aftermarket air conditionong

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Sat 17 Feb 2001 20:24
aftermarket air conditionong - Ian Morgan
Are there any reputable, reliable, well engineered aftermarket aircon fitting companies out there. I am looking for a Fiat Coupe 20v turbo preferably with aircon and was wondering if it is possible to have aftermarket aircon fitted to a car where it was not factory fitted. Fiat dealers do not do this (unlike for example Subaru who will fit aftermarket aircon to Imprezas for around £900). The system would have to interface with the climate control which is standard fit and controls the inside temperature but which does not cool below outside ambient temperatures unless the aircon is fitted.

IM
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Sun 18 Feb 2001 14:03
RE: aftermarket air conditionong - honestjohn
THEY ARE LISTED IN THE AIRCON FAQ ANSWER AT www.honestjohn.co.uk

HJ
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Mon 19 Feb 2001 13:41
RE: aftermarket air conditionong - Dave N
Hi Ian, I think it was you I spoke to on the phone this morning. I hope the information was useful.
For those of you are thinking of having a/c fitted, and I've recieved a number of calls about this lately, here is what I said:-

There are a number of companies that will fit a/c, and they usually use a kit of generic parts where possible. What this means is that the switch you see on your dash is original equipment, but the other parts may not. Namely all the underbonnet stuff. There shouldn't be any real problems with this, except if it needs repairing at some time in the future, in which case it can sometimes be hard to work out what parts are used, as it's not a simple matter of going to a catalogue for that vehicle. Cost tends to be aroung £1000-1500 fitted. In other words, quite a big expenditure. The other route is to use all OE parts, but this usually puts the price up drastically, (the OE Land Rover kit for a discovery is £1700). However, there are a number of manufacturers, usually japanese, that offer competitively priced kits, all OE parts, and fitting can be quite fast, as the dash may not need to be removed. Subaru, Mazda, Toyota & Mitsubishi usually, so it's always worth having a chat with them first to gauge costs etc. You could of course always fit it yourself if it's any of the above, and get someone to come and leak check and gas it. Though if it doesn't work you may be into discharging it and recharging again.
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