In the 1930s, if you wanted to travel in air-conditioned comfort, you needed a “swamp cooler” attached to your car window. Their use continued until the sixties when modern air conditioning became a regular feature on mainstream cars.
A car swamp cooler, which typically hangs on the passenger front window, is filled with cold water and balsa wood shavings in a wire cage. A large opening in the front of the cooler allows hot air to enter the cooler, evaporating the water. Cooler air is then blown into the car’s interior. The wood shavings help retain water and create better air flow.
Lower cost coolers allow the air to enter only when the car moves. However, some luxury units have an electric fan that circulates the air even when the vehicle is stationary. Most coolers hold enough water for about two or three hours of cool-air goodness. The colder the water, the better the heat exchange.
These days, swamp coolers are also an automotive fashion statement. Classic car owners paint the units or add pinstripes to match their cars. Very few drivers put them to use—beyond decoration. But the basic technology still works, and there are few other good options for classic cars that lack AC.
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