Beadlock crimper & a set of A/C Beadlock repair crimp ferrules from eBay. The Beadlock repair ferrules will allow reuse of the #10 tight radius 90, & i may have been able to reuse the S-curve #8 fitting coming off the condenser, rather than being a new one (not sure, but worth a look if youve got the ferrules). I didn't realize repair ferrules were a thing, til i hit the snag that the new #10 90 from jeepair wouldn't fit & had to figure out an alternative.
Also, i found that my local Autozone will loan vacuum pumps & the compressor pulley tool needed to turn the pulley at first installation to prevent lugging the pump on startup. Also, you'll need something like 3M strip caulk & 2" foam hose wrap, or 2" asphalt/cork hose wrap. I got & tried both - the foam hose wrap was much easier to deal with.
Have done my best to assemble a parts list used for this project: but, given it was assembled from the four winds, use at your own risk.
From BJs Offroad:
- FlowKooler Water Pump - Part# 1781
- Thermostat Housing Gasket - Part# 18-1210-G
- Robert Shaw High Flow 195 degree Thermostat - Part 330-195
- Heater Core - Part# 18-1200
From JeepAir.com/ColdHose.com: Tech support was great!
- Sanden Style SD7H15 Double-V Belt Compressor
- Universal R-134A Hose Kit with Drier and Binary Switch
- Flare Expansion Valve with oil line
- Condenser - 53-7905
- #6 Flare to O-Ring adapter (i don't think i ended up using this)
- #10 90-degree O-ring fitting
- #8 Straight O-ring Fitting R-134A Discharge Port
- #10 Straight O-ring Fitting R-134A Discharge Port (didn't use)
- #10 45-degree O-ring Fitting R-134A Suction Port
- #6 inline splice w/7/16" R-12 or switch port (binary switch connects here)
- 7/16" Female Binary Switch
From Summit Racing:
- Evaporator - FSS-54613
- O-Ring Lubricant - VTA-41117-VUP
- 3-way Bullet Connector - 16-14awg PCO-1882QT
- #6 Vintage Air U-Bend-Em Refrigerant Lines - 12-inch - 12512-VCD
- #8 Vintage Air U-Bend-Em Regrigerant Lines - 12-inch - 12513-VCD
From local HVAC supplier:
- 1/8-inch x 2-inch foam insulation tape
- 3M Strip-Caulk
From Amazon:
- Imperial Stride Tool 370-FHC 3/16", 1/4", 3/8", 1/2", Alum, Copper, Steel Triple Header 180 degree Benders, Silver/Blue
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https://www.amazon.com/Imperial-Stride- ... 9486346611
eBay:
- A/C Beadlock Repair Crimp Ferrules - set of #6, #8, & #10
- MasterCool A/C Hose Crimper 71550
AutoZone (loaner tools):
- vacuum pump
- compressor pulley tool to prime the system prior to startup
accessories - before disassembly for water pump
Water pump bolt cheat sheet
Be careful pulling the radiator: i broke this wire loom retainer, & it became a quest to find another. Ran back to the junkyard GW to pick up one, as i wasn't able to find one anywhere online.
Ready for water pump installation
Water pump & alternator installed; alternator bolts are a puzzle, pay close attention to how the bolts & plates go together; i had to use an exploded parts diagram to get the alternator back on.
vertical measurement of the interior firewall - had seen where others had installed their EFI box there; no way if the A/C box is there. The hoses come in thru the oval hole & bend upwards for a foot or so for connection to the expansion valve & evaporator. Tight quarters.
Horizontal measurement of the interior firewall.
Original Low Side Hose to condenser
Low side Evaporator Hose Connection Comparison - keep & reuse the original tight radius 90 & get a repair crimp from an A/C parts supplier - mine came from eBay.
Front side of condenser:
NOte the #8 s-bent hardline: used a couple pieces of 1" aluminum angle to secure it w/a rubber insulated retainer
Back side of condenser, showing the #6 s-bent hardline to the receiver/drier:
Condenser installed - given its construction, i couldn't use the original condenser to receiver/drier connection on top - is where the custom bent vintage air hardline from Summit came in, but i hadn't realized that repair Beadlock ferrules were a thing yet - worth seeing if you could reuse the hardline fitting & re-crimp to a new hose.
MasterCool A/C hose crimper - the directions call for compression to the line marked on the housing; that resulted in a few connections leaking; recommend you crimp til it bottoms out, as we had to work our way thru a few leaks/re-crimps that resulted in deciding to re-crimp everything to the max. No more leaks after that.
A/C airbox cracked open; note the goo used to seal the lid, the tight fit & asplalt/cork hose wrap. I used 3M strip caulk to seal the lid & foam hose wrap from the local A/C supply hose - think it was 2" wide x 30ft long. You'll use every bit.
Original evaporator with 30 years of dirt - looks like originally there was a thin foam filter that's disintegrated
New evaporator w/thermistor installed
Original hoses laid out w/corresponding fittings (hadn't figured out yet, that i couldn't use the straight fitting at the bottom of the pic, or that i'd need to keep & reuse the #10 tight radius 90
Schrader valve in new evaporator threw me off! Is there to maintain vacuum on new part - remove for installation...
New hoses crimped - hint: i installed them on the Jeep, clocked them correctly, used a sharpie to mark the joints for alignment, & pulled them off for crimping in the shop
Success!
All done!
A/C Connections - note:
Note the 3-way bullet connector (just off the top right corner of the battery) - was the cleanest i could come up with: brings together the A/C compressor clutch power source, the A/C compressor clutch, & the EFI A/C input
Binary switch connection