I received the Bantam II and Vapir III mockup cases last week. I think that I’m going try and make the Vapir III work. It’s ½” wider and 4” longer than the Bantam, but it has the following advantages:
- 18% larger A/C coil
- Dash vents come out side vs. top
- 4 vs. 3 dash outlets
As previously stated, the biggest challenge will be the height. It’s 11.25” which is 0.25” taller than what’s stated on their website. However, the only vents on the top are for defrost. They are 1” high and I’m pretty sure I can cut a hole which has more surface area and 3D print an outlet that is only ¼” tall. In addition, as you can see in the pictures below, the end with the motor is much deeper so if I point that end towards the nose I’ll pick up a lot more leg room. At the shallow end it’s only 2-3/4” taller than the Slimline. The deep end is5.74” taller than the slimline, so the next step is to temporarily install the dash so that I can figure out how far I can raise it through the foot box.
I tried to compare the A/C capacity to the Slimline. Neither publishes numbers, but the RestoMod Air (RMA) uses a high-output, OEM-style whereas Vintage Air doesn’t. The Vapir III has a high-quality, 20” 4-row A/C coil. I haven’t taken the Slimline apart, but RMA claims that their smallest unit, the Batam II, has more cooling capacity that Vintage Air’s largest GenIV system… who knows, but I think that it’s clear that the Vapir III, which has 18% more capacity, should have a lot more capacity than the Slimline, which you’d expect given the price point.
Unfortunately, the mocking case doesn’t come with heating and A/C connections. The picture below is from their website. Note at all four of the connections exit the case above the motor.