Vanagon Fresh Air / Recirc Control Kit from Vanistan

[MsTaboo]

A quick follow up on this. Took the Syncro on a fairly long drive around the valley today and tried out the fresh air system in different modes.

The a/c definitely works better with the Vanistan vent closed and without warm air entering the cab. I could leave the a/c fan on 1 and use the front fan on 1 or 2 and it stayed nice and cool.

At freeway speeds closing the Vanistan vent made the van a bit quieter.

With the vent open and just regular fresh air flow I really couldn't notice a difference from before installation. I was worried a little that the reduction of flow would be noticeable.

Great product, nice job Chris.
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Currently:
'90 Syncro Westy 3 knob w/Zetec

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[Zeitgeist 13]

Solid feedback. I'm sold. Just need to save the ducats and prepare my justification spiel.
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Casey--

'89 Bluestar ALH w/12mm Waldo pump, PP764 and GT2052
'01 Weekender --> full camper
y u rune klassik?

[tencentlife]

[tencentlife]

With cold weather on the way now's the time to install a Vanistan Cabin Air Control kit to keep that chilly air out.

From today thru Mon. midnight the Cabin Air Control kit will be discounted $20, price is now $175 plus shipping. Within the US this kit ships USPS flat rate at $17.05, for a total of $192.05.

https://intrepidoverland.com/shop/cabin-air-control/

This is the posted price as of now and until midnight on Mon. Oct. 8.

Review this thread to learn more about the kit, or post your questions here.

Follow the link to place your orders in the Vanistan shop at IntrepidOverland. Credit cards and Paypal accepted. I ship USPS worldwide.
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Shop for unique Vanagon accessories at the Vanistan shop:
https://intrepidoverland.com/vanistan/

Please don't PM here, I will not reply.

Experience is kryptonite to doctrine.

[Gnarlodious]

Chris from Intrepid Overland came out of his inventor’s lair and installed the latest version of his fresh air intake flap, some pictures to show what’s involved. The tunnel into the air box doesn’t lend itself to photography, some pictures I adjusted the brightness to improve visibility inside.

Thanks to the molded metal the ends of the tunnel are blocked off with foamy inserts:

Holding the flap in the open position before attachment:

Note the rubber foam glued to the inside of the metal plate.

The flap in position to screw down (or up as the case may be):

Chris demonstrating the control mechanism. Did I mention this is the 4ᵀᴴ revision of this upgrade?

The Vanistan Syncro bringing up the rear, this here is a work vehicle:

The flap control and one side of the bug/rodent screen installed:

Note that the wire screen allows more air than the stock thick perforated plastic screen, so it should move as much air as the original when the flap is open.

A gravity operated recirculation flap installed into a hole cut in the air box:

Chris demonstrated this to me and it works on all three fan speeds!

Haven’t driven in cold weather but a comfort report may be forthcoming. With a little in-town driving I was able to verify that almost all outside air is off with the flap closed. This will be nice in dusty and smoky New Mexico weather.
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Vanagon ’83 diesel AAZ w/Giles injection, 5spd 4.57R&P+TBD and a '78 diesel Rabbit

[tencentlife]

Hey Gnarlodious, thanks for the write-up. I really enjoyed visiting while we installed the kit.

Just for the record, it's the inlet door supports that are on their 4th version, the first was never marketed, this last one with the foam inserts does the best job of sealing off the inlet scoop and is cheaper to make. The bellcrank mechanism you showed has had one major revision, mostly to require fewer steps.

It's that way in manufacturing, always trying to make things:
work better
cost less
easier to produce
easier to install.

If I hit all four it's like a super hat trick!
_________________
Shop for unique Vanagon accessories at the Vanistan shop:
https://intrepidoverland.com/vanistan/

Please don't PM here, I will not reply.

Experience is kryptonite to doctrine.

[Zeitgeist 13]

Cool pics. I'm looking forward to acquiring one of these kits.
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Casey--

'89 Bluestar ALH w/12mm Waldo pump, PP764 and GT2052
'01 Weekender --> full camper
y u rune klassik?

[jlrftype7]

Durn, somehow I missed the notice about the sale, Bought one today anyway since I wanted one of these from reading about them here on the Samba a good month ago.
I need to pull my whole dash out anyway to redo foam flap pieces, probably replace the Heater Core while I'm in there and lube the Blower motor while I'm at it. So I might as well add this kit to the list at the same time.
If I didn't have all of that to look forward to, this would be a simple job with a Dash in place/not removed... It looks well thought out and revised as needed from Feed back here on Samba....
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'68 Westy- my first VW and vehicle/Bus- long gone.- sold it to a traveling Swiss couple....
'67 Type 3 Fastback, my 2nd car- gone
'69 Semi-Auto Stick Shift Beetle-gone
2017 MINI Coopers, our current DDs
‘84 Tin Top - Hilga....Auto

[tencentlife]

Sorry you missed the special, I bumped the thread to keep it on the first page but I guess you didn't notice. Thanks a lot for the order anyway, your business is much appreciated!

The recirc flapper valve will be easier to install with the heater box out. The rest, it doesn't make much difference.
_________________
Shop for unique Vanagon accessories at the Vanistan shop:
https://intrepidoverland.com/vanistan/

Please don't PM here, I will not reply.

