Air condition??

[jamestyler520]

There is a box inside my car under the dash on the passenger side of the car. It says air condition but I am sure it does not mean it sends out cold air.

What is this box and how should I be using it?

JT

[Fid]

Yes, back in 1948, "Air Conditioner" had a different meaning. It's a heater and I believe the owner's manual has instructions. I used to have the manual but I don't know where it is now but no, it's not an air conditioner as they are known today.

[Gordie]

That is the heater and defroster unit with a fancy name.  As it was an accessory there were separate instructions for the radios and heaters but the controls are on the dash and it should be fairly easy to use the heater.  Even the defrosters were a separate accessory on the earliest cars and my GP Frazer has a heater but not a defroster.  There is a plug on the top of the dash where the defroster button should be.  I bought an accessory defroster unit that is new in the box but I probably won't install it as mine is the only early car that I've seen with a heater but not the defroster.  Our cars are quite interesting!

[jamestyler520]

Thanks. So the air condition ( heater defroster ) is unique to some models? Does the same apply to the spotlight and visor?  I have all three.

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

Kaiser-Frazer products were normally built without heater/defroster (aka Air Conditioner).  Frazer Manhattans in the early years could be ordered by dealers with the unit installed at the factory and it also shows up as part of Accessory Groups for Manhattans and 1951-52 Henry J models. 

The idea of "conditioned air" to help cool the inside of the car goes back to the 1930's when Nash Motors began putting venturi in the intake duct for the car heater.  The air moved through the duct at speed (usually pushed in by vehicle movement down the road) and when it hit the venturi, the air speed increased (pressure pushing air through the narrow spot moved it faster).  This caused some cooling effect and a slight run off of moisture due to condensation.  The Nash Weather-Eye system was considered one of the best units of its type in the day.  Kaiser-Frazer engineers copied the concept for their heaters.

You can find some more info on this in some of the earlier showroom literature, especially 1949 model year sales catalogs.