Hi guys,
I am in need of some brownie points with SWMBO. The heater on her Ka doesn't work, which is obviously a problem on these recent cold mornings. All the controls seem to work OK, the engine gets hot, but the interior doesn't. My prime suspect is the thermostat: possibly stuck open? If so, how do you remove the air filter housing to get at it?
Thanks,
Steve.
If the engine gets warm it's not likely to be the thermostat.
This might help- from this newsgroup:
Look at how the car works! Look at what the thermostat on the engine does and you might unerstand it has NOTHING to do with the supply to the heater matrix. It's been posted here many many times.
Looks like my daughter wont be getting a pre 01 Ford KA/Fiesta, dont like this heater issue, or the random rust. Some are immaculate from 1995, some covered with bubbles and only 2002.
*But* if the stat is stuck wide open then shortish trips to work on cold mornings may well mean the whole system never gets hot enough to generate noticeably warm air.
Oh yes, I forgot to add a !. Put it wherever you want to.
I apologise for not having read any of them. I am obviously a bad person.
Change the heater control valve- 2 jubliee clips and an electrical connection- its on the bulk head behind the engine.
Tim..
Less clueless than somebody though.
From the 11 September 1996, you mean. That's when the Ka was launched.
Yes. Just like their owners.
Noted with thanks.
At least "Norm" may have redeemed himself by including that link to the other thread, which contains the testing procedure for this. I'll try this this morning, and keep you posted.
Steve.
OK team, it looks like the heater control valve: temp' control to halfway, engine running, no "feel" of a solenoid operating.
I connected my circuit tester to the electrical connector and it flashed, so the control circuit is working.
Left hand hose (presumably the input from the engine) gets hot, right hand one (presumably the output back to the engine) is just lukewarm.
FYI, it is not on the back bulkhead, but inside it, under the "scuttle" panels - time consuming, but not impossible to get at. Also at least 4 jubilee clips, but that is not a problem until I come to change it - probably next Saturday.
Now all I have to do is ring my local Ford dealer and find out how much one costs. However, it will be a lot less than having them fit it as well.
As it is quite high up, I presume that, whilst some coolant loss is inevitable, I shouldn't find myself with a biblical flood?
Steve.
Sorry it was late and my brain half asleep, I did intend to say bulkhead
*under the plastic skuttle panel* !Anyhow, you will not get much coolant loss due to it being high up, especially if you sandwich some plastic under the rad cap to airlock it.
If your Ka has the Ford type-Pink coolant, pick up a litre bottle from the ford dealer when you visit- this is NOT intermixable with any other type, though Halfords do their own- its more expensive than from Ford!!
Also dont be embarressed to ask the parts man for a discount- most will give you 10% at least.
Tim..
In message , "Tim (remove obvious)" writes
Ford don't do the pink stuff any more. Its now a purple colour with the same spec and it is intermixable with the pink stuff.
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