Ok, sorry it took so long.

I did have a chance to talk to a refrigeration expert, and it seems that a downstream accumulator mounting is not the way to go. I'm not entirely sure I could explain all the reasons why (he can, me, not as much so), but it has to do with the "flooded" nature of the evaporator in this sort of system. Basically the evap is to have liquid refrigerant pretty much throughout it, and needs to have the space of the accumulator to allow the refrigerant to expand/gassify/boil into in order to absorb the passenger compartment heat.

Sorry it's not what you wanted to hear.

MV