Modern cars are inordinately complicated machines. Producing them at any sort of scale is only the preserve of larger companies that have serious capital and the means of production. Naturally, these larger companies tend to grow over time, picking up many and varied interests along the way.
If you grew up in the 1990s, you might have noticed that your CD drive wore a Mitsubishi logo. Fast forward to today, and you might have a Hyundai fridge or a Yamaha hi-fi in your home. These aren’t coincidences—they’re examples of industrial giants with their fingers in many pies.
As I recently found out, a surprising number of car companies also make air conditioners! Some are familiar car companies you’ve heard of, but you had no idea they did AC. Others are well-known AC brands that you didn’t know made cars! Read on, and become a hopeless HVAC nerd in addition to being a car enthusiast. It won’t make you any more boring at parties, I promise.
Asian Industrial Giants
Let’s start with the obvious answers first. Mitsubishi is well known for its presence in a wide variety of non-automotive industries. It’s one of the “Big Six” keiretsu firms in Japan—a term used to refer to a group of related companies that have bound themselves together into a larger, more powerful whole.
We typically think of Mitsubishi as a car manufacturer, but Mitsubishi Motors is just one part of the broader Mitsubishi Group. The company actually dates back to 1870, having been established as a shipping company. It quickly broadened into a manufacturer in several fields, spinning off businesses over the years. Mitsubishi Electric spun off in 1921, becoming a major global electronics manufacturer that would enter the air conditioning market in the 1950s. Meanwhile, Mitsubishi Motors became an independent subsidiary in 1970, formerly having been the automotive division of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Hilariously, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is also involved in the air conditioning market, too.
Mitsubishi is one of the most well-known examples for multiple reasons. They’re a major automaker, their product is visible in many of our homes and businesses, and it features the brand’s distinctive triple-diamond logo. Other examples are less obvious, but not any less valid!
You might know that Samsung manufactures air conditioners as well as phones. What you might not know is that the company also builds cars. Samsung tried to get into the automotive world by buying Kia in the 1990s but was beaten to the punch by Hyundai. Instead, Samsung ended up in a partnership with Nissan, and later Renault. It built cars like the Samsung SM5, based on the Nissan Maxima, and had some vaguely unique products and branding. Today, what was once Samsung Motors is now known as Renault Korea. The company has since taken on the French company’s diamond logo, abandoning its unique branding earlier this year. However, Samsung maintains a stake in the business.
Speaking of Korea, we all know Hyundai for cars, but they also build air conditioners! It started as a construction company in 1947, and quickly became one of the most powerful South Korean conglomerates, or chaebol. However, the amalgamated company was split into component parts in the wake of the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis. The appliance arm builds air conditioners today under the banner of the Hyundai Corporation. It’s got pretty much nothing to do with the car company, but it spawned from the same corporate entity.
Tata Group is another great example. The massive Indian conglomerate has Tata Motors to build cars, while Voltas produces a range of home appliances including air conditioners. Tata Motors dates back to 1945, having built everything from the diminutive Tata Nano to heavy trucks and buses. Tata also hilariously owns Jaguar Land Rover. Meanwhile, Voltas got its start in 1954, entering the AC market in the 1960s by licensing designs from Carrier Corporation.
I also looked into Chinese automakers, but couldn’t find many links with the HVAC world. The biggest Chinese automakers are state-owned affairs or partnerships with foreign entities, and don’t have the same sprawling conglomerate structures that you see in the Korean and Japanese business worlds. My search was non-exhaustive though, so there may be a Chinese car company with an air-conditioning link. As for Vinfast in Vietnam, nothing I’ve found suggests that Vingroup makes air conditioners, but I’m unable to be 100% certain as they may have bought out some small subsidiary company at some point in the past.
American Exceptionalism
American auto companies are big sprawling businesses, too. Naturally, a few got into the HVAC game at one point or another.
