Dispacth Heater not getting hot, just slightly warm

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joyfulnosaj
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Dispacth Heater not getting hot, just slightly warm

Post by joyfulnosaj »

I have just changed from 2000 V reg 1.9td Dispathc to 2002 (52) 2.0 HDI.

So far everything is ok except the heater.

On the older van the heater blows really hot, very nice and cosy.

On the new van the heater barely warms up. The fan works ok and the dashboard controls seem to work (different directions/fan speed/hot-cold).

Is there some sort of control/thermostat on the engine side that could be afffecting this as it is not much fun at the moment.

Any help much appreciated
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Post by spider »

It could be that it is actually not getting warm enough, some HDi's have an extra Eberspächer type heater to warm the coolant.

Does the temp gauge work OK ? or does it read low all the time (thermostat is the usual cause of this)

First things first though, it might just be an airlock.

If you can get to the heater pipes where they pass through the bulkhead (engine bay side) feel them to see if they are actually hot, obviously take care not to burn yourself.

We need to determine if its a fault with the heater panel itself or something actually 'water' related.
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Post by joyfulnosaj »

Spider. thanks for the reply.

I have only had the van three days and so not much info yet.

Yes, the temperature guage has not left zero yet (did actually creep just of the bottom when I left it running parked up for 15 minutes). But the speedo does not work either !!.

The old 1.9TD temperature guage also only just left the bottom, but not as bad as this.

I wil try the water pipes in the morning to see if they get warm and let you know.
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Post by XantiaMan »

Check/change the thermostat. Whilst DI engines take longer to warm up than an IdI, once hot they should be almost as good for heat output. My Transit has an amazing heater after 15 minutes. My old Xantia TD was brilliant too, within 5 minutes it used to let some warmth through.
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Post by joyfulnosaj »

Apologies for my ignorance. Where will I find the thermostat and how do I check if it is working?
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Post by Homer »

joyfulnosaj wrote:Apologies for my ignorance. Where will I find the thermostat and how do I check if it is working?
The thermostat is a valve which when closed prevents water circulating through the radiator. If it is stuck open or missing or opening too early you will get warm water in the radiator top hose before the engine has warmed up. You should be able to check simply by touching it with your hand.
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Post by Chlorate »

You can check the condition of a thermostat by dropping it in a mug and then fill said mug with hot water from the kettle. You should be able to see it opening as it gets hot, if not then she's stuck.
If you want to be really thorough, stick it in a pan on the hob with a thermometer, the temperature at which it should open will be stamped on the thermostat somewhere.

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Post by CitroJim »

An even easier way to test the thermostat is to feel the top hose as the engine warms up. It should stay stone cold until the thermostat opens and then as it does, the top hose should then suddenly (almost) get very hot.

If the top hose warms gradually then the thermostat is stuck open.
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Post by citronut »

also to add to what Sir Jim says

if the top hose starts to get hot/warm straight away, either the thermostat is stuck opon or someone has removed it,

this in its self should not stop the heater getting hot, but if it hes been removed it points to previous owner haveing coolant prob's,

regards malcolm
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Post by Homer »

citronut wrote:
this in its self should not stop the heater getting hot, but if it hes been removed it points to previous owner haveing coolant prob's,
It would at this time of year, you'll get next to nothing going through the heater matrix. Even a petrol would struggle to warm the heater up never mind a HDi.
Chlorate wrote:You can check the condition of a thermostat by dropping it in a mug and then fill said mug with hot water from the kettle. You should be able to see it opening as it gets hot, if not then she's stuck.
That's a good test for one which is stuck closed but it means removing the thermostat. In this case it's suspected stuck open or (more likely) not present.
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Post by joyfulnosaj »

I have the wait and see/touch test.

The into the cabin pipe slowly warms up. The return hose to the radiator stays cold for ages and then slowly warms up, but never gets very hot.

I think I have to face it that I was spoilt with the heat in the 1.9TD and the extra efficiency of the HDI means that it just will never get hot.

Ho Hum. Just think of the better mpg and wear thick socks.

Thank you all for your very useful tips and feedback. I now have a speedo problem and will post separately.
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Post by citronut »

you will be best just post this in one area on here rather than running the same topic on the pug and cit area, :wink:

regards malcolm
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Post by Old-Guy »

joyfulnosaj wrote: The into the cabin pipe slowly warms up. The return hose to the radiator stays cold for ages and then slowly warms up, but never gets very hot.
I can assure you that an HDi engine WILL get properly hot provided:

a) There is a thermostat fitted and it isn't stuck open.

b) the engine has run long enough to get hot (no more than about 20 minutes even in this weather).

When Jim said the TOP hose SUDDENLY gets VERY hot (next to the engine), he means exactly that. In this weather, the top hose at the engine should either be very hot (80ºC or so) or cold. At tick-over in very cold weather, the top of the hose can be hot and the underside cold. I know, I burnt my hand on the top hose on Saturday morning after checking and topping up the coolant. The top of the radiator was barely warmer than the air, the top hose was at 80ºC (Ouch!) while the underside was almost cold.

All the evidence indicates that you have not got a working thermostat. There's no evidence that your temperature gauge isn't working perfectly - the engine is cold!

The purpose of any thermostat is to ensure that the engine reaches the designed operating temperature (typically 80ºC - 90ºC depending on the engine) as quickly as possible and stays at that temperature.

The heater at max temp and fan speed will slow down warm-up but not stop it. Leaving an engine idling to warm up isn't very good for the engine (and wastes fuel) - the best strategy is to wait only long enough for the heater (at no more than ½ fan speed) to de-ice/de-mist the screen and front windows before driving off. If you switch on the rear-screen heater and the head-lights, this increases the load on the engine and makes it warm up quicker. The vehicle interior will warm up faster if the heater is on re-circulate but don't forget to switch back to fresh air as soon as it's warm.
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Post by joyfulnosaj »

Ok. So the thermostat looks like it is stuck open (the top hose warms up very gradually on idle).

I see thermostats cost around £25.00. How easy is it to replace (where is it on the engine - do I have to refill radiator, or take out any airlocks etc) ?
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Post by myglaren »

citronut wrote:you will be best just post this in one area on here rather than running the same topic on the pug and cit area, :wink:

regards malcolm

Agreed Malcolm, locking the other thread with a link to this one.
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