heat issues in the car

[IROCdan330]

didnt know where to put this...and everyone checks the lounge it seems


i cant figure out why i dont have heat in the car, i open the vents, turn on the heater/defroster and whatever else...and all that blows out is semi warm air...not real hot air like it used to.

yesterday i popped the hood and coolant was all over the place where the reservoir is...the cap was a tad loose, i tightened it. the radiator cap was a tad loose as well, so i tightened that too...tested to see if i had heat...and i did.

i went for a drive tonight...and its back to blowing non-hot air out again.
my coolant also seems incredibly low again. i cant see where its going, and its not dripping outside of the car or inside the car (the heater core is new).

what could be wrong?

[BigAls87Z28]

Is the car heating up? Possible that you will need to add more coolant so that there is more to go around.

[CrAsH]

and double check the tubes r going to the right place

[jims69camaro]

it just sounds like you're low on fluid. running it low for any length of time puts a strain on the heater core. you don't want to have to change the heater core. watch your temperature gauge. don't have one? good idea to put one on - it really puts the mind at ease that you can check the actual temperature instead of just watching the needle go between H and C.

check to make sure the drain **** on the bottom of the radiator is closed. that is one of the biggest :oops: people make after a swap.

[GP99GT]

Itll blow cold/semi warm if theres not enough coolant in the system for it to be going through the heater core. Why you saw coolant all over the place, couldnt tell ya.

[IROCdan330]

i think ive got a bubble in the system or i just didnt have enough coolant and the block is STILL filling itself.

the temp gauge while waiting in inspection line got up to about 220...i moved forward and it dropped to 180 again...

its got a 180 stat in it. the unexplained coolant loss i cannot figure out because its not dripping anywhere...

and the drain thingy at the bottom of rad is closed.

[jims69camaro]

in that case, i'd completely drain the system and refill it. you don't want to have to change the heater core.

[IROCdan330]

in that case, i'd completely drain the system and refill it. Â*you don't want to have to change the heater core.

it is brand new if it makes any difference.

[BigAls87Z28]

If you are losing coolant, and there seems to be no physical leak, I would take a look at your oil. If it looks like chocolate milk....then we got problems.

[jims69camaro]

in that case, i'd completely drain the system and refill it. Â*you don't want to have to change the heater core.

it is brand new if it makes any difference.

which, the radiator or the heater core? i'm saying that flushing the system and refilling it will save the heater core. they don't put up with too much abuse, new or otherwise. if you either don't have enough fluid or you've got a bubble in the system, then flushing will rid that problem.

not only that, but you'll be able to monitor the amount of fluid going in so you know you have the correct amount.

[IROCdan330]

heater core is new and i will look into it Jim thank you.

Al, if my head gaskets are shot that fast id get scoggin dickey up here to not only replace my engine but to swap it themselves...howev er the oil is lookin very clean still...dont know if coolant+synthetic does the whole chocolate milk thing.

[Fasterthanyou]

Sounds like there is just a lot of air still in the system. It takes a WHILE for the system to self-purge. Sometimes it'll never fully purge. When doing the heater core, why not fill it up with water? Then run the car with the radiator cap off and watch for bubbles. When the thermostat opens up you'll notice the level in the radiator go down a bit, this is when you top off the radiator and wait until no more air bubbles come up. That's the best you can do sometimes and do NOT fill the overflow tank. That tank is there for expansion. It's safe to fill it up to the cold line but don't go filling it up past that.
Another trick is while the engine is running, squeeze all the soft rubber lines. The stock heater core hose routing always traps air (tube goes up, then down, then up). Good luck.

[IROCdan330]

I took off the rad cap today, started the car up...she still throws an EGR code on cold start Jon...

anyways...i flipped on the heat...and watched...air bubbles out the ass. so i let the thing run for about 15-30 minutes, i stuck a pen barely in the throttle to keep it at about 1500 to promote getting hotter faster...it got more air out...i periodically got in the car to check the status of the air coming out. the thermostat opened and the coolant level dropped...we topped it off...put the cap back on...air was blowing quite hot.

if it were winter time im sure it wouldve been more noticeable...but she wouldnt have started if it was winter time.

[IROCdan330]

ok obviously the air wasnt blowing hot at all...must have been the ambient air...this morning it blew cool...we begin looking at stuff under the hood...everything seems to be in order.

so, we take off the panel under the dash...and the little door mechanism that controls hot/cold air movement is completely snapped in half. dont know how it happened. we tried to rig it so that the remaining piece would work, but the remaining piece also snapped in half. the metal is fragile as anything ive ever played with.

now im hunting for that little assembly...does the dealership have them?

[Tru2Chevy]

ok obviously the air wasnt blowing hot at all...must have been the ambient air...this morning it blew cool...we begin looking at stuff under the hood...everything seems to be in order.

so, we take off the panel under the dash...and the little door mechanism that controls hot/cold air movement is completely snapped in half. dont know how it happened. we tried to rig it so that the remaining piece would work, but the remaining piece also snapped in half. the metal is fragile as anything ive ever played with.

now im hunting for that little assembly...does the dealership have them?

Is the piece that is broken part of the actual HVAC control unit? If so shoot me a PM....

- Justin

[IROCdan330]

I have no clue Justin...the piece that broke, connects to the wire that is connected to the hot/cold sliding selector. it looked like a triangular piece of aluminum that had a tab sticking off of it, which in turn connected to the wire. its the thing that opens or closes the door for air flow.

[Tru2Chevy]

I have no clue Justin...the piece that broke, connects to the wire that is connected to the hot/cold sliding selector. it looked like a triangular piece of aluminum that had a tab sticking off of it, which in turn connected to the wire. its the thing that opens or closes the door for air flow.

Hmm....I'd have to look at mine (which is currently apart because I'm switching to a non-AC HVAC control unit) to be sure. I have the original control unit that was in the car, that's why I asked.

- Justin