Nash is a great example, as the company underwent a merger to become Nash-Kelvinator in 1937. Just prior to the merger, Kelvinator had pioneered the concept of the “Kelvin Home,” which showcased the company’s latest home appliances and featured an integrated ducted climate control system. Kelvinator stuck around as Nash merged with Hudson and became AMC, but it was eventually sold off in 1968. The companies had parted before AMC released its oddball “Desert Mode” air conditioning systems.
The Big Three got involved, too. In 1934, Chrysler was building the famous Airflow. At the same time, it established the Airtemp Corporation, which dealt with refrigeration, heating, and cooling systems. A notable early job involved building the HVAC system for the Chrysler Building. Airtemp was sold off in 1976 due to poor financial performance.
Ford got involved in HVAC when it bought its way in, amidst the nascent space craze. In 1961, Ford was building the classic Galaxie. Meanwhile, Philco was an established manufacturer of appliances—including air conditioners—when it was snapped up by the Detroit automaker. The company’s products were rebranded as “Philco-Ford” by 1966. Ford eventually got bored or something and sold Philco to GTE in 1974. It wasn’t a long partnership, but plenty of appliances left the factory wearing Philco-Ford badging, including the Blue Oval!
General Motors has a longer history in this area than both its rivals, however. Nathaniel B. Wales and Alfred Mellowes had developed the first self-contained refrigerator in 1916, and formed the Guardian Frigerator Company (not a typo!) to produce and market them. GM founder William C. Durant got in on the ground floor, investing in the new company in 1918. It became Frigidaire a year later under GM’s ownership. All the way back when Chevrolet was building the Series 490, GM was also going big on fridges.
Frigidaire would eventually get into air conditioners, too, as they use fundamentally the same technology as fridges. It claims to have developed the first practical room air conditioner in 1929, and would also go on to manufacture AC components for GM’s cars, too. The love affair lasted until 1979, when Frigidaire was sold off to White Consolidated Industries.
Pointless Comparisons
Researching this article got me wondering aloud. Do car companies with air conditioning arms make better cars? I suspect it’s not really a big thing, either way, but let’s think about it.
Mitsubishi has certainly made some excellent cars since the broader corporation got into the AC game. Its golden era was probably the 1990s, and it’s been on a bit of a downhill slide since then. Hyundai, on the other hand, has made excellent cars in recent years, though most would have come after the breakup of the grander Hyundai corporation into smaller independent parts. As for Samsung’s cars, they were largely anonymous rehashes of Renault and Nissan product.
On the other hand, the correlation for American automakers is stronger. Nash and AMC were in a strong position when they were still involved with Kelvinator. Similarly, Chrysler, Ford and GM all had AC divisions in the Golden Era of American muscle cars. In fact, once they began selling off their AC investments in the 1970s, we entered the Malaise Era. Correlation isn’t causation, but hey—don’t tell me that’s not an interesting connection!
There are lots of other auto manufacturers that made great cars without diving into HVAC, though. Companies like Toyota, Nissan, and Honda have all built amazing cars. You won’t find their logos on your wall-mounted split system, nor your central heating control panel. And yet, they achieved greatness nonetheless.
In reality, there’s little benefit seen in car production when an automaker gets involved in the AC business. It was at times convenient for automakers to draw on their corporate connections to supply AC components for their vehicles, sure. In the early days of automotive AC, the internal technology transfer was probably quite helpful, to boot. Regardless, the connections were not particularly meaningful or important outside a business context.
Ultimately, this was a very silly article based on a random musing I had on a public holiday. I was surprised to find just how many automakers really had dived into the air conditioning business. Big corporations are prone to winding their way into all kinds of industries, and that’s long been the way. Just remember—if you’re a true car fan, you’ll get a window AC unit to match what you’ve got parked in the driveway. That’s the way.
Image credits: GM, Ford, Philco-Ford, Chrysler, Frigidaire, Mitsubishi, Mitsubishi Electric, Hyundai, Hyundai Corporation, Samsung, Renault Korea, Nash-Kelvinator, Airtemp, Lewin Day
Daewoo?
