weak heater

[nosegrindR]

The cabin heater in my car blows...I drive a 240sx, and honestly the car doesn't get warm until about 10 minutes of driving. I warm up my car for about 5 minutes before i drive it, but it's still cold. Anybody else get this problem??

[ryder_23]

yep, i sure do. u crank up the heat, even when engine is fully warm, while i'm moving or even a stand still, the heat is blowing cold air, very wierd

[nosegrindR]

so is there anything i can do to fix this besides the obvious of getting a new heater?

[jayq]

check your belts if they are loose, thermostat. a new heater core is expensive and i've never heard of a heat core going but who knows

[nosegrindR]

thanks homie

[3G]

thermostat?

[jayq]

Originally posted by Mx6GtTurbo
thermostat?

yah the thing that regulates antifreeze to the engine? if it crapped out then you'll have issues like the one above

[Ben]

Might just be life, when its minus 20 out you aint gonna get hot air 30 seconds after start. yesterday when it was Minus 24 outside when I left for work it took 6 or 7 min to get HOT air going, and I have a great heater. Also, keep in mind starting your car and letting it idle will take FAR longer to get warm than hopping in and driving it right away.

[nosegrindR]

Originally posted by Ben
Also, keep in mind starting your car and letting it idle will take FAR longer to get warm than hopping in and driving it right away.

aaa? how?

[GTS Jeff]

heater core flush

[rice_eater]

it's probably as simple as you not having the right mixture in your antifreeze, or you haven't changed it in so long that the chemicals are breaking down. So flush your cooling system and put in the right mixture of antifreeze and water. Fix that first...if it was your thermostat you would be overheating as the thing would be stuck closed or half open...And yes...the bitter cold outside is a big factor too.

[Ben]

Originally posted by nosegrindR


aaa? how?

Car has far more exothermic reactions at varying rpms than at idle, and with more fuel being combusted, more thermal energy is being released, thus the thermal energy transfers to the coolent (which runs trough your heater core) in a shorter amount of time. More combustion occuring in less time = coolent warminf far faster

[Chris Ng]

For a quick and simple test to determine what is causing your lack of heat, bring your car up to normal operating temps.. open your hood and find the coolant lines that run enter the firewall to go into your heater core.. there should be 2 hoses, the input and return lines... now grab the hoses and feel the hoses and check that both hoses are the same temps... If one of the hoses is hot while the other hose is only lukewarm or cold, then your problem is a blocked heater core or faulty bypass valve (if your car has a bypass) .. do a backflush on the heater core...

If both hoses are the same temperature, then check for a faulty thermostat that could be stuck open.. if this is the case you'll usually find that your car takes quite a while to get to operating temps and also notice that your coolant temp gauge in your car tends to rise and fall quite often as your drive around... replace the coolant themostat..

[ZMan2k2]

Originally posted by GTS Jeff
heater core flush

Bingo. I had an old car that never got warm. I even had the rad covered with a piece of cardboard, that didn't help. I swapped the thermostat, nothing. I went to one of those quick oil change places, and they hooked it up to this machine that reversed the coolant flow through the motor and washes out all the gummy white crud that eventually blocks up the fins in the rad and the heater core. Costed about $70 and took about half an hour, but it worked like a charm. And I was extremely happy, cause removing a heater core is a pain in the azz.

[5.9 R/T]

CLR for the flush. Does wonders!

[88CRX]

what would be the problem if i flushed it and it worked.... but now (2 weeks later) its back to sucking again?

[Chris Ng]

Originally posted by 88CRX
what would be the problem if i flushed it and it worked.... but now (2 weeks later) its back to sucking again?

Leak in the system allowing air which then settles in the heater core... if you are sure you have no leaks in the system, it's possible that you allowed your overflow bottle to run dry at some point and air would be drawn in the system that way

[turboMiata]

Originally posted by ZMan2k2

I went to one of those quick oil change places

Which one? I've been trying to find one.

[ZMan2k2]

Originally posted by turboMiata




Which one? I've been trying to find one.

Can't remember the name of the place, there's so many, but it's on the NE corner of 16th ave and 14th street NW. To get to it you have to be going west on 16th and it's just before you go over the bridge over 14th street.

[sputnik]

Heater cores should be flushed every 10 years or so... If you want to do it yourself its pretty easy after getting it out of the car.

Flush it with warm water first... cleaning out the remaining antifreeze.

Then fill it with Muriatic Acid and let it sit for a bit and give it a gentle shake every couple minutes.

After about 15 minutes drain out the acid and you should see tons of crap pouring out of it.

Then rinse with warm water again to get out the remaining crap and acid.