So, I gots a situation. I have a 1988 Chevy Van which was bought from Mark III brand new, and my family’s owned it since then. Right now, it has the standard Chevy AC system under the hood (adapted to R134A, of course) and Mark III had attached some AC lines to the system which ran to the back of the van, to another radiator that is supposed to cool the back of the van.

But, well, not only is the front AC ineffective, but the rear AC simply doesn’t work. So, after a lot of brainstorming and sweating my way around in the van, I’ve decided that it would be easiest to have someone install an entirely new AC system in the van, one that cools both the front and the rear.

Thing is, I don’t know if that’s possible. Would it be possible to install a new, modern air conditioning system in my van, with an attached unit in the rear that also cools the back end of the van? Now, the van never had rear heating, and I’m okay with that. I just need rear AC, because it is a LARGE vehicle and the back end gets HOT in the summer.

Anyway, do you guys know a good place or method to do this? I know about vintage air and classic car air, but they seem to be focused on installing AC on older cars that never had it to begin with, and a trip to Texas would be a long one, but… well, I guess I'll have to if there's no option closer to maryland.

I would also prefer to use the original controls and vents, though I would be fine with maybe replacing the vents or controls as long as everything goes where it should, cause I would imagine the control levers for the original AC may not want to talk to a newer system.

Here's some random pictures of the van and its rear AC so you can kinda get an idea of what's going on...


van



This is the old fan, but I don't think I remembered to take a picture of the newer one- it's supposed to succ the air through the filter and blow it upwards into the vents but it doesn't seem to achieve much

And there's the cover

and the vents!

And the whole thingy



The main controls



and the rear fan speed dial!

and now, I'm probably gonna go to bed since it's 2 AM

 

Hi,

I have the same setup in my 95. Im in Texas so I can tell you on a hot day it makes it tolerable but not cold by any means.

Is this what it looks like now if you take off the front cover? Do you still have the piece that was cut out and can you put it back on and duct tape it to make a seal.

If that is how it is now, then air is not being pulled across the coils. If you turn the system on and the coils get cold, try to fab up a cover and seal so air is forced through the coils and see what it gets you.

 

Is the rear system connected to the front ac system? It is on modern vehicles...this type of install means the only added parts are the rear lines, evaporator, blower motor and expansion valve. if it were separate you would need a lot more stuff i am not going to list.
...point being if the front and rear share parts...a fault in the front means the rear won't work. fix the front and the rear will work.

first step to any ac problem.
-start engine and turn on the ac...is the compressor clutch engaging?....no...check for proper charge level. low refrigerant level will disable the compressor.

 

That is a handsome van, and I see you are a fellow Marylander... The Corona Van's air conditioning is also less than stellar. My friend/neighbor is supposed to be picking up a manifold gauge set and a vacuum pump here very soon for working on auto ACs. If he doesn't act soon, I may buy the gear for him... My plan (or hope?) is to bring the original AC system back to proper working order. It sounds like you may be beyond that? I've got to believe that if the systems were working as intended (in your 1988 or my 1998), the AC would be plenty cold, in IMO it would be nice to retain the stock setup.

I may be starting a "Corona Van Air Conditioning" thread here soon to seek some help on troubleshooting my own AC. But in the meantime... When my AC is turned on, the compressor comes on. Initially, the system blows hot/warm air. Sometimes it does eventually blow cold, even very cold, but not consistently. I attempted to put freon in with an "Auto-zone-ish" fill hose. However low pressure (fill side) was >60PSI so I abandoned that effort. A clog, air in the lines, something else...? I hope to find out soon; otherwise, it will be a long, hot Maryland summer.

Prince, I apologize for the hijack and will cease and desist...


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60 psi could be low or ok levels depending on the ambient temp. you really don't know what the charge level is. the only accurate fill method is by weight.

 

Maybe if I lived in Death Valley...

 

 

All right. I'm back. I was looking for a picture of something, and I found this: https://chevroletforum.com/articles/...-to-beat-heat/

Am I famous now???

I'm not gonna be one of those guys who leaves their thread in the dark. I've learned a lot since 2020, and my van's air conditioning works... pretty okay nowadays!

First thing: The main issue with my rear AC was not the rear AC itself, it was the rear HEAT.

Yes, the rear HEAT. These two lines bring engine coolant all the way back to the rear of the van:



I don't know why I never realized it! I had looked at it plenty of times, and yet it wasn't until this summer that I was rooting around back there and burnt my hand on one of these blasted hoses!

So those hoses bring in the heat, and THESE hoses bring in the AC:



I never knew that! Under the hood, there is a vacuum-operated heater shutoff valve, which in my case, had broken. It still worked, but it simply didn't "close" when it was in the "closed" position:



So, I bought another vacuum thingy on Amazon, installed it on the coolant line, and bam! No more rear heat fighting with my rear AC!

THAT was the problem. Air came into my AC unit, but the rear heat was simply overpowering the rear AC. Good thinking Mark III!

The Vacuum-coolant-thingy is set to "open" when you slide the HVAC slider to "heat" on the dashboard, for anyone else troubleshooting one of these.

In other news, my van has two fans on the radiator, it's been repainted, and I just bought a 1990 crown victoria so that I don't have to drive it through any more winters. I've taken it on three trips now, one of which I turned into a video!


I think she's looking pretty good!



And here's the crown vic-