My heater won't switch to floor.

Have the same problem in my Fox. An even on rare occassions, cold air will blow out of the footwells even with the controls on heat. I had someone check the vacuum to the control unit which was good, so it's probably either the control unit or the vacuum servo. I haven't gotten around to finding out more.

Hopefully someone else can reply with more authority. Please post here if you do get it solved, I'd love to hear the answer.

Well, FWIW, this function is controlled by a vacuum servo in the rabbit.

Bill

Hi, Hmm, in our '85 Golf the diversion of air flow to the floor, vents, or dash vents is done with mechanically linkages between the levers and the diversion doors. No vacuum lines or actuators. A long shot, any chance you've put in a new radio or had it serviced? On our '85 (gas) I've had the radio out and after putting it back in, the wire bundle interferred with the selector levers. Removing the radio and rearranging the cable bundle solved the interference.

My experience with vacuum operated vents is with rental cars. I noticed there's a slight delay between moving the selector or dial and when the air flow actually changes. Plus I can hear faint hissing sound as the acutators do their thing. On the other hand, with the all-mechanical linkages, the change in airflow is pretty much instant and no hissing sound. That might help you determine if you have mechanical or air actuated vents.

-Tony

I can't swear to it or say why I'm under this impression (maybe it's in the Bentley manual or something) but I believe that non-AC ones are mechanical and AC ones are vacuum.

Hi, That's consistent with our '85 Golf with the mechanical vent controls: it doesn't have AC. (But we're contemplating AC in our next car, not for the summer time, but for the fall and winter to clear the condensation on the inside of the windows in a jiffy).

-Tony, Vancouver BC.

I'm also 99.9% sure that is correct.

I think what put me under the impression is that the "off"position for A/C cars is part of the slider whereas for non-AC cars it's part of the fan switch.

All I know is my A/C Fox and my A/C Rabbit have vacuum lines running through the firewall. My non-A/C Rabbits did not.

Back to the issue at hand -- I don't have a book for the Golf, but my Fox book shows the footwell vacuum servo positioned inside the dash, between and slightly below the ignition switch and the central air outlets. Hope that helps.

check the vacuum hoses/pipes to the reservoir and the reservoir itself. Probably a vacuum leak. default should be defrost.