My 1990 F-150 5.8L (now 5.9L) has used up another compressor. This one was still working, but the air was not real cool so I topped up the R-134. Comp seal went out the next day. I am preparing to order parts, compressor / dryer / O-rings & std O-tube kit from Rock Auto looks like a good deal, with their variable O-tube ordered on the side. But the old O-tube had about 1/3 of the screen caked with Black Death. So, I'm gonna bite the bullet and do new hoses and condenser to be safe. The condensers are startlingly cheap, but I can't find any customer reviews on the Agility brand. It is a parallel-flow rather than the multi-pass type like OEM and has about 15% more tubes, and WalMart.com sells it for $83 w/free shp. Does anyone have any experience with this unit? I'm also changing the coolant, so will probably just remove the radiator. So ease of installation is no concern (one post mentioned difficulty of installation). I'm just wondering about cooling efficiency, and any benefits or drawbacks to the parallel flow design.

 

If you have already converted to R-134a, then you want a condensor for that refrigerant. Get one for a 1994 model truck. You may have to make up an adaptor hose on the liquid line, at least I did.

R-134a needs about 50% more condensor area than R-12.

 

IDK about ordering for a 94 model. Pictures are very similar. Core thickness is the same. The only difference I can see is that the condenser is 2-1/4" wider, possibly due to body style changes. I don't think it would fit in my 90 model radiator frame. Anyway. I converted the truck to R134a in 2002 and it cooled fine for 24 years, so the listed part number should work. I'm mainly concerned that this company is selling their products on various vendor sites and none have any customer reviews. One guy on another forum (or maybe this forum, I read it in a DDG search) said he had trouble installing it and returned it. But with the radiator out it should be no prob. Heck, I had to squeeze my old condenser out past a 10" outdoor horn speaker for my CB radio's PA output that I installed under the coolant / WS wash reservoir and I bet that other dude didn't have that in the way. The picture on Rock Auto looks like a single pass parallel flow core, but the pic on WalMart.com clearly shows crimps in the end tank tubes that look like they group the cooling tubes in several groups and run the freon back and forth a few times (multi-pass), so I want to hear from someone who bought one and looked it over.

 

Swapped it out for a Chrysler/ Dodge/ Jeep 360?

 

Very mild bore?!

 

According to the answers from a Mustang thread, a small overbore still doesn’t get you there…


but too big of one does


I do not know about that brand. According to my receipt I used a GPD condenser when I replaced the whole a/c system three years ago. Like you, I ran the R-12 parts with R-134a and it worked fine. It doesn’t take much to cool a regular cab.

 

Even a small tube condenser is a nice upgrade for these early R12 trucks. The 94MY condenser fits easy enough and yes, the liquid line is different. Add an evap to your list, easy enough to R&R and guaranteed to be filthy after all these years.

A 302HO cooling fan also moves a fair amount more air at low speeds if you want to pull down faster. Unsure if the V8s had two different fan blades like the 4.9 had available

Use the RED FOT. Spec is 11oz oil per a TSB, PAO 68 is a better oil than PAG. 38oz of 134A should do it, that is the capacity of factory 134A trucks.

 

Fed it vitamins and made it grow. Overbored .030", Hypereutectic pistons, Comp Cams "303 flat tappet grind" cam, adjustable FP regulator set using my Snap-On Scanner to retain fuel trim going both sides of zero but with more juice, various equipment deletes. The result is the speedometer needle is now connected directly to the gas pedal.
Side benefit: I was able to do similar to my 88 T-Bird Sport which lacked live data stream (only came out in 90 model EEC IV systems). I used the data from the truck and didn't go quite as high on the FP to allow for the smaller 5.0L. Worked good, until the kid I sold the T-Bird to swapped in a better engine and a 6-speed manual. I think he has more car now than I had. Pretty sure he added MAF system. There is only so much one can do using the OEM Speed / Density EFI. I call my truck "The Climate Changer".

