Aircon VR6 owners comments?

[Nick_Micouris 0]

Is the addition of aircon particularly detrimental to the performance on the VR?

I was of opinion that due to the size of the engine, the loss of power would be unnoticeable.

Am I right?

 

Also - as all systems are aftermarket, who would I go to to get installed and how many £££'s would I expect to spend. Was thinking £600-£1k?

 

I must get it done soon as black paint and leather is a killer in this heat!! :(

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Air con is for girls :lol:

 

I wouldn't do it.

 

You do notice the power loss. It's very noticable on my mate's 245bhp Subaru......

 

K

[Nick_Micouris 0]

Yeah - must admit - the girlfriend has been the one who has moaned and I have had the car longer than her ;)

Interesting to see that there IS a power loss. hmmm

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Well, given Subaru aircon is aftermarket aswell, as per the Corrado, the power drop was noticeable in the midrange. Didn't pull as eagerly and switching the aircon on and off in traffic drops the revs down as air con does, so it's definitely a drain on resources.......and all for keeping your nads chilled? Not worth it mate. A new car that comes with it from the factory, now that's a different kettle of fish, but adding it to a 10 year old car that has more heels than the entire Achilles family tree is asking for bother!

 

Plus the dash has to come out and you can guarantee that will start rattling afterwards....

[Nick_Micouris 0]

Yeah - point taken Kev, it does seem a hassle given the lack of time we have hot weather in England!!

 

Dash rattles really upset me - I have none in the C and would be really irritated to develop them, especially behind the dash!

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Well we've had 30 degree summers two years on the trot now mate...... could be the shape of things to come?

 

You're lucky you have no dash rattles! Mine sounds like there are half a dozen rattle snakes in the glove box.

 

Mind you, it's only been since putting the Konis and H&Rs on that the car has become rattley! Doesn't bother me that much, it's irritating for sure but nothing the volume knob can't cure :lol:

[dinkus 10]

The standard VR air con is the nads, it's a proper icy blast... you can sit in traffic all day long and not even begin to sweat :D

 

But as kevhaywire says, it does put a fairly noticably drain on your power, but if you're going to be giving it some welly, just turn the AC off for a bit. The cabin won't suddenly turn into a sauna.

 

And as far as retrofitting goes, don't do it. It will cost you at least £1000 and will undoubtedly give you a rattly dash, unless you DIY in which case you're talking months of having your C off the road.

 

Useless bit of info number 468513: The Exige AC system automatically shuts down if you use over 75% throttle :D

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Useless bit of info number 468513: The Exige AC system automatically shuts down if you use over 75% throttle :D

 

That's probably because the engine doesn't develop any torque at those revs, especially if it's a K series Exige!

[dinkus 10]

Useless bit of info number 468513: The Exige AC system automatically shuts down if you use over 75% throttle :D

 

That's probably because the engine doesn't develop any torque at those revs, especially if it's a K series Exige!

 

75% throttle, not revs ;)

[Nick_Micouris 0]

The standard VR air con is the nads, it's a proper icy blast... you can sit in traffic all day long and not even begin to sweat :D

 

Didn't think that the VR ever got standard aircon?? I thought they were all aftermarket Diavia kits fitted by the dealer. Am I very wrong?

[joebloggsVR69 0]

No, you're very right

 

I've got some links of AC fitters at home - theres one near hanger lane, north circular. They were recommended in the sunday times some time ago.

 

I'm tempted to give them a call, just to get an idea of the price

[Nick_Micouris 0]

Hi mate

Yes - please let me know how you get on with that. Would be interested to know, just in case cool air wins over performace :?

[Storm 0]

Air con is great, if you've had it there is no going back. Fit it you'll love it. on a turbo car the effect on power may be impacted as power is needed to drive the turbo and the compressor. That doesnt happen on N/A.

 

If you havent experienced it you dont know what your missing. :)

[dinkus 10]

Yeah sorry by standard I meant the dealer fit one, but they were all the same model AC.

 

A few people on here have enquired about it before and the £1k mark was always about right, you may be able to save a few quid if you know someone though.

