3.0L engine swap

[Farrar]

Did your car have the HP switch in that location from the factory or was it at the other end of the hose by the Accumulator?

Neither. My car had the early setup with no high pressure switch or release valve. A high pressure hose blew several years ago so I decided to add a release valve and switch.

...

On another note, a 1/4" x 6" lag screw is the perfect broken orifice tube extractor tool:

removed broken orifice.jpg

That was easy! Now, back to work I go!

[DMC5180]

Neither. My car had the early setup with no high pressure switch or release valve.

I wonder if your car has the extra 2 way connector with jumper loop just inside the car where the wires for the LP switch go through the front bulkhead?


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[Farrar]

I wonder if your car has the extra 2 way connector with jumper loop just inside the car where the wires for the LP switch go through the front bulkhead?

It does. I plan to make a harness for the high pressure switch and run it to that connection. Since the connector is there I'll just cut it and splice leads to it. Probably the easiest electrical work to do on a DeLorean. LOL

[Farrar]

Did I mention the amazing difference in size between the old rubber sway bar-LCA bushings and the new polyurethane ones? No wonder I had so little trouble popping the old ones out...

bushings comparison.jpg

[DMC5180]

It does. I plan to make a harness for the high pressure switch and run it to that connection. Since the connector is there I'll just cut it and splice leads to it. Probably the easiest electrical work to do on a DeLorean. LOL

Cool,

Fwiw, DMCH has the factory harness extension just for that purpose. I installed one on my car when I updated to DPI hoses a few years ago.

It’s cheap enough that it’s worth getting the ready to go setup.

https://store.delorean.com/p-7726-ha...-press-sw.aspx

It comes with the inside connector housing unpinned so the wire can be fed though the bulkhead. There is a trick to fishing the wires through. You tape them too the existing wires coming through for the LP switch as close to the bulkhead as possible on the front side. Then with the LP switch connector unplugged you pull that wire back into the cabin till the new wires can be untaped. Pin the connector housing and plug it into the existing connector. Then pull the LP switch harness back down to reconnect it.


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[Farrar]

DMCH has the factory harness extension just for that purpose. ... It’s cheap enough that it’s worth getting the ready to go setup.

I know, but I already have the parts I need to make one, and it's more fun for me that way. Call me crazy, but I enjoy electrical work, especially making pretty wiring harnesses! I had fun making a new one for the Otterstat, and I had fun re-wrapping the auto transmission harness, too. I'm thinking of doing new harnesses for the rest of the engine compartment just to dress it up a bit.

[Farrar]

What with all of the a/c excitement, I forgot to take and post photos of the new sway bar brackets & polyurethane bushings from DPNW. It's a nice kit, but the brackets are quirky. The trick I used to get the brackets to line up was to use a nail set (any tapered rod would do as long as it's small enough) to put in the rear bracket holes and *PULL* the brackets into alignment with one hand, while using the other hand to tighten the front bolt enough to where the bracket wouldn't move anymore under pressure from the sway bar. The brackets themselves don't have quite enough clearance for the stock bolts unless you want to tap them in with a hammer -- or remove a small amount of material from inside the slots, but then you lose the zinc plating, so fair warning.

Enough talk. Picture time.

sway bar installed 1.jpg

sway bar installed 2.jpg

sway bar installed 3.jpg

...

In the meantime, some a/c progress:

accumulator installed.jpg

New orifice tube installed. New O-rings everywhere. I even managed to re-use the short hose by simply pointing it up slightly at the condenser fitting, so I don't have to make my own short hose like I thought I would. Tomorrow I will snug the fittings down and check for leaks. Once the system is leak-free, I can put the car back on the ground and work on the cooling system and air conditioning simultaneously. And with the new bushings installed on the sway bar, I can't wait to see how the front end behaves! (Although the rotors are warped -- I have a mental shopping list and new brake discs are on it. One thing at a time ...)

[DMC5180]

Are you installing a new compressor or is it the new one from a couple years ago? All that crud on the Orifice tube screen came from somewhere.


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[Farrar]

Are you installing a new compressor or is it the new one from a couple years ago?

Brand new! I don't trust the old one. Besides, the old one was an R-12 compressor with R-134a in it. This new one is made for R-134a.

[Farrar]

Farrar's Extremely Paranoid Method for Fastening A/C Fittings:

(1) Lubricate with a/c oil the part that the O-ring fits onto.
(2) Install the O-ring.
(3) Lubricate the O-ring with a/c oil.
(4) Lubricate the fitting threads with silicone paste.
(5) Connect fittings with just your fingers, stopping when you feel the O-ring seal.
(6) Pressurize the system with a few PSI of air.
(7) Using wrenches, tighten the fittings until air is no longer leaking.
( Vacuum the system.

If it doesn't hold vacuum, repeat steps 6 and 7 using soapy water to look for air bubbles at the fittings. Tighten suspected leaky fittings a quarter-turn, then proceed again to step 8.