 

Ford labeled the truck 5.8L, but they were exaggerating a bit. I made an honest truck out of it so the badges are correct, but it's closer to 5.9 now, so using the OEM rating system I can round it up to 5.9L

 

THX for some good info. Evap was new in 2002, I'm going to flush it good and go with it. My truck had the HD cooling option, so it had whatever was the biggest clutch fan offered. I was tired of buying $100 fan clutches and had a left handed flex fan in the shed. Put it on last week to test, and it doesn't roar like a jet plane as did the one on my old '64 Chevy, so I'm going with that setup. And when I charge the system, I use a sonar sight glass on the evap outlet and watch the high side pressure. When I get splashes of liquid at the evap outlet and no pressure spike, I'm at max capacity. It's a safe way to squeeze a bit more cooling from the system. Running a variable O-tube, new one coming with the parts order.

 

I tried to reply to the new comments individually, but it shows up as replies to my post. You guys can figure out which reply is to which comment....

 

The engine went from 5.75 liters to 5.85 liters so you exaggerated just like Ford.

You should have tried a different brand of vitamin. My 351W grew to a 408 with a custom cam and AFR Renegade 185 heads.

 

QUESTION CLOSED Thanks for all comments. I enjoy the helpful info I glean from this forum, so I want to share some things I found out while researching the parts for this job.
I ordered the parts and expect things to start arriving Monday 6 Apr. I ordered the Agility condenser, and ordered it from WalMart.com because they wanted $82 instead of $108 from other sources. And also, they showed a different image in their ad and it was the best IMHO. I saw three different versions of the Agility #7013605 condenser for my 90 F-150 sold on different online vendor sites and the various ads show at least 3 different designs in their pictures. I wonder if these may be due to development of the design and reflect different design versions. The first type I saw pictured was bare aluminum, a naked core with frame of separate pieces of extruded aluminum riveted on. So it was easy to see that the core had a vertical manifold tube on each side with crossflow cooling tubes running horizontally across. The inlet on the left side entered the top of the left manifold tube, and the outlet exited the top of the right manifold tube. So it was purely a parallel flow, single pass type. Other pictures showed a black painted condenser with the frame looking much more substantial and better bracing for the connectors, but the liquid (outlet) line still connected to the top of the right manifold tube, so it had to be parallel flow single pass. The WM.com ad showed that the liquid line outlet at the top right ran from the bottom of the right manifold tank up the frame to a fitting at the top, and there were crimps in the manifold tube that appeared to be internal plugs to make it a multipass core with the hot refrigerant criss-crossing the core 5 passes, which I thought preferable. That is the way the OEM was built. Pictures are just pictures but that is the design I hope to receive.
Other parts (compressor, receiver/dryer, hoses and orifice tube) are all Four Seasons coming from Rockauto.com.

 

Monday the 6th? I don’t know how the same part number would have a different design from one distributor to another. They are only selling what comes from the manufacturer. Hope it works out for you. Let us know….

 

And the Verdict on the Agility 7013605 is: NO GO.
The Agility condenser arrived today, excellent shipping time. But, on opening the box (which I did carefully, anticipating needing it for the return) I found the bare core type condenser pictured in some ads, not the metal framed condenser with OEM style bracing of the inlet and outlet lines pictured in the WalMart.com ad. Too bad, and it often happens that the photo does not match the part. The reason I don't want to use it that it will be subject to damage from vibration and is not as robust as the OEM design. The lines on the original were well braced so that there was no flexing and stresses were absorbed by the metal braces attached to the condenser frame. The Agility design has the inlet and outlet connector pipes on separate pieces of tubing that connect to the core and place the stress of the hoses all on the O-ring connectors and the aluminum core. And also, the inlet tube lacks a bend of about 15 degrees found in the original to align with the inlet hose from the compressor. I don't want to try bending the supplied tube and see it crimp, shouldn't need to modify a new part. I am sure the condenser would function well, but durability is doubtful. I include photos of both the original core and the Agility core for comparison. The bolt holes are spaced correctly, but the mount straps are aluminum rather than steel, etc. I drive my truck, often on rough roads or pastures, and want the condenser to be solidly attached. It just does not inspire me with confidence. I am going to RockAuto.com to order their best grade version and be done with it. I wasn't buying the Agility for the cheap price, I was hoping for engineering and design superiority. I don't see it.