 

And Storm I totally agree, once you've had AC there is no going back. It's even good in winter cos it also dries the air so your windows don't steam up.

[Dan_Storm 0]

I've got aircon and don't use it as much as I thought I would. I much prefer to have the windows down and sunroof open to hear the engine note :) .

 

Although it is great on the motorway or in wet weather to stop the windows misting.

 

 

On a side note....when my aircon is turned-on the fan will come on at full speed every minute or so for 10 seconds. Is this normal? Does anyone else have the same?

[Scott 0]

My mates storm with aircon (a rare find indeed) DOES lose power when its switched on....

[Henny 0]

ALL cars with aircon WILL loose power when the aircon is switched on... The engine has to drive the compressor/pump for the air-con (be it electrical or mechanical) and this will result in power loss...

 

The question you should be asking is "will adding air con onto my car make a big difference to the power of the car"...

 

FYI, if you disconnect all of the belts on a car (except for the cam belt and supercharged models of course! ;) ) you'll typically gain between 10 and 30 BHP at the wheels! :shock: You won't be able to run for long as the battery will go flat and the waterpump probably won't be driven so you'll have little to no cooling... Air con will easily knock off around 10 to 15BHP on it's own...

[MoonlightVR 0]

You do get a slight drop in power, but does it really matter?

Do you guys drive your cars for 100% power all the time???

In this heat air con is a must, and as said above once you've had it there's no going back!

[Nick_Micouris 0]

Basically, if all you have to do is turn it off when you want the full power, then what is the problem?

Had a long drive in today's sun and that VR6 meant very little in all that heat.

Shame as the car is geared up for the winter (heated everything) etc but bad for comfort in the summer.

Well, if anyone has retrofitted and can recommend an installer - let us know :)

Cheers for your help on this everyone!

[joebloggsVR69 0]

Yeah it is absolute hell without aircon - I spent 4 hours driving yesterday in 30+ degree heat :(

Well, I say 'driving', it was more like sitting in traffic sweating buckets..

 

Nick, the place near Hanger Lane is http://www.car-aircon.co.uk

These were the guys featured in the sunday times. I havent had the chance to call them, but the website says they do discounts off-season, so not much use if you want it done ASAP.

 

There's also a few listed on here:

http://www.air-conditioning-installers.co.uk

 

Perhaps we could get a group buy on air-con installation :wink:

[Nick_Micouris 0]

nice work joebloggsVR69, :)

[bigpants baby 0]

i have just got a ful a/c system off of a passat vr6,might be thinking of selling?

[andyvlw 0]

i have just got a ful a/c system off of a passat vr6,might be thinking of selling?

I'm intereseted how much you looking for ?

[Bruno 4]

Well, if anyone has retrofitted and can recommend an installer - let us know :)

ACE Air conditioning in Chertsey. He did Guy's, mine, and really does know the car well. He will be straight on price and you need to be hard on him on the time he takes to finish the damn job. If you have the later type dash, you should go to GPC and buy:

- the LHD fan/switch control mechanism.

- the replacement housing and switches for aircon that go over the present cigar lighter position.

 

Make sure he understands that you want him to route the pipes neatly and if necessary, fashions metal pipes to get it right.

 

The Diavia one is rare now, but it does include a spur that hops onto the Engine's Brain to enable it to boost the throttle position slightly everytime the aircon relay kicks in. Em me if you have any final issues

[Bruno 4]

Well, if anyone has retrofitted and can recommend an installer - let us know :)

ACE Air conditioning in Chertsey. He did Guy's, mine, and really does know the car well. He will be straight on price and you need to be hard on him on the time he takes to finish the damn job. If you have the later type dash, you should go to GPC and buy:

- the LHD fan/switch control mechanism.

- the replacement housing and switches for aircon that go over the present cigar lighter position.

 

Make sure he understands that you want him to route the pipes neatly and if necessary, fashions metal pipes to get it right.

 

The Diavia one is rare now, but it does include a spur that hops onto the Engine's Brain to enable it to boost the throttle position slightly everytime the aircon relay kicks in. Em me if you have any final issues