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Car Forum / Chevrolet / Chevrolet Corvette / November 2005

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Heater Problems

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Pappy - 19 Nov 2005 16:38 GMT
The heater in my friends '90 does not heat up, no matter what the temp
setting.
Ideas?

THX
WayneC - 20 Nov 2005 02:40 GMT
> The heater in my friends '90 does not heat up, no matter what the temp
> setting.
> Ideas?
>
> THX

I'm not familiar with the Corvettes in that series, but in general for
most cars there is a valve somewhere under the hood inserted in the
smaller (1"?) hoses that go from the engine water pump to the heater
radiator core and back (through the firewall) to the front of the
engine. The valve is usually smaller than the palm of your hand, and
probably has 3 hoses attached to it. It may be electrically or vacuum
operated. It's job is to allow engine coolant to pass through a small
heater radiator under the dash when heat is called for, or divert it
right back to the engine via the heater return hose if no cabin heat is
needed, so if it sticks closed, or if it's electrical or vacuum signal
is disrupted (electrical short, vacuum leak, corroded connection,
malfunctioning cockpit control, blown fuse, etc) while it's closed, it
will not open when the driver activates the heater controls. Often these
valves stick closed during the long summer of dis-use. The valve usually
isn't very expensive to replace.

There are other possibilities, of course:

- the heater controls in the dash are malfunctioning and not sending a
signal to that valve, which is more difficult to fix.

- the hot engine coolant is flowing in the heater core, but the heater
blower motor is not operating at all (generally your ears tell you the
blower is/isn't working, or your suddenly colder feet tell you it is);
ie, bad motor or it's not getting electricity or has a bad ground
connection.

- the air vents that direct air through the blower motor and heater core
or to the dash and feet vents are not opening in response to the
settings the driver made (the dash heater controls, or the
vent-actuating solenoids somewhere under the dash are bad).

Start with the diverter valve in the engine compartment.
PJ - 20 Nov 2005 02:49 GMT
> The heater in my friends '90 does not heat up, no matter what the temp
> setting.
> Ideas?
>
> THX

Manual AC/Heating controls or electronic climate control??
PJ
Steve - 20 Nov 2005 15:51 GMT
Have you ruled out the thermostat?

That seems like one of the first things to check, just thought I'd toss
it out there.... :-)
Pappy - 20 Nov 2005 17:09 GMT
The car can be driven for an hour, and the air does not get warm at all.
You can hear a "clunk" when you turn the heat on, and the fan blows cool
air...

:-(
> Have you ruled out the thermostat?
>
> That seems like one of the first things to check, just thought I'd toss
> it out there.... :-)
WayneC - 20 Nov 2005 17:36 GMT
> The car can be driven for an hour, and the air does not get warm at all.
> You can hear a "clunk" when you turn the heat on, and the fan blows cool
> air...

The "clunk" is almost certainly the air vent doors being actuated, and
the cool air blowing indicates the fan is working, so find and check out
the bypass valve on the heater hoses that I mentioned in my prior
post... older cars used to have that valve under the dash, manually
operated, but since the late 60's it's been in the engine compartment
and remotely operated.
Dennis Willson - 21 Nov 2005 05:53 GMT
> Have you ruled out the thermostat?
>
> That seems like one of the first things to check, just thought I'd toss
> it out there.... :-)

That's a good question.. What is the engine temp? Is the engine getting
to full operating temp?

Dennis
RicSeyler - 22 Nov 2005 16:23 GMT
I'd like to hear something on this also.
My '94 doesn't get hot either.
It runs around 190-200f.
It gets luke warm but not hot.
I seeing that it gets luke warm I'd figure that the door is moving.
I wonder if there is a heater hose shut off valve under the hood?
Guess I better break out the service manual and see if there is a flow chart
for this problem.

>The heater in my friends '90 does not heat up, no matter what the temp
>setting.
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
>
>  

Signature

Ric Seyler
Online Racing: RicSeyler
GPL Handicap 6.35
ricseyler@SPAMgulf.net
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--------------------------------------
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- H.J. Simpson

Dennis Willson - 22 Nov 2005 19:25 GMT
It could also be a "clog" in the heater core. If your engine is running a full temp, then either the air is not being completely
directed through the heater core or the heater core is not flowing any hot water (valve, clog, ect...)

> I'd like to hear something on this also.
> My '94 doesn't get hot either.
[quoted text clipped - 13 lines]
>>
>>  
RicSeyler - 22 Nov 2005 21:49 GMT
My first plan of attack will be searching for a underhood valve, cuz
I'm not looking forward crawling under that dash and removing all the
panels to get access. I get dizzy now-a-days when I'm upside down
under a dash.... Old age I guess ;-)

> It could also be a "clog" in the heater core. If your engine is
> running a full temp, then either the air is not being completely
> directed through the heater core or the heater core is not flowing any
> hot water (valve, clog, ect...)

Signature

Ric Seyler
Online Racing: RicSeyler
GPL Handicap 6.35
ricseyler@SPAMgulf.net
http://www.pcola.gulf.net/~ricseyler
remove –SPAM- from email address
--------------------------------------
"Homer no function beer well without."
- H.J. Simpson


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