I cant get any realistic heat from my civic, here's what I've done:

- Changed engine to a d16a6 to get more heat
- Changed coolant
- Changed thermostat
- No air bubbles in coolant
- Heater linkage is working
- Popped the heater core access pannel and it was pretty damn hot, no burning hot, but hot.
- Removed the AC bypass and cleaned out a few leaves from below the heater core
- Tested the heater valve flap thing and it works.
- Tested the blower
- Flushed entire system
- Disconnected hoses to core and filled it with pure radiator flush and let it sit for 10 minutes
- Flushed heater core with water


So now my question is: Why dont I have any F#$%ing heat!!!

The air from the ducts is lukewarm at best and even with the heater on full for 30 minutes (it's currently 32F here) the car doesnt get extremely warm.

I'm this close to installing a propane torch on my dash and insulating the car with some fiberglass


Modified by Jet Black at 4:48 PM 12/11/2004

 

you've done pretty much everything except flush your entire system. I would pull those hoses off going to the heater core and flush them with a hose. If that doesn't work get a new core. As long as that flapper on the bottom of your dash behind the radio is still working then you should have heat.

 

I've got the exact same problem.

Ive tested and tried everything, remove air from lines, checked linkages.

The only other suggestion would be what vitrox said. Take the hoses for the heater core off the firewall on the engine side, and flush it out with a hose. Flush from the inlet side to the outlet (upper to lower).

Im gonna try this when I get some free time.

 

did it used to work and then it stopped? if so, did you do any work to it around the time it stopped?

 

SOrry, I forgot to add the following:

- Flushed entire system
- Disconnected hoses to core and filled it with pure radiator flush and let it sit for 10 minutes
- Flushed heater core with water


I dont know if it ever worked any better, I just got the car.

 

On the passenger side right behind the center console, there is a lever that if pulled to towards rear it opens up the heat side of your blower unit. Also leave the radiator bypass open and try all that.

 

I live in MN(COLD!!!) and I always have to put cardboard or something in front of the radiator to block off most of it to get any heat. These cars only have a small amount of water in the system and when its this cold it just cools down too fast when it goes through the radiator. When it gets down to -15 the car will only put out enough heat to clear a small spot on the windows. I quit driving my Civic in the winter.

I would try "backflushing" the heater core. Take both hoses off and force water into them one at a time. This might force out anything in there and give you a little more heat.

 

been there. done that. i flushed and flushed my heater core. eventually i just drained the system, pulled the lines, and filled that sucker up with radiator flush and let it sit for a day. when i flushed it again i started getting all kinds of crap out of it. repeat process. got better heat but not great. on my old pos dodge work van i put another heater core in line with the one that wwas already there. i wire tied it to the inlet of the inside air for the vents. cheapest heater core at autozone was 25 bucks. 8 bucks worth of hose and clamps, it was great after that.

 

I have the same issue. It takes forever for the heat to come out even though the engine is at operating temp.

 

find the lever under the centerconsole, pull it towrds you, and you should get some heat. mine did the same thing, it was like the **** was stuck on ac, and i couldnt get heat... so i pulled that ****** towrds me and boom i got some heat, also try the cardboard thing

 

what happens is there is a plastic clip that breaks on the back of the heater controls, only way to fix it is to pull the entire thing out. I fixed it on my 89. just a bit of cyano glue works wonders.

 

I was gonna suggest the lever under the dash, too. the temperature cable is clipped in there, just pop it out, turn the temp **** on your climate controls all the way to hot, make sure the lever under the dash is all the way in that direction, and reattach the cable.

There is also a second one in your engine bay, on the firewall, just below and to the right of your fuel filter. It's connected to a valve that controls the water flow to your heater core. Use a screwdriver or something to release that clip by popping it up on the right side of the clip. The top piece reaches down around the bottom part on the right side, so you have to pop it open from underneath. It's a little tricky if you've never seen it. I couldn't figure it out when I did it, and so I just busted it apart and learned the hard way. Anyway, repeat the steps above for adjusting that cable.

Hopefully it's not your controls that are broke. I've been through 3 of them already, and they're a bitch to work with!

 

Well I guess I'll just give up on getting heat from the ******

Thanks for all the suggestions, but as mentionned above, I checked all the controls and valves and such, they all work properly and open properly with the heat controls,

I've even touched the core and its fairly hot, and the control flap you guys are refering to does redirect air through the core, but I'm still not getting any decent ammounts of heat. The only other thing I can think about is to powerwash the heater core with water ...maybe its got a cover of some gunk that's making it difficult for the core to conduct heat to the air.

 

Well, yer last option would be just replacing the heater core itself. You might as well, they're fairly cheap. A bit of work to get it in there, but hey, at least you'll have heat.

 

Maybe I'll have heat

Dammit, ironically its now too cold outside for me to take on the job of replacing the core

 

I know what you mean. I spent almost 6 hours outside yesterday changing my rotors and replacing the missing heater ducts that connect the far left vents. It was 32 degrees and snowing all the while. leave it to me to put it off until the *very* last second!