So my last car’s heat was hot. Very, very hot. Bought this 2015 Camry XLE and the heat is just lacking. I don’t know why but I still wonder: is it possible to make it hotter.
I read something online that mentioned changing the thermostat would do the trick, but I know nothing about cars so I don’t know how true that is. Can anyone here shed some light on whether or not it’s possible and if it is, what exactly needs to be done? All comments and opinions are welcome.
Thanks.
Changing the thermostat to higher temp won’t help.
Thermostats open at a certain temperature. Once the thermostat opens and the coolant starts circulating, the engine is only going to get the coolant so hot.
I would look more toward a problem with the blend door operation.
Tester
You also might change the cabin air filter. It could be plugged.
Just out of curiosity, what did you drive prior to this Camry?
I went from an 4 cylinder Honda to a V8 Dodge, and there’s a noticeable difference in the heat the Dodge puts out (and cool A/C as well). I’ve wondered if it had to do with having a larger engine (putting out more heat). But I wondered if something similar might be happening with you.
The thermostat will open at a higher temp if it is so rated. It will close up again if it drops.
Thus it might help. However, I would check on the cabin air filter and blend doors before messing with the engine temperature. Another possibility is that the thermostat is stuck open, and your car never heats up as it is supposed to.
There are a few things you should check.
The first is to check the engine’s operating temperature when it’s at full temp. If you have a temp gage on the dash, you can use that for an indication. If not, you should test the coolant temp. A shop can do this for you with a gage and a test fitting.
The second is to check the flow of fluid to and through the heater core. Again, a shop can do a flow check.
The third is to check airflow through the heater core.
And then there’s the heater fan. If the air blowing out of the ducts is questionable, you may want to test this.
There’s also a solenoid-operated valve that diverts the coolant through the heater core. This could be partially plugged or otherwise malfunctioning.
And then there’re the cabin filter and blend doors already mentioned.
And if you live in North Dakota or Minnesota, you might never get good heat until spring. I used to live in North Dakota, and this is a problem there. If you do, say so and I’ll post some suggestions.
You can get a good beat any time:
Nice catch. I fixed the post.
If you changed from a Chrysler Product to a Camry, you might be disappointed in the heat, my 2012 Camry eventually gets really hot but it takes about 6 times as long as any of my many,many Chrysler products did. And when it does get hot, the floor setting blows on my shins instead of my feet. There is also no way to split the heat output between the floor and defrost without including the dash vents.
often partially blocking the radiator with a piece of paper will increase the heater temperature. The results depend on the plumbing for the heater. If both heater hoses are connected to the engine the paper won’t do much good but if the heater return hose empties into the radiator or the reservoir cabin heat will become warm quicker and the temperature will be warmer. Be careful though.If you don’t pay attention the engine can overheat and that can be very expensive.
Are you in a really cold climate, like Minnesota? If so ask your shop whether partially blocking the radiator would help.
Not a really cold climate? I live in a moderate climate. I have no experience with newer Camry’s, but my older Corolla’s heater really works well, gets very got and very fast. It’s by design, uses a bypass thermostat to achieve that quick heating effect. If your car also uses a bypass thermostat design, one idea, your thermostat isn’t working correctly, possibly stuck slightly open. Would be a little unusual to happen in a 2015, but still could happen. I had to change the thermostat in my Corolla not long ago b/c it was sticking slightly open. As mentioned above, only use a thermostat with the temperate Toyota recommends, don’t change the thermostat part number to a higher temp thermostat to try to increase the amount of heat, b/c that could damage the engine.
It’s possible the problem isn’t the coolant. To test that, when this lack of heat is happening you’d have to measure the temperature of the coolant going into the heater vs coming out. A shop would use a laser-guided infrared temperature measuring gadget to do that probably. Right where the heater input and heater output hose go through the firewall.
Wow, didn’t expect to get so many replies. Thanks to everyone for the help. I’ll answer one by one.
Tester: Thanks.
texases: I’d done that a while ago. It was pretty plugged.But still the heat doesn’t get as hot as my previous cars.
ledhed75: Damn…good point. Went from what I believe (though I’m not certain) was a 6-cylinder 2007 Toyota Camry to a 4-cylinder 2015 Toyota Camry. The larger engine may have been the reason.
melott: Thanks. And not sure, to be honest. I’ll have to look into that.
the_same_mountainbike: Much appreciated, sir. Thank you for the suggestions and the detailed reply. No, actually, I live in Chicago. Gets pretty damn cold out here, too, though. I’ll keep all the potential issues in mind. Thanks again.
oldtimer_11: Nope…from Camry to Camry. And you know, it does get hot eventually (not as hot as my 2007 Camry, for SURE), but yea’, you’re right, it takes forever. Much, much longer than the 2007.
George_San_Jose1: Thanks much, George. Appreciate the help. I’ll jot down your notes and everyone else’s and relay them to a repair shop should I decide to take the car in. Oh, and I’m in Chicago, btw.
@videolife Is it possible that this vehicle is the first one you have had that has auto-temp ? Have you tried putting the system on full defrost to see if the heat feels different there.
It might help to insulate the hose going from the engine to the heater core. There would be less heat loss to the engine compartment, and hotter fluid going through the core.
A few folks have mentioned partially blocking the radiator. I’d avoid doing that, one unexpected warm day and you could overheat.
Until last week, I would have thought this post was nonsense. Then I tested a 2018 model year crossover - a top seller - that I just could not make warm. I tried everything. Even the seat heaters were weak. Weird.
I think they’ve really cut back on seat heater temps due to the liability involved with people that have nerve damage or other limitations that prevent them from realizing they’re getting burned from being too hot and/or too long exposure.
I would not doubt the liability issue weighs in. Some of the vehicles I am lucky enough to test have heaters that really toast your buns and some are barely noticeable at the high setting. Personally, I like it to almost hurt. They can all be dialed back.
There have been two instances in the recent news of seat heaters burning through the seat covers. One was a Mercedes. Can’t recall the make of the other, but the driver was burned. Ii suspect the problem may be more common than is represented in the news.
I’ve learned to turn mine on full blast and then back off as they are still ramping up. So much thermal mass they have a lot of “inertia”. I have about an hour commute. I can turn it on full blast for about 10 minutes and then shut it completely off. This works better for me than the slower, lower temp setting. I get great heat fast but not so much you’re wishing it would dissipate faster. Only thing I don’t like are the controls on the armrest in my truck so it can be inadvertently turned on.