1963 Continetal Heat-AC Issues

What would we do without you Bill.
My 63 sedan is having activation issues when selecting heat and a/c. While replacing the brake booster I noticed that vacuum lines were loose from the “passenger side” as well as engine compartment side of the vacuum hose (for lack of a better word) router for heat and a/c selections.
Page 30 of the supplement for 62 and 63 shows a shield style (lacking a better word) for routing the vacuum lines thru the fire wall. My lines are coming thru a rectangular router which is not shown in the manual and subsequently I have no diagram to show what color hose comes thru the ports of the router.
Exacerbating the problem, the car is from a desert climate and color has dried up and flaked off the lines so a diagram of the rectangular router with line color indicated for the ports is important for my work here. I would really like Chris’s shop to do the work bit distance makes that impossible.
Your thoughts and possible advice will be really appreciated Bill.
My Best Regards,
Bob
—————————————————————————————————————-
Greetings Bob –
We are pleased that you enjoy the Blog.
Your vacuum problems with the ac/heat controls may also include vacuum motors and the main selector switch. If your rubber vacuum hoses are deteriorating though and will not seal properly as you seem to be describing, the first important repair that you should do is replace them all.
It is very important to choose a hose product that is of a high quality in order to have a long lasting repair. Some available products unfortunately have a short durability period.
The 62-63 supplement that I have shows the 63 vacuum diagram with color codes on page 33. It is a Canadian FoMoCo publication and would be all that I have to work with. Your manual should have this schematic as well. Some owners will even color code the new hoses for authenticity and show car reasons. At the time that you are replacing these hoses, the various vacuum motors can be tested at this time. Anywhere that the vacuum hoses are routed can be a candidate for a leak or a failed component.
The selector switch itself would be high on this list. No leaks are wanted of course but the ability of the system to operate decently can be based on the total sum of the leaks in the vacuum system. Small leaks and seepage however will be tolerated somewhat and unnoticed.
We may be able to supply you with quality hoses for this job. When you call us, ask to speak to Erik and mention this blog question. If possible he will arrange to send you the quality hoses that we like to use.
Sincerely,
Bill