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52/53/54/55/56 Cadillac Factory Air - Use of in Texas - Discussion

Started by Ronald Draper, September 25, 2010, 12:33:53 AM

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Ronald Draper

52/53/54/55/56 Cadillac Factory Air - Use of in Texas - Discussion

I would like to hear from Cadillac owners that actually use their cars with factory air conditioning in this past summer's Texas heat.

All the good, bad and ugly comments you can provide would be appreciated.

I have hear rumors and half truthes that this a/c system was marginal under the best of conditions.

Things I would like to hear about are the reliability in a trip, getting into a hot parked car and sweating it out waiting for a cool breeze, how stop and go traffic treated you and your car, any mods to increase the cooling, did the vent placement actually cause discomfort to your neck, did the vent nozzles drip on your clothes, conversion to another freon, plus any other topic you can think of that is a/c related to these years of cars?

Also, I included 52 as I remember a fellow that had a 52 convertible and he sent it back to the factory to have a/c installed in it.  I would love to see pictures of the installation from the engine compartment, frame pipe mounting and to the trunk.

Thanks
Ron

Barry Norman

I have seen several 55 Cadillac convertibles advertised with Factory Air. I did not think you could get it on a convertible until '57 (my dad bought the first one he saw ). I have always wondered how the air was delivered into the car . I well remember our 57 ( lasted till "60) being freezing cold. With the summer heat and humidity here in NC, we kept a blanket in the car. i don't remember the blower being as high volume as today's cars , but it seemed to get the job done  !
Barry Norman

P W Allen CLC# 20193

Factory installed A/C was not offered in the early 50's (53 was the first year offered) convertibles, because the evaporator and blower unit was mounted in the trunk in the same space a convertible uses when the top is down. There was simply no room for it. The story about a fellow sending his 52 convertible back to the factory to have A/C installed?? I don't know about that one. Doesn't sound right to me.
Paul
53 Coupe
Twin Turbine

TJ Hopland

I am also guessing that ones memory or impression of how well they worked may have been different back then since there were very few places the average person could experience AC.  I suppose those that owned new Cadillacs at the time likely had a better chance than the rest of us.
StPaul/Mpls, MN USA

73 Eldo convert w/FiTech EFI
80 Eldo Diesel
90 CDV
And other assorted stuff I keep buying for some reason

Dave Ventresca

I don't own an AC car form the 50's but have experienced them. They were very efficient systems (with the old freon) and got quite cold. the ceiling registers were a little bit of a nuisance however. Dave

okccadman

Factory air was first offered on convertibles in 1956 and the cool air is discharged into the passenger compartment through registers in the top of the convertible top well.  I have never used one of these systems or a coupe with package shelf vents but a good friend and fellow club member bought a nice original 1955 Fleetwood this summer in Tulsa, OK and drove it home to Birmingham, AL with cold a/c the whole way.  His passengers also had a blanket to keep the cold air off of them.  It has the roof registers and he said it worked great!
Jim Jordan CLC# 5374
Oklahoma City, OK

55 Series 62 Sedan
56 Series 62 Coupe
56 Fleetwood 75 Derham Limo
59 Fleetwood Sixty Special
66 Fleetwood Brougham
66 Superior Hearse/Ambulance
67 Fleetwood Sixty Special
68 Fleetwood Eldorado
76 Coupe de Ville d'Elegance
90 Brougham
92 Fleetwood Coupe
93 Allante
94 Fleetwood Brougham
02 Eldorado Commemorative Edition

CEC #20099

CEC #20099
In 1969-72 I had a 55 Sdn with factory A/C. I had it rebuilt in NJ, & used it for about 3 yrs, out East & in Chicago. It worked OK, but the evaporator kept freezing up in humid weather. I would have to shut down the compressor & let it thaw out. It would get stuffy in the car, then. This was bad in rainstorms. The roof vents were ok, esp. for the back seat passengers. It wasn`t great.
My present 55 coupe may get an underdash conversion unit, instead.
c.chleboun


Ronald Draper

I saw the 52 advertised in the "H" rag several years ago.  He was selling the car and making a big selling point about it being the first convertible with a/c.

The 56 was moded to prevent evap, freeze up but basically the same system other than condenser and compressor.

57 had dash mounted a/c so any car could have a/c.

Dallas has high heat and high humidity that really takes a toll on any a/c system.  But I am really looking for comments from Dallas drivers.  I figure that given time (hours on the road) most any a/c will cool you down.  Also why the blankets?  Is the minimum cooling too much on a drive?  Do they use blankets in todays cars as well?

I would like to hear from Buick and Olds users of the same basic system.

I remember a fellow discussing his Chrysler New yorker with trunk air and saying it would freeze you to death but his house had no a/c back in those days (he relayed the story to me in 1970).  I only know one fellow that had a 56 New Yorker and he is 86 and sold the car in 1969 so his memory would be fuzzy I would think but I will check with him.

When I was growing up we had a 58 Ford station wagon with fact. a/c.  Dad put a clear plastic curtain across the back seat because it was marginal cooling but as a kid I thought it was great and it kept us kids quiet and not asking the magical question "are we there yet?".  The 64 Impala had Chevy coolpack and was okay for a 4 door but it was not as quiet a car as the Ford was.  My personal experiences with 59 Olds and 60 Pont were excellent and we drove them rather than the Chevy because the a/c was so much better.

Love to hear more comments.

Ron

Jay Friedman

I think '53 was the first year for Cadillac factory a/c.  '52 Cadillacs still had a 6 volt electrical system which would not have been adequate for a/c.  Cadillac changed to a 12 volt system in '53, I would think to a great extent to be able to power an a/c system (which draws lots of amps) but also to eliminate the starting problems encountered with a high compression V8 and only 6 volts to turn the starter.
1949 Cadillac 6107 Club Coupe
1932 Ford V8 Phaeton (restored, not a rod).  Sold
Decatur, Georgia
CLC # 3210, since 1984
"If it won't work, get a bigger hammer."

Wm Link

These were great units, probably overkill in capacity. They were filtered as well, many people do not realize they need to remove the filters and clean them. Dirty filters can cause unit to freeze up due to restricted air flow. I had a black 55 sedan without roof vents (discharge from rear  package tray) I added 12v  'truckers' small oscillating fans above the vents and it was a meat locker! I am parting out a 55 with factory (roof discharge) air if there is an interest in the whole system.

Art Gardner

My 55 sedan had the factory air and worked great for years for me.  At the end, it developed a leak in the compressor and then I sold it.  My current car is a 56 60S and it has the roof air and it works fine here in Georgia.


Art

Ronald Draper

Is anyone using 134 freon in their drivers?  How is the cooling when your in traffic?
Any 55/56 Packard daily drivers that would care to pipe in?

Thanks for the feedback fellows!

Ron

Caddy Wizard

Art Gardner


1955 S60 Fleetwood sedan (now under resto -- has been in paint shop since June 2022!)
1955 S62 Coupe (future show car? 2/3 done)
1958 Eldo Seville (2/3 done)