Airconditioning Heating function no longer working

[KiwiTT]

My Climate Airconditioning System will only blow cold air now.

What is likely to be wrong and what do think it will take to repair?
Could it be as simple as a fuse blown or something more major?

... old cars eh!!! ... not urgent, with summer approaching but will need to be looked at before Winter gets here again.

[foxdie]

These cars don't have a heater element for a fuse to blow, they use heat from the coolant system of the engine. If the blower is blowing fine but only cold air, that kinda puts the problem in one of 3-4 different places;

1. Coolant system issues such as being bone dry, thermostat problem, airlock, heater matrix damaged etc
2. Electrical failure of the HVAC unit or its temperature sensor (is the hose connected behind the panel?)
3. Mechanical failure of the actuators behind the dashboard / center console
4. Something I've probably missed that some other kind soul will fill the blanks in on ;)

[Wodjno]

First thing i would check is your coolant level. If level is low it probably won't show on your temp gauge and this will cause no hot air through the heating system.
Then i'd check that the pipe on the rear right of the control unit hasn't popped off first. ( have you had the centre console out recently?)
Then i would check that the vent is actually moving from hot to cold. the motor and mechanism for this is in the passenger footwell, up and behind to the right of the glove box. They sometimes jam, catch, snap or just fail.
Failing any of those, there is a temp sensor that is behind the dash, pig to get to. But it can fail or even become dislodged from the little hole it resides in(Only held in with piece of tape)

Cheers

Wodj

[KiwiTT]

Taking it into the mechanic on Monday ... he seemed a bit concerned when he said it maybe the thermostat ... so I decided getting it looked at soonish rather than later was a good thing.

[Davezj]

ii don't think it will be a thermostat issue causing you problem as the thermostat as i think the thermostat only opens the water flow to the radiator, and the heater matrix is always in the hot water loop as it comes off the back of the thermostat housing. the water still flows round the engine block and all pipework even if the thermostat is closed, it only the radiator that gets bypassed when the thermstat is closed.
if it is a closed thermostat then the engine should overheat even at idle.

it will probably be just a stuck flap in the heater diverter gismo behind the centre console. you could have a listen to the servos under there and check that you can hear them moving when you change where the air is blown from. then you can actually get you head under the passenger footwell area and see if the servos are still connected to the flaps via the connecting rods, there may even be a deadicated fuse that controls the flaps, check them.

the other ting you can do is feel the heater matrix pipes as go throungh the fire wall when the engine is hot, both of them should be hot.

i can't think of anyting else at the moment.

[SEAN-NZ]

mechanic probably just wants to make money, he will replace it, wont fix the issue then be like, oh well, atleast you have anew thermostat lol

[KiwiTT]

I don't think my mechanic just wants to make money. He often does small jobs for me and does not charge.

[Davezj]

it is worth checking the bits i suggested to pin point the issue.

[KiwiTT]

Well a new development. I can now now hear clicking in the dash behind the vents, where it is attempting to do something that lasts about 1 minute and then stops. The Mechanic says he will try to look and see otherwise he may have to remove the dash to get at the box and that is an 8-10 hour job $$$$

The car is only worth about $1-2,000 on the open market now, if that, and it may cost that to repair it. I just don't know if it is worth spending that amount of money on it, as much as I love it. But a newer car would at least cost $15,000, which I would rather take my time in choosing.

[KiwiTT]

Well a new development. I can now now hear clicking in the dash behind the vents, where it is attempting to do something that lasts about 1 minute and then stops. The Mechanic says he will try to look and see otherwise he may have to remove the dash to get at the box and that is an 8-10 hour job $$$$

The car is only worth about $1-2,000 on the open market now, if that, and it may cost that to repair it. I just don't know if it is worth spending that amount of money on it, as much as I love it. But a newer car would at least cost $15,000, which I would rather take my time in choosing.

[wintertidenz]

The clicking will be due to something jammed open, and then the motor turning off to prevent damage. I'd agree with Dave's suggestion to check those first yourself - it could be a very quick, easy fix.

The dash doesn't need to be completely removed - the centre console bits need to come out, and the ducting removed according to the 8G manual I have. You could remove the dash in a couple of hours if you were so inclined - ask Jeremy (CANDEE) as he's got his dash out at the moment and could probably tell you how to get to the air con bits quickly and easily.

[Wodjno]

Well a new development. I can now now hear clicking in the dash behind the vents, where it is attempting to do something that lasts about 1 minute and then stops. The Mechanic says he will try to look and see otherwise he may have to remove the dash to get at the box and that is an 8-10 hour job $$$$

The car is only worth about $1-2,000 on the open market now, if that, and it may cost that to repair it. I just don't know if it is worth spending that amount of money on it, as much as I love it. But a newer car would at least cost $15,000, which I would rather take my time in choosing.

Sounds like a jammed servo. Could even a cable stuck in the way. Only the side centre console panel needs to be removed and the glove box (5-10mins) No need to remove the whole dash. (Unless the Mechanic is now trying to recoup the cost of all the little jobs he did for nothing before) :D

[swinks]

Whole centre dash removal will take max.2 hrs, if you know what steps to take and few tricks then it's 1 hour.

[KiwiTT]

All fixed. It was a servo gear broken. 2 hours work + a replacement servo gear.

[wintertidenz]

Good result then!

[Davezj]

glad you got it sorted

[elnevio]

Yay! :sunny: