1966 Lincoln Continental A/C Issue

[TonyC]

That was all it took to legally handle R-12? Maybe that could be an option for me, if the option I'm currently eyeing fails. I am still Papa-Oscar'd over those fascist regulations (even more so with the Duracool restrictions they employed later), but as I'm not in a position to shut the EPA down indefinitely I have to suffer with them. Actually, I'm a bit surprised that certification only involves at-home studies and online assessments. Thanks for that tip.

---Tony

[Lee]

Might be a good option for you, Tony. Believe me, the test is not that hard, and it’s open-book. It’s $24 now, and probably the only real difference from the test back then is that it now covers 1234YF, which is flammable. Yes, flammable. And I will stop there before the Ayn Rand in me bubbles up again.

[Dan Szwarc]

I got an AC license back in the 90s. I doubt it’s still considered valid.

Any moron can photoshop the card today. My ID number was my SSN which is so dumb.

[Lee]

Dan, up until this thread took a turn, I would have also thought it invalid today. But it’s still valid, and if you need a replacement card, it’s $12. I never got a card, it was a big 8x10 certificate. But there’s my SSN, big as day. 30 years ago, it didn’t seem like such a risk.

[Emas9420]

Sorry for my absence.. Turns out the heat issue was actually a messed up vacuum line.. it was plugged in but split right at the end at the bottom.. so I could not see it only until I pulled it out.

Will be replacing my vacuum lines soon.. All seems to work now. Only concerns are:

- Not blowing as cold as I would like - specially when the car is up to temp - wondering if its a condenser, clutch fan or R134 issue.
- the blower makes an annoying screeching noise on low - will need to replace.

Other than that, I think everything works as it should. Not sure if AC is only supposed to blow from the top when high or both top and bottom but I guess that's something i can check in the ATC book.

[Dan Szwarc]

Cold air: top vents only.
Warm air: floor only
Never blended beyond Minimal bleed airflow.

Windshield: defog or defrost only

[TonyC]

Well, the plenum has two smaller floor ducts to blow cold air when the A/C is used; they exist in both A/C options. They aren't large, so most people tend to not notice them.

Indeed, replace every vacuum line you can. There are three sizes of vacuum line used in the HVACs of these cars, but NAPA has all three sizes in bulk.

The blower will be very tricky. It is giving signs of bearing failure, which is a common occurrence on these cars (age tends to do that). Problem: Nobody offers proper-design replacements, and most OE and aftermarket designs are not compatible. I say most, because there was one non-stock that worked for me. I had to concoct a different venting tube to cool the motor, but it has worked perfectly since I installed it two years ago. Bad news is, I cannot share details because I don't know the details. That motor was installed long ago by a prior owner of a '68 organ donor, and I have no way to match it up with anything: No reference numbers, no other markings, nothing. I'd think the only hope you have is to find a rebuilder of electric motors, take your blower motor out and show it to them, and hope they can rebuild it (at least replace the noisy bearings).

---Tony

[bimmerkar]

I've a similar problem with my 1966 A/C with ATC. The A/C starts blowing cold air when i pull the vacuum line from the temperature blend door vacuum motor located in the engine compartment near firewall. However, when i do that i won't have heat. if I reconnect the vacuum line to TBD then i've hit but no A/C. There is vacuum in the line and temperature blend door motor is adjusted per the manual. Do you think this is a ATC/brain issue? It seems like mine has been converted to 1968 ATC.
Thanks,
Erman

[TonyC]

That's a funny (not haha) symptom. Wish I could help with that.

A long time ago the first vintage-Lincoln guru published his own ATC service/repair manual, which he based on his own experience. It was supposed to supplement the shop manual's guidance, and provide pointers the shop manuals missed. I'm not sure how many copies may still be out there; but with Baker's Auto now history, finding one today would be priceless.

I want to say that I might still have the copy I bought from there in the '90s...but with all my household goods in storage, there's no way for me to confirm it. Hopefully one of our vets can help you out (LithiumCobalt, can you?).

---Tony

[Dan Szwarc]

Do you think this is a ATC/brain issue? It seems like mine has been converted to 1968 ATC.

I do. The blend door is controlled by the brain. Something is sticking inside which is preventing it from switching back and forth. Or something broken. Or loose. Etc.

The brain probably needs a careful going-over or diagnosis.

[Emas9420]

Sorry to revive something that is old, but now that "somewhat" cold weather is upon is in Florida, it seems my A/C is either working exactly as designed or something is wrong...
To make a long story short, i was driving in maybe 70F weather.. not cold by any stretch of the word but definitely a nice cool breeze.. anyways, the inside of the car was a bit hot and i go to turn on the A/C on the lowest temp... and it would blow warm, not ambient, but WARM... i started to realize that the possible issue is that since this is an automatic system, the car thinks its "cold" and therefore, blowing warm air. So i am not sure if this is totally normal behavior or maybe my ambient temp sensor is messed up or something.. I'd love to hear from people that live in colder climates.. if its 65F outside and you turn on the AC on low and the lowest temp setting.. does it blow cold?

[Emas9420]

Sorry to revive something that is old, but now that "somewhat" cold weather is upon is in Florida, it seems my A/C is either working exactly as designed or something is wrong...
To make a long story short, i was driving in maybe 70F weather.. not cold by any stretch of the word but definitely a nice cool breeze.. anyways, the inside of the car was a bit hot and i go to turn on the A/C on the lowest temp... and it would blow warm, not ambient, but WARM... i started to realize that the possible issue is that since this is an automatic system, the car thinks its "cold" and therefore, blowing warm air. So i am not sure if this is totally normal behavior or maybe my ambient temp sensor is messed up or something.. I'd love to hear from people that live in colder climates.. if its 65F outside and you turn on the AC on low and the lowest temp setting.. does it blow cold?

Anyone? .. it keeps happening I’m assuming this is just how the auto temp works

[TonyC]

It has been a very long time, almost half my life, since I went through the frustrations of ATC. But, from what I inferred in my studies of it, that sounds on par with how that system would work. I can relate to how confusing, even frustrating, that system's sentient awareness can be in Florida, where the A/C is needed for more than just cooling the air–namely, drying out the air, as the humidity never goes below 65%...and if it ever dipped that low, everybody would be issuing drought scares.

On the other hand, a defective sensor could also contribute, IDK. If the quirk is subtle, as they usually are, then one may not notice until a small problem becomes a big one. But, if the oddball behavior had been noticed since summer, maybe...

But I'm not going to pretend to know those systems; I'll cede to those who know this system option first-hand. I only know the manual-A/C option first-hand.

---Tony

[Emas9420]

Wondering if anyone else had any input on this? not sure if maybe the ATC box i got is also defective and thats why im having this issue... or if its a vacuum line issue.. or its normal operation.

[LithiumCobalt]

Emas, a couple different directions you could go on the ATC troubleshooting. First thing to confirm is whether your car has been upgraded to 1967 or later controls. The original 1966 ATC system was one year only and flawed from the start. They cannot be repaired. I have a thread on the retrofit of the ATC system and it explains all of the components, shows the locations and explains the function. If you still have the 1966 components, you’re pretty much screwed unless you replace the necessary components. If your car already has the later equipment in it, it’s very easy to diagnose it with the 1967 ATC supplemental manual. The system is much simpler than many would have you believe. My suspicion is that either the ambient temp sensor or the in-cabin sensor has shit the bed, but you’ll have to do some digging to figure it out. Both are still plentiful and available if you need a replacement. Worst case scenario your ATC brain needs a rebuild, but even that is doable.