fastrc2

hello i have a 98 civic hx, and i have seen many people commenting on the water shutooff valve for the heater when complaining about the a/c cooling performance. my car has 98k miles, and i drove my 12 minute drive from work today with the a/c off, just taking int he 80 degree outside air, and it felt slightly warmer, i think maybe than outside. but it may have been the trapped heat saturated int he dashboard. anyhoo, when i got home i checked the heater hoses, and all the way to the bulkhead [firewall] and the lines under the dash int he car were hot. does this mean that the water is flowing more than it should when the valve is shutoff? i guess i know its moving, but i want to know from someone who has a new or newer valve, is it supposed to fully stop all flow? or is a little seepage ok. i DO know that the cables for the heater flaps and the water valve are adjusted correctly, and that the valve is moving when the cable is moved. for what its worth the heat works great. thank you for your help. i just want to know if this vave is affecting my a/c at all. the a/c i put in as a NEW honda option from a dealer and the system has only been in for 1.5 years.

itsmejto

Sometimes it's nothing to do with the water valve ? most cars just redirect the air instead of using a valve. Sometimes it's just the heat from the engine blowing over the hood into the intake vents that can create a temperature rise over ambient temps.



Modified by itsmejto at 8:18 PM 6/18/2008

fastrc2

yea well i know it used both a water valve and flaps to stop the heat, i just want to know how much the valve is supposed to stop the coolant.

fastrc2

anybody else have ideas or thoughts? please?

itsmejto

if it does have a vlave, it's then supposed to shut off 100% or it's leaking by causing the extra unwanted heat. REmove it and test flow it with a hose.

fastrc2

so on a known good valve, if the heat was always off when driving that car, the hoses should be cool?