I bought a home in the mid 90’s that had a 30+ year old Chrysler central heating furnace. Still worked. Brutally inefficient but I got to laugh at the logo every time I walked by. Later I learned they pretty much invented the category. Something to do with spinning it off from their experience heating the Detroit production facilities.
You should include an honorable mention for Sears since they did simultaneously sell a Sears branded air conditioner, car, and motorcycle.
Don’t forget riding mower.
Does Yamaha make car stereos? Because a Yamaha stereo in a Taurus SHO would be subtly epic.
The ancient Frigidaire grandma had in her basement had a by GM logo on the badge!
One thing I noticed is that some of these super corporations have products that ranged from pretty darn good to down right sad. Having grown up in the 70s – 90s, Mitsubishi was one of those corporations that seemed to run the gamut. Their 80’s TVs were some of the best. Better than pre and early Trinitron Sony. Later in the 90s when they made computer components, they sucked. I went through so many Mitsubishi optical drives. I finally swore off the brand’s computer parts after their SuperDrive. Those things were not cheap and they failed on a rapid and regular schedule. Also, when stuff stopped working, I’d open it up to see if something simple like a capacitor or relay could be swapped out. So often I’d open something up and it would have a Mitsubishi Electronics board in it or the sub components that failed would have that triple diamond.
I’m looking at the ductless ACs for a family vacation property and while they seem to be very solid, I cannot shake the feelings I acquired in the 90s.
Regardless of brand, I wish they still made appliances that last more than 10 or 15 years. We still have an early 1950s Frigidaire fridge in the vacation home. Takes forever to cool, but it survived for 5 years outside before being moved inside when the house was built. Sounds like a Sherman tank starting up and could probably deflect a modest anti-tank round.
Can confirm the high quality of Mitsubishi TVs. My dad bought a wood console Mitsubishi TV in the 80’s and it lasted well past the conversion to digital/HD broadcasts.
On a similar note, his parents had a Kelvinator fridge from the 50s that was still working in the aughts.
All of the appliances in the home-ec home of my Kenosha, Wisconsin junior high school were Kelvinators, which I only remember because that’s when I learned of the connection between them and AMC.
I have a Bosch mini split. It’s at least tangential to cars.
Related, our house came with a GM stove, avocado green. Falls under the nothing runs badly for longer…had to replace when down to one functioning burner.
You missed out on Daewoo. Oh Daewoo.
Well that explains why GM has always had fantastic air conditioning. In the 90’s my dad’s C1500 would ice you out compared to my mom’s Probe
After having a GM product of some form for my daily driver for a decade, my Honda is a disappointment in the AC department. If I can’t cut glass on a hundred degree day, the climate control engineers failed.
My wife has a Honda Fit, I know your sweaty pain!
Between my Ridgeline and my wife’s Fit… summer could be better.
No love for Daewoo? 🙁
Back in the 90s I knew a guy who worked for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries as a portfolio manager for their forklifts. He was the guy everyone came to if they needed stuff because he could get really good employee pricing from across the Mitsubishi brands. He daily drove a Mirage, but he has a 3000GT VR4 at home, along with a giant (for the time) Mitsubishi rear-projection big screen TV (it was my first experience with such wonders, as my 27″ CRT seemed massive compared to my folk’s 14″ black and white TV). He was the one who introduced me to the world of conglomerates and their connections to the automotive world. I wish I was still in contact with the guy, as I could really use a heat pump mini-split for my garage…
For some reason, I feel compelled to say I had a Panasonic bicycle in high school.
They still exist in Japan and are highly regarded. Panaracer tires,are still around too.
MST3K taught me that Budweiser made commercial fridges and freezers for awhile.
Which Budweiser? The “King of Beers” or the “Beer of Kings”?
As the owner of a 1970 International 1200D I must add one to this list:
https://live.staticflickr.com/8473/8382604206_fb41e2769f_c.jpg
Came here to say the same, will show myself out
I just learned that IH called their compressor the “tight-wad” and that delights me.
