grillage

Hi all,

I just picked up this really really nice '78 924 Limited Edition and am in the process of some work on it.




It has 34k miles on it and has sat since '98 with a seized water pump. I've pulled the engine and will be doing an overall service to it.

The thing this car has that I've never dealt with before is an aftermarket Air Conditioning system. Made by "dpd"
It was installed at the dealer about 2 weeks after the car was purchased.

Does anyone have experience with these systems? Do they work well enough to keep it in the car or should I remove while it's easy?

you can see the controls here:



It actually still had a bit of charge in the system when I removed for the engine out service

tempest411

Hey, neat! I'd keep it and do what ever's required to get it working! That definitely makes your car unique.

2ata

My 77 has that same setup

tempest411

What compressor does the car use? I did some reading on these for 914s and VWs. They're supposed to work pretty good when paired with a later model Sanden compressor.

grillage

it’s got a sankyo sd-508 using r12

and I happen to have a couple cans of r12 left over from my 86 Audi coupe GT!

PaulD_944S2

Back in the early days of the 924, there was no air conditioning.
You had to buy either a dealer installation or have an AC shop install an aftermarket kit.

I installed the DPD kit in my 77 924 and it worked well, except for really hot SoCal days.
The biggest issue with the kit is the compressor bracket cracked (welded for fix) and the "flap" valves that flow heater or AC air into the dash ducts somewhat restricts the AC air flow.

I would strongly suggest that if you are going to refill the system, you should convert it to R134a.
R134a is obviously much cheaper, and with hoses and system that old there is a strong possibility of refrigerant leaks.

I don't recommend the use of alternative refrigerants, but don't have an issue if you want to investigate and use.

BTW, great looking 924, that's' definitely a good find and a keeper!

grillage

Thanks!! I can test the system under vacuum before I recharge it. I'm not sure what I'll end up using for the charge

and thanks on the car! I'm really excited to get it up and running. it's in remarkable shape

DSMblue

Yes, I had that dpd system in my 78 924 back in the day. One thing you should check for is whether or not your car was converted to dual fan setup. If it has single fan, I would highly recommend converting to dual fan to keep coolant temps in line. Second what others have said about conversion to 134a if your system is low (likely). What I found is that any a/c on the early dash cars is limited more by the vents and placement. It would do a good job of cooling you where the vents hit, but never really did a good job of keeping the overall interior cool.

grillage

Found some paperwork on this setup from a recall in 1976. includes the installation instructions

grillage

Pdf Attached

Voith

Pretty awesome.

grillage

Now to see if I can make mine work!

J1NX3D

I had factory A/C in my RoW '78 924. Yours is a very elegant period solution. Good to see you're working on keeping it.

grillage

More updates. I replaced the drier and used some thread sealant on the fittings to the compressor. They had what looked like a little bit of blue silicone or something on the threads and initially I thought it was a melted o-ring. Now I realize these are flared fittings not requiring o-rings. I bought some “nylog” thread sealant for those and got them back attached. Pulled 30 in Hg and its holding!

I am doing the torque tube bearings on this car at the same time so I will need a little before I can recharge and test, but so far so good!

grillage

it works!!!!

R134A