AC condenser... stok iron, aluminium replacement

[Nacho-RT74]

I have seen the replacement condensers are not anymore iron like the stock ones... do I win something being aluminium ? more cool ?

are they really SAFE with any gas around ? even for those new ready to come ? ( I have known there is one new gas coming out, being a better replacement for R12 than the R134A )

I'm actually running 134A. I allways have known about some gases are very corrosive to aluminium parts, but dunno wich ones

[John_Kunkel]

As stated before, the stock ones aren't "iron", they're copper or aluminum or a combination of both.

[Nacho-RT74]

welll what can I say... mine is just like the tranny oil cooling lines. Or it looks it is

[elacruze]

Regardless what material the condenser is made of, they all work the same-the capacity to shed heat is a function of surface area, not material (in the case of any material in use as a condenser) so you won't improve cooling by changing to aluminum unless the construction produces more surface area.

[Nacho-RT74]

Classic autoair is advicing me a parallel condenser they have instead a serpentine kind, but allmost $300, no way, beside I want to keep the stock OEM look.

material could affect since aluminium transduces temp faster than iron/steel

[elacruze]

Aluminum transfers heat faster than steel, but once the mass of the metal is temperature-equalized the amount of heat shed is limited by the capacity of the air to absorb it, not the rate the heat is transferred across the condenser material from inside to outside. Condenser material is so thin that the difference in saturation time between steel, brass, aluminum is not noticeable in your car and lasts only moments.

edit;

The capacity of your A/C is limited by the surface area of the evaporator anyway; a smaller condenser merely runs at a higher pressure/temperature if necessary to shed more heat, but the evaporator can only cool to the point of icing. More surface area allows more heat absorption at a given temperature.  

[Nacho-RT74]

well if aluminium transfer better the heat, then the stock serpentine/fins design should work better in aluminium than the stock steel/iron condenser.

I'm not into change the totally stock look on my car, no matter if there are better profit options changing for a new design condenser

[elacruze]

Performance-wise, the material makes no difference. Design-wise, a new aluminum may have a more efficient design (more surface area) than an old brass condenser. But again, the performance of your A/C system is limited by the evaporator, not the condenser, so I wouldn't worry about the material or performance; buy for appearance and price. FWIW I'm sure you know that Brass will outlast Aluminum a bazillion to one.

[Nacho-RT74]

well I'm tied about what market offers, so aluminium on stock look is what I get, and in $130 rate... evaporator inside the AC box is the stock brass unit

[Nacho-RT74]

at the end, went for this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230354811464

anything beside the steel ( although on same stock serpentine design ), will be a winner over the stock piece. And I wanted the stock look.

there was another seller already in Fl:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=400036323757&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

but I don't buy a diagram... I buy the actual item. I required a pic of the item and they weren't able to provide one


what I don't know is if paint it black... I have known the black paint helps on heat radiation/disipation and thats why lot of engines are painted black

[elacruze]

"NOS Reproduction" 

Marketing aside, I'm sure it's more than enough. I would paint it for corrosion prevention.

I need one for my car, too but I think I'm buying the Classic Auto Air underhood upgrade kit.

[Nacho-RT74]

"NOS Reproduction" 

yeah LOL... I though that myself

yes, classic auto air is a great option for upgraded systems. they have a NICE parallel condenser option with more surface, but wasn't my goal.

[elacruze]

Interesting view.
My car is factory A/C but all the underhood stuff is gone so the upgrade kit is a no-brainer. I may add an adjustable expansion valve myself...

How hot does it get where you are? Heck, Where are you? 
Last year in Iraq, we could get a 55*F temperature drop when it was 130*F outside but the humidity was extremely low so we could get down to about 20 PSI in the evaporator without freezing it up. High side pressures were up to 375 though...

[Nacho-RT74]

Venezuela... we are actually at 33ºC average in Caracas at day, 20ºC as lower at nights... some days higher, some days lower. We are on dry season right now.

On colder days/season ( from sept to dec or jan ), we get maybe 15ºC at nights and 28ºC at day.

Some days I feel comfortable my AC, somedays I feel I need more, but I don't have all the interior insulation yet. On my road trip to Maracaibo ( 850 km from here and one of the hottest cities ) we were more less on 35ºC to 38ºC 3 weeks ago... obviouslly, my AC wasn't enough. Right now they over 40º rate. Recently one day I think they got a 50ºC peak.

Venezuela is a country with lot of humidity, but not like Lousiana... Damn... when I was there in 2008 that was killer even with lower temps.

[elacruze]

We have a sailboat, plan on cruising the caribbean in a couple years, probably will do the North coast of Venezuela. Won't be able to bring the Charger, though. Pity.