I have tried three times to have my car heater serviced. It still will not blow air hot enough for the coming winter months. The radiator service man wants to try it again this time letting the flushing liquid sit for five to six hours. Will this do any good?
you might have a stuck heater/ a/c blend door. the blend door actuator might need to be replaced.
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Take it to a different independent shop. Adequate coolant flow through the heater core should be easy to determine. Unlikely coolant flow is blocked.
As weekend-warrior mentioned, blend door is much more likely.
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Thanks for responding. I will look into the replacement of the blend door.
Any other cooling system problems , recent, or in the past? Is engine reaching normal operating temperature within 15 minutes after start-up? Coolant replaced every 3 years or so? Does your CR V have its original radiator?
Thank you for responding. No problems in the past, temp gets to normal quickly, and the radiator is original. Is eight years about the life of a radiator? I do want to keep the car as it has low mileage and has been well maintained.
In my experience the modern aluminum radiators of today’s vehicles tend to last 10-15 years before they spring a leak. The copper radiator on my 50 year old truck is original, but is starting to show signs of its age. It’ll have to be replaced soon.
If you’ve been replacing the coolant every 3-4 years, I doubt this problem is a clogged heater core. Even if you haven’t, clogged heater core is unlikely the cause. As mentioned above it’s probably a problem with the airflow under the dash, hvac door problem, not opening, not closing, stuck midway, blower not working, etc. Do you ever hear a repeat clicking sound under the dash ?
One experiment I do when I suspect a heater core clog is to feel the temperature of the two hoses that go to the heater core. If you want to try this yourself, ask someone experienced where they are located. Be careful as there are rotating parts that can grab you or your clothing in that area. One of the hoses supplies hot coolant, and the other removes colder coolant. There should be a noticeable difference in the temperature between those two hoses. This experiment is done after the engine has warmed up, and the passenger compartment heat is set to max.
Nope, maybe only 5 to 10 degrees, usually not noticeable because they’re to hot to hang on to.
A noticeable difference would mean the coolant isn’t flowing through the core very good.
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