HVAC heat blows warm/hot on drivers side, cool/cold passenger side (warranty issue)

[Daox]

Yeah, 160F was very nice considering the coolant temp had already dropped (per the scangauge) to 166F from blasting the heat for a while. I wanted to make sure the duct was fully up to temperature.

I do still plan on doing some testing with the OEM core. I'd LOVE to get my hands on a thermal imaging camera. A friend of mine has one that goes on a phone, but we'll see. The IR temp gun also works pretty good.

[Daox]

Hey it kind of resembles a dash again!

Ironically, I am not going to reassemble it all right now. There are a few mods I am looking at making...

[Eggman]

Do those needlenose pliers and diagonal cutters have anything to do with your mods?

[MetroMPG]

Right hand drive conversion!

[Daox]

Haha, nice guesses! The main thing I want to do before full reassembly is 3d print up some new foot well ducts, but add dampers to them. Anyone else have a significant other who likes to sweat you out? I do. Plus, I normally do drive alone in my car. No use in blowing heat into the passenger foot well 90% of the time. It should be a pretty quick and easy job with the dash out. I'm really not sure why more cars don't have this feature. It would be nice.

[Eggman]

You already had that feature until you fixed it.

[01-7700]

Yeah, 160F was very nice considering the coolant temp had already dropped (per the scangauge) to 166F from blasting the heat for a while. I wanted to make sure the duct was fully up to temperature.

I do still plan on doing some testing with the OEM core. I'd LOVE to get my hands on a thermal imaging camera. A friend of mine has one that goes on a phone, but we'll see. The IR temp gun also works pretty good.

Great work! When you gonna cut that old core open ?

[tytotheler92]

Very interesting.

For whatever reason some cars just have issues with heater cores, some models more then others.

Back in the late 80s when Ford introduced the Vulcan 3.0 liter which has proven itself to become a tank of an engine, it still had many issues with gasket material and machining remnants getting stuck in the heater core and causing premature replacements.

I hope that's not the case here.

[Daox]

Yesterday I finished things up and got the whole dash reinstalled. The process reinstalling is quite a bit easier and quicker than the disassembly. Do keep in mind I really took my time and split this into many days where it could definitely all be done in one if needed.

Anyway, the car now looks like a car again, yay!






The next step would be some testing to verify that things are in fact working and fixed. I did that after getting home from church today. It was 54F out, and I did blast the heat for a while to make sure coolant temperature stayed fairly consistent (watched this with my scangauge), vents were warmed up, etc.

Without further ado, here are the test results.

Driver side vent





Passenger side vent




Previous test:

For reference, the ambient temperature was 25°F, and the coolant was about 170°F.

Here are the readings I got:

125 - 98 - 89 - 79

Attachment 10576

So, I'm pretty happy with the results so far. I kind of measured things back and forth as the coolant temperature continued to drop. Even the last reading I think was partially because coolant temp was still very slowly dropping. We will have to remeasure this as the ambient temperature continues to drop to really know 100% of its fixed. however, as of right now I am very happy.

I will get to the analysis of the OEM core in the not too distant future. I know a bunch of you are waiting on this. However, I'm playing catch up with stuff from putting so much time into the car right now, and also catching up from not having a car and sharing with my wife (and my motorcycle).

I am also thinking about the best way to open it up without getting metal shavings into the end tanks of the core. I'm currently thinking of puncturing a hole in it, and then taking a sheet metal shears and trying to open it up. I'd rather not drill or saw it open. If you guys have any suggestions, let me know!

[01-7700]

I am also thinking about the best way to open it up without getting metal shavings into the end tanks of the core. I'm currently thinking of puncturing a hole in it, and then taking a sheet metal shears and trying to open it up. I'd rather not drill or saw it open. If you guys have any suggestions, let me know!

Cut it almost through with a cutoff disc, finish cutting with a knife. You could fill it with water and freeze it to maybe preserve the insides during surgery.