Experience is kryptonite to doctrine.

[tencentlife]

[dart330]

I just installed this last weekend and am really impressed by it. No more whistle from the air box on the highway and the AC is no longer fighting warm outside air. Highly recommended!

[Gnarlodious]

After driving a long cold winter it definitely improves the comfort level! Its best use is blocking incoming cold air during warmup, or dusty air, or smoky air in summer. If you just installed the blocking flap it would be an upgrade. The recirculator feature is nice but secondary, it doesn’t move a lot of air but does improve the heat in very cold weather. With the recirculator on you need the fan running, so meake sure it is lubed up before winter hits!
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Vanagon ’83 diesel AAZ w/Giles injection, 5spd 4.57R&P+TBD and a '78 diesel Rabbit

[tencentlife]

Terrific! Thanks for the reports!
_________________
Shop for unique Vanagon accessories at the Vanistan shop:
https://intrepidoverland.com/vanistan/

Please don't PM here, I will not reply.

Experience is kryptonite to doctrine.

[almo]

Will this work with Kens set up from Vanagain.com

https://www.vanagain.com/shop/barebones-dash-ac-kit-for-all-vanagon


I’m a little confused as to where to tie In the fresh air? Or does it just pour in around the dash when opened.

Cheers
_________________
San Francisco/Mayo Ireland

1986 2.1L Westy 2wd 4-spd Sold!!!!
1987 2.1L Westy syncro
2005 Subaru legacy 2.5Gt Wagon 5sp MT

[tencentlife]

If you have questions about installations all my instructions are downloadable here:

https://intrepidoverland.com/product-instructions/

You'd need to look at the AC setup you're considering to know whether they're compatible, but some of them do completely block the normal fresh air pathway and only recirculate cabin air, if so my kit would be useless.
_________________
Shop for unique Vanagon accessories at the Vanistan shop:
https://intrepidoverland.com/vanistan/

Please don't PM here, I will not reply.

Experience is kryptonite to doctrine.

[joetiger]

On Ken's Youtube series he shows the whole front opening permanently blocked.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmR0Qcs7JUE

I don't know whether that's completely necessary or if you could use the recirc kit. Probably a good question for Ken (then post the answer here so I know what to do when the time comes. )
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Joe T.

'86 NAHT Vanagon GL Syncro/ supercharged ABA 2.0 "Pigpen"
'04 GTI 1.8T
'04 Golf R32

"get metaphysical with it. if it's simply a means to get to and from places, it will let you down. if it becomes your zen, it can't fail you." -dabaron

"Still, it's good to be afield."--VWagabond

Available Now! Vanagon to Louisiana--A Two-Lane Reckoning Through Past and Present

www.josephtrussell.com

[tencentlife]

Yeah that seems to be the trend, but the question would be better directed at the sellers of the AC kits, who should know how their set-up treats the Vanagon fresh air ports under the dash. I've never seen one and have no idea how many different ones are being sold and whatever peculiarities they have. My kit lives in the outside inlet scoop and what it does there is plain to see, and if anyone needs more details, just download the instructions.
_________________
Shop for unique Vanagon accessories at the Vanistan shop:
https://intrepidoverland.com/vanistan/

Please don't PM here, I will not reply.

Experience is kryptonite to doctrine.

[almo]

I just watch Kens YouTube series.

I see what you guys mean he blocks off the fresh air inside and out. Noob ideas 🙈 but I am wondering could I maybe get a couple of tee’s and cut into the new ducting that run from the new evaporator to the 2 original side vents on the vanagon. The hard part would be fabbing some kind of a manifold to capture an redirect the fresh air to the new tee’s. My concern is over time it would fill up the new evaporator with dust and debris.

Mite be over ambitious 🙈

Or somehow redirect the fresh air up towards the windshield or footwell? .... hmm
_________________
San Francisco/Mayo Ireland

1986 2.1L Westy 2wd 4-spd Sold!!!!
1987 2.1L Westy syncro
2005 Subaru legacy 2.5Gt Wagon 5sp MT

[kguarnotta]

Little bit of feedback - I picked up an'86 Syncro a few months ago.

I got the vanistan kit this past weekend. I just installed it. He says you will need 2 hours, that is probably accurate. It could be done in about 15 minutes - as soon as you know how to do it. The longest time for me was just test fitting everything, and making sure I understood how it worked, so I made sure I installed it correctly.

I took my first drive with it today - HUGE difference on the highway. There was no way my heater box could keep up with 65MPH winds coming over it. It was not as cold as it has been, I'll report back with numbers from the temp gauge I had sitting on my dash vents - but initially I'm looking at least a 20 degree temp improvement.

I highly recommend this product - and I've only driven with it for a day
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-Kevin
Lincoln, MA

'86 Triple Knob Syncro w/EJ22
'78 Westy
'69 Single Cab
'65 Kombi - EZ-Camper

[4Gears4Tires]

You should look into replacing everything in your cooling system then. My front blower motor is currently seized and I have all the heat I need. It's very toasty in the van on the highway. Turning on the rear fan seems to heat the van up quicker. That said, my feet are still a bit chilly, it'll be nice to get the front blower motor replaced. Not knocking the mod though, I want to do it at some point.

Just saying your heat should be hotter.
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'87 Syncro
Ferric Oxyhydroxide Superleggera Edition