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68 cutlass dash questions-going from non a/c to a/c dash dilemmas

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Old May 10th, 2013, 02:29 PM
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68 cutlass dash questions-going from non a/c to a/c dash dilemmas

Hi guys I was wondering what type of pain in the rear it is to swap a a/c dash into a non a/c car. The old dash is jacked and the previous owner provided a nice 68 dash pad, but he love the a/c dash. I have the center vent with plastic ducting, and the 2 side vents need the rear backing that the sliders screw to and go to the flexible ducting.

My questions are where do I find the flexible ducting that I will need for this swap, can I use the same heater box, with defrost. Also does anybody remake the rear plastic piece that the vents screw to and the flexible slide over???? I know this is a weird question, but I already have the new dash, and most of he pieces-just need a few parts and some good advice to help put it all back together.....thanks for the help!!!
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Old May 11th, 2013, 08:25 AM
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Originally Posted by Big Mikey
Hi guys I was wondering what type of pain in the rear it is to swap a a/c dash into a non a/c car. The old dash is jacked and the previous owner provided a nice 68 dash pad, but he love the a/c dash. I have the center vent with plastic ducting, and the 2 side vents need the rear backing that the sliders screw to and go to the flexible ducting.

My questions are where do I find the flexible ducting that I will need for this swap, can I use the same heater box, with defrost. Also does anybody remake the rear plastic piece that the vents screw to and the flexible slide over???? I know this is a weird question, but I already have the new dash, and most of he pieces-just need a few parts and some good advice to help put it all back together.....thanks for the help!!!
1969 non-A/C cars without vent windows used the A/C dash pad and had a second set of pull ***** under the dash to direct fresh air to these dash vents.
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Old May 11th, 2013, 08:38 AM
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Ok...but that really leaves me kinda confused. I am using an a/c dash pad in a non a/c car, I haven't seen any place to hook up ducting on the heater box to the extra vents-I do not want to swap out the heater box or make this job more of a headache than it already is. Any good advice is always appreciated!!!
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Old May 11th, 2013, 08:56 AM
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Originally Posted by Big Mikey
Ok...but that really leaves me kinda confused. I am using an a/c dash pad in a non a/c car, I haven't seen any place to hook up ducting on the heater box to the extra vents-I do not want to swap out the heater box or make this job more of a headache than it already is. Any good advice is always appreciated!!!
The vents were not used in 1968, so no, there won't be any place to connect them. If you want them to work, you need to get ALL the parts from the same body style 1969.
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Old May 11th, 2013, 03:54 PM
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In a 69 Cutlass body car a non AC car with an AC pad had plate that was installing in place of the center vent. As a result, there is no ductwork running to the center vent. I don't recall what was done with the side vents.
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Old May 11th, 2013, 04:12 PM
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You might also consider installing an aftermarket AC. An original AC compressor with R134a won't cool as well as an aftermarket unit. I converted the AC in my 91 Buick Estate Way from R12 to R134a. It worked ok, but never top notch.
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Old May 11th, 2013, 10:27 PM
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like "Joe" said, you will have to get the side cowl vents with the dual ***** that go in the side kick panels. the second ***** will direct the air up to the side vents in the dash.

Gene
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Old May 12th, 2013, 05:40 AM
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Why not just install it and have the vents be non-operational? You don't need them as you have the lower vents, and also your wing windows work better for ventilation than the dash vents do anyway. I have an A/C car ('68) and the A/C doesn't work. The air that comes out of the dash vents on a warm day is always warm and doesn't really do anything. It's the wing windows that provide the good ventilation.
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