belly or fender condenser

[930slant]

Recently there have been a number of posts about installing a condenser in the rear/front fender as a means of upgrading the A/C. I have not heard much discussion though about the relative merits of the bellypan condenser versus the vartious fender condenser options. The belly condenser ($435.00) sold by Scottsind.com is 14" X 50" (700 sq inches) which would seem to be a better solution than the much smaller fender units that are not much bigger than 120 sq. inches. All of the posts I've read about the belly unit say that it is STRONG and effective. Most of the fender unit posts seem to focus on owners who are still looking to add more condenser by using the spaces in front, rear, and even in front of the rear wheel. Since I'm just starting the "additional condenser" journey, I'm hoping that someone has some comparisons between the belly pan option and fender option. Thanks for your "cool" comments!

[john walker's workshop]

bellypan = SCRRRRAAAAPPPPE. sounds awful.

[masraum]

Jack Olsen seems to have had great luck with his belly pan, and his car gets tons of use.

Belly pan gives more surface area and is probably better when you are driving. The fender usually has a fan which is better when sitting in traffic, but not as good when under way all on top of less surface area.

I'd think from a performance standpoint the belly condenser would be the best unit as long as you didn't speend much time in stop and go traffic. (If you spend time in stop and go in a 911 you've got other problems besides AC )

[Ryce Stallings]

I installed the belly condesor from Performance Air maybe ten years ago. Its pretty rugged. The tubes are protected by the fins which are not like the ones on radiators. They have a large beefy section. You should look at the condenser you are getting and compare it with the one offered by Performance Air.

The unit is held up to the floor pan by two steel straps the also act as skids. You would really need to high center a rock of something to break the condenser.

[rfuerst911sc]

I just completed a complete AC upgrade on my 83SC.I removed the rear OEM engine lid condensor because I wanted to clean up the engine compartment and reduce the heat of the air cooling the engine.I then added the underbelly condensor and a fan assisted condensor in the rear quarter panel because I am a firm believer that the 911's are condensor challenged.I replaced the receiver/drier and expansion valve and replaced all the rubber hoses with barrier hoses.I also kept the front fan assisted OEM condensor for a total of three condensors.We have not had hot weather yet but so far it has reached 80 outside and I am getting very cold air coming out of the vents.I like the idea of 2 condensors having fans to keep the pressures low in the compressor while sitting in traffic and then when moving that underbelly removes huge amounts of heat!! I think you would have to hit something a ton to hurt that underbelly condensor it is very rugged.The first tube in the condensor facing the front of the car is not used so it is sacrificed in a hit.They also have 2 large 1/4 inch thick "skid pads" mounting straps that will absorb speed bumps etc.Good luck

[cmonref]

Belly scrape with the belly condenser? Nope, not in the 18 years and 100,000 miles of use on my car.

[jtratza]

I tested my stock system this week on a drive to south Texas and back. Last summer I replaced a couple of fittings and got the system topped up on R-12. It took a couple of hours to get the pressures right at Cool Flow in Houston but once done got cold enough air to be very comfortable in this heat and humidity. Nothing has been done to the system since then. This week I got the discharge temp (2nd fan setting ) to hit 42.4 degres in 90 degree temperatures so am still happy with the stock system. One thing I did notice is that the system does seem to be icing up so I will have to check on that.

However Rfurest (from above post) does make a good point in reducing heat and cleaning up the engine area by moving the condensers. Cool Flow in Houston recommends the underbody condensor also. I think a lot of us dismiss the stock system only because it hasn't been maintained. Another alternative is the newer type evaporators for $300. That'll be my next upgrade if I need one.

[930slant]

Thanks for the information/experiences with the underbelly unit. I'm leaning in that direction since a lot of my driving is on the highway and virtually no rush hour traffic. Once installed, I'll get back with hopefully vent temps in the 30's.

[scottb]

You probably won't be able to fit much of a condenser under the front fenders if you have a slantnose. In your situation, either a belly or rear fender condenser is probably the way to go.

For those of you with belly condensers -- are you running stock ride height? If the car has been lowered, have you had any problems?

[cmonref]

My '80 Euro SC is stock Euro ride height. 18 years, 100,000 miles without a clearance problem with the condenser -- except for the befuddled look on the faces of mechanics that try to put a lift pad under the body at that point, if he gets that far before I stop him.