chrisl757

All,
I am happy to report that I HAVE HEAT AND IT IS HOT.

I flushed the core several more times back and forth with full pressure from the garden hose. I took some pictures that I can post later, but basically, I didn't have enough pressure the first time I flushed it.

This time there was so much probably a tablespoon or more of junk in there: RTV sealant, mud?, metal flakes and dirt.

This makes me think I need to do a full coolant flush also.

But I drove around the block and my hand nearly burnt off as I held it by the floor vent. Never felt so good.

I think the key is to really really flush that core out. Mine had/has a lot of junk in the coolant that is going to take several flushes to get out. I wouldn't be surprised if I have to do this a few more times to keep cleanign it out, but she is HOT now!

brandon402

Wish I had a similar story. I took my entire dash out and inspected all doors and they activate as they should. I looked into the door that opens when you put the slider on vent, and when you look to the right inside there, you can see another door that is activated by pushing the lever from red to blue on the temp controls. That door works great.

If thats the blend door, then mine is fine. Next I guess ill try what chris did and see if that fixes it. I had that power flush done at tires plus and I assumed that did it, but who knows... nothing else to try at this point. Pretty frustrating day. The only plus is that I successfully replaced all of my ccv stuff with alternate parts from napa which only cost about 50 bucks. Although, on the down side, I think my head gasket may be on its way out, noticed some milky brown at the tip of the oil dip stick.

If it aint one thing its another......

VARG7

I HAD THE EXACT SAME PROBLUM what i did was try flushing the heter core out but little did i know my hose war frozen lol so i poured eater into it with a hose i connected to it and plew as hard as i could. so then i was sceptictal on that valve so while i had it out i figueured id check it out so that was wicked messed up on the inside and was rusted closedso i freed it up and as i was tighten the clamp it broke. so i got a cut off wheel and cut it off and cut a hose to lenghth put it together can tada i got heat i prob still need to flush it but i think its a good idea to check that

brandon402

Well, after talking with Yorkite on the phone tonight and hearing how fairly painless it is to do the heater core and how awesome his heat is now, I decided to go pick one up. Between chris' success with the extra flushing and yorkites success with a replacement... I figured what the hell, ill just go get one. Besides, it wasnt too bad pulling the whole dash out anyway.

So, back to the hobby shop I go tomorrow and will do my heater core. Wish me luck! Oh, and I'll remember my camera this time and take pics.

yorkite

Yeah, new core was the way to go for me. I tried everything else including flushing with the hose at full blast like Chris did - I'm glad that worked for him, that would definately be my first choice. The core wasn't too bad. Still a sucky job though....

There is definately a difference between the old and new core in comparison. The fins are set really close on the old - almost like a mesh, and the new one's fins are spaced out kind of like a radiator.

I'm thinking between dust buildup and corrosion is what did mine in.

Brandon, feel free to give me a ring if you get hung up on it. I may have some time to drop by and lend a hand if needed.

All in all, it was a very fun day for me - I also had to replace my driver's window motor too, that was pretty fun trying to get that big 'ol regulator out and back in through a hole the size of my hand. I should have taken pics. I had about 2 inches of snow sitting in the door, and the motor was cracked in half along the housing.

brandon402

Yea, I thought about doing another flush, but then I started thinking... "Odds are, this core is the original from 89, thats 21 years of use, might be a good idea to just suck it up and replace it..."

So, im here on base right now, waiting for the hobby shop to open up so I can dig into it. Ive gone over the instructions at least 4 times now and im confident I can get it knocked out. I may just completely pull my dash out again, I mean.. as it stands right now its not completely back together anyway. We'll see though.

And J, yea I'll definitely give you a holler if I get stuck. Thanks bud!

brandon402

Wow.... whatta complete pain in the @ss!! Took me about 4 hours but survey says.......... HEAT! I need to burp the system though to get it at true temps, but yea I gots heat fellas! For the first time this winter I rode around without a coat on. It was awesome.

And I dont care who says what, that damn job is a HUGE pain. So much so, that if I ever have to do another one, I wont. Ill pay to have it done. Thanks for everyones help!

brandon402

uhm.... wtf.... now im overheating? Any ideas?

Abovetimberline

Burp it again,is your guage erratic? it will be if the block is not full of water.

yorkite

4 hours? Wow, you did way better than me! By the time I got the final screw back in and system free of air, I think it took me around 6 1/2. Was well worth it though in my opinion - I try to stay away from the repair shops if I can. Especially considering they get paid average $80/hour or more, and parts are retail or stealership prices.....I'll take the $40 part at O'Reilly's, and my time/labor's cheap. AND they would have had to go through all the troubleshooting we all did = more labor charges.

Brandon, you definately came out ahead dude, let's say if you did take it to the shop, (this is probably a low-ball figure) they would have charged you the $80/hr @ 5hrs., and $80 for the core...there's $480 bucks!

brandon402

Yea, but I also had most of my dash pulled. Anyway, I dont know wtf to do now. Shes overheating a needles width or two past 210. Im also NOT experiencing the "lava-like" heat yall are. Mine is considerably warmer than its ever been... but not nearly as hot as yall are talking. Im so sick of this damn thing......

J, could we maybe compare xjs sometime? Theres got to be something Im overlooking.

yorkite

I would suspect that you still have some trapped air in it, but I'm no mechanic. When I first got mine last summer, It always hung out at 210. You're just a little bit over that. The only thing I can suggest is keep trying to burp it by just loosening the temp sensor.

Just give me a ring if you want to meet up sometime...lately you'd be likely to find me at the auto parts store!

brandon402

Ok, for clarification, explain the burping method at the temp switch. You have it on when you burp (meaning, the engine is running)? Then crack the switch just a bit to see coolant flow out? If so, thats the method Ive been using.

brandon402

Whelp, i think my roommy and I have stumbled on a really good way to burp the system. Did a cycle tonight and will do at least 4 or 5 more tomorrow. Hope this does it. I have literally gone over EVERYTHING in this system, new core, new stat (3 times), filled full of coolant... Nothing is leaking at all. This burping has GOT to be the answer.

I also can definitely tell new door seals would help quite a bit. I do feel a draft every now and then from the doors.

goobs_63

Well i have warm air ! but it is none of the problems listed it is yet another deal. The blend door works good, it switches to wherever when put there and the recirc door opens only when on max ac. The trouble with mine is when the blower is on it blowes the cold air from outside or before the heater core somplace between the firewall and the heater box. Its allot of cold air though and it blows good through the vents. My simple fix for now until i get time to take the dash out and replace the heater core beings its out anyway i just stuffed a few rags between the box and firewall, pretty cheesy i know but it seems to work pretty good. Thanks to all of you who put their thioughts and expierences into this