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/734649757940920445/
What about Daewoo? They used to make everything else from aircraft to container ships.
(Something like English Electric, who made fridges and fighter jets)
Both Saab and Volvo each were once (individually, of course) part of a larger company that made fighter jets/tanks as well as cars. I wouldn’t be surprised to see either of those have made an HVAC in their life.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Yamaha ever made an HVAC.
Sony made a car, and they made a “personal air-conditioner” unit. Seems an odd miss on the list.
IIRC Volvo may have had a tie in with Electrolux at one point. My 164 had an Electrolux wiper motor
It always seemed like every GM product I owned, the A/C absolutely kicked ass…
Richard Hammond said (paraphrasing) “GM Starts with a powerful AC system then builds the car around that.”
I had a house from 2004 to 2013 that had a Chrysler Airtemp oil furnace which was installed in 1969. Worked great until the heat exchanger cracked and I had to replace it with a heat pump.
How many HVAC systems last 44 years? You’re lucky to get 10 years nowadays.
My parents first house, built in 1971, had a Chrysler Airtemp HVAC system (refrigerant AC, but heat coils for heat). It ran until the late 80’s when they decided to replace with a heat pump for lower heating costs, still working when removed! Fun fact, in the early 70’s a house with AC was not that common even in the southern US.
Do entertainment equipment next…I want to say Ford made 8 track players at one point?
Philco-Ford made superb mid-century modern televisions in the Predicta line.
I sat in a diner that had one of those Chrysler air temp units in the corner… still working! And this was about 10 or so years ago.
I’ve run across a few over the years. I ran across a Ford Motor Company boiler last month. Decommissioned, but it was still interesting to see.
The content we crave!
Finally!
Mitsubishi, as an umbrella, is more a loose connection of businesses that share a name.
Did the former Fuji Heavy Industries get into HVAC? (Subaru)
No. I’ve seen people claim they did, but only because of a mistaken belief that Fuji Heavy Industries and Fuji Telecommunications (Fujitsu) were part of a Fuji conglomerate. They’re unrelated.
Yeah, but Mitsubishi Electric and Mitsubishi Motors did both start out as divisions of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, before being spun off as separate companies in 1921 and 1971 (or 1988, depending on your definition), respectively.
Of course, still a lot of overlapping shareholdings. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries owns 1.4% of Mitsubishi Motors. Mitsubishi Corporation owns 20% of Mitsubishi Motors and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries owns 1.3% of Mitsubishi Corporation.
Mitsubishi Electric of course still does a lot of business with various Mitsubishi group companies, but dont have much in the way of direct connections with those 3 specific businesses (MHI, Mitsubishi Corp, Mitsubishi Motors)
Japan is full of overlapping cross-shareholding. Banks buying shares in companies to which they lend money, companies buying shares in their suppliers, and back again, is common.
I recently learned that my bank is part of Mitsubishi Financial!
On my most recent visit to the battleship USS North Carolina, I couldn’t help but notice the Mitsubishi-branded window AC units installed in several compartments that were used for events. They were in close proximity to the ships’ “tally wall”, which included images of several Japanese flags representing other Mitsubishi products that the ship had destroyed in the past.
Now that’s ironic, Alanis.
I’m not sure it is. If you think about it, the reason we use so many Japanese and German products today is because those countries know how to make stuff- which is exactly why they were a threat during WW2.
We’re not going to see cars or air conditioners built in Sri Lanka or Moldova, for the same reason that we didn’t have to go kick their butts 80 years ago.
Not to mention the US went all-in on helping them rebuild Japan’s and (West) Germany’s industrial bases and economies after the war was over — with strong trade ties resulting and living on today.
As James May once said, to build great cars, first you have to lose the war.
Sri Lanka does actually have at least one car brand of its own. It’s called Micro. Somewhat befitting the name, they’re not a very big company, and these days they largely sell imported or locally assembled versions of other companies’ cars.