Heater Problem

[Dickie3068]

Hi

 

I have a Galaxy V6 1998, good car but it has started to smell when you put the heater on hot and it steams the windows if A/C is not running.

As I have to top up he radiator very two months so I know I have a small leak, does any one know if there is a valve that could be leaking under the dash or is it a new heater matrix job.

 

Dickie

[seatkid]

There's no valve but before you jump to conclusions, be aware its common for windscreen to steam up with a/c off due to poor drainage from the a/c condensor. In this case its also common for musty smells due to bacterial growth in the a/c condensor/heater.

 

The small leak might be due to a duff pressure cap, also make sure you don't overfill it, it will blow off anything over the max mark.

 

Having said that, the VR6 seems prone to heater matrix leaks......

[Guest stevebm1]

IS THERE ANY WATER DRIPPING FROM THE LOWER HEATER VENTS IN THE FOOTWELL?,ARE YOUR CARPETS WET?

[Dickie3068]

Thanks for the replies

 

I have have water dripping into the footwell but only once and it did not seem to come from the heater vents.

 

Is a heater matrix change going to cost me a fortune as it seems that to get at it you have to remove half the interior

 

Dickie

[seatkid]

Is a heater matrix change going to cost me a fortune as it seems that to get at it you have to remove half the interior

Yes, thats why I say don't rush to conclusions.....

 

Topping up every two months is not the quantity of water that would steam up your windows. I think you just need a new pressure cap.

 

What I would do is run the heater on full blast heat and fan for a long while (on a dry day) without the a/c say half an hour. See if that makes a difference. At the end you should not get any misting (high heat, lowish fan setting, to windscreen)

 

When you run your a/c on max cooling (hot humid day) do you see water dripping underneath the car?(rear bulkhead), if not then the a/c drainage is blocked and the condensed water is building up in the evaporator unit. It will need unblocking and an antibacterial treatment done.

 

Alternatively get a pressure test done on the cooling system (this may make any leak much worse)

[Guest stevebm1]

changing the heater matrix has been covered before on this forum.do a search,but its not a job for the faint hearted!be warned.

[Dickie3068]

I have not seen any water under the car when the A/C is on max so I think you may have hit the nail on the head.

Where exactly is the drain for the A/C and whats the best method of cleaning it?

I am off to my local dealer to get a new pressure cap (should be fun as I am an EX-pat living in Berlin Germany and trying to explain to the locals can be quite hard)

 

Dickie

[Ivor_E_Tower]

I have not seen any water under the car when the A/C is on max so I think you may have hit the nail on the head.

Warning - if you are going to hit nails into the car, make sure that you don't puncture any pipes !

 

From experience of other cars, I'd be very careful about unblocking a/c drain pipes from underneath the car - usually they terminate above something else, to stop road dirt from accidentally going up the drain pipe. The surest way is to attack the problem from inside, and poke a metal rod (eg old coathanger) down the drainhole to unblock it. I have previously worked on my parent's old car to do this - the dealer said that thay had cleared the drain by blowing from underneath, and of course when I had a look, I found that you couldn't get to the pipe outlet from underneath. Once I opened the heater plenum, I could see that the drain was blocked, so brought out my trusty old coathanger and fixed the problem in seconds.