Down south (Texas), is air conditioning worth consideration on something
with only 180hp? What type of HP and weight hit does it incur? Is it
worth it? I suspect it's a possible source of ongoing maintenance. Should
it be considered or avoided at all costs? Does A/C add much to the cost
of annual? Impact gph in cruise?



Do a quick Google search and a wealth of info will come your way. In
short, the system IS leak prone and seems to crap out when you need it
most (bad relays, blown fuses, misrigged condenser door linkage, etc.).
Remember, this is an R-12 system and conversion to 134 is a crap shoot
(and unproved).

Cannot use it in climb, and once at altitude, it is already cool. So,
that leaves ground running. But, without significant wind flowing over
the condenser, it is pretty weak on the ground.

But the real reason the systems have been largely removed is the
alternator belt issue. In order to make room for the alternator belt
plus the A/C belt on the pulley bulkhead and still maintain the
engine/belt pulley/prop geometry, Piper "borrowed" some room from the
alternator belt. It is a whopping 1/4 inch piece of spaghetti that
breaks anywhere from 1 hour to 150 hours, depending on alignment,
tension, and the condition of the pulleys. Guess how I know?

The belt is under significant tension (70 lbs. - muthuh tight - a
technical term). This tension wears out the aluminum idler and
alternator pulley in about 1200-1800 hours. Once worn, the belt will
"roll" in the pulleys and soon break. You have to pull the prop to
replace it. Today's cost to R&R the belt is around $300 parts and labor.

68lbs. of useful load in a Cherokee 140 is the difference between the
third person or not.

Caution, removing a system and putting back "stock" components is an
exercise in silliness and significant expense. The brackets and pulley
bulkhead are hard to find used and impossible to get new. It is even an
adventure to FIND the correct part numbers. Piper's parts manuals and
dealer microfiche are pure fiction when it comes to this system. It
seems they had a field day interchanging brackets and pulleys at will in
"stock" PA 28s of the 70s vintage. If you go the "Full Monty" and get
the condenser drop door removed and reskinned, the expense soars higher.

Get one without it. If the PERFECT airplane has it, deduct $3000 for its
removal.

Good Luck,
Mike