Takes waaaaay too long to get heat

[irtySanchez]

Well, I am posting this for a friend with a problem:

He has a 97 Explorer Eddie Bauer with a SOHC V6. When he starts his Ex, it takes him a good 15 to 20 minutes for heat to blow thru the vents. He does have the electronically controlled system with controls for the rear also.

I told him it could possibly be a t-stat or the heater control valve.

Anyone have any ideas????

 

[MONMIX]

No clue, mine gets warm in about ten mineuts and gets roasting in about twnety. I love it.

 

[ChuckyD]

Does he have the Stock T-stat? did he buy the X used, if so who did he get it from?

 

[Alec]

If his temp gauge always reads low, even during spirited and highway driving, then it's probably a bad tstat.

 

[ChuckyD]

Yeah, it sounds like you have a bad T-stat.

 

[unpredictable1]

What if your engine temps are normal, and the needle moves normally, except it takes forever to start blowing warm air, and then even longer before it gets hot....

heater core?

 

[lonestar]

Maybe there is a vacuum leak that opens and closed the valve allowing hot coolant into the hearter core. Open the hood and look on passenger side for heater core hoses coming out of the firewall. THere should be a valve that opens and closes as the Temp controls are moved from AC MAX to PANEL.

 

[redShift]

Are you talking about 15-20 minutes to get warm air to blow when its sitting idling? Thats about how long it takes me.

But when Im driving it takes about 5 minutes to get warm air and another 5 to be hot.

Thats on mornings where its in the mid-20's, not too cold.

 

[JLP]

I dont have the automatic climate control but thought that the "heat" mode would not run the fan until the engine is warm to keep the system from blowing cold air on you while the engine warms up. As also stated if the temp gauge takes a long (more than 15 min at idle) to come up to temp prob a bad T stat.

my .02

 

[STANN]

I would say its a bad t-stat. I took the X in to get the t-stat replaced and while they were in there they said that the heater control valve was shot and something else to do with the heater was leaking. I was surprised at first and didnt believe them b/c the heater would get quite hot (once the engine warmed up) even though it was apparently "broken". I told them to go ahead and fix the heater stuff (only because my mom was footing the bill ). Otherwise i wouldnt have done it because i think the total was around $650 or something.

 

[unpredictable1]

I changed my t-stat today, those bolts are a pain in the @ss!!! man o man.

my old t-stat had to be the original, rusted n decayed like you wouldn't believe. i popped it out with a screw driver (it was stuck in there good)

when putting the new one in with the new rubber seal, i put some rtv sealnat that i used when doing the epectric waterpump on my trans am around the lip of the t-stat housing and bolted it on. nice n tight.

cept i dropped a bolt (the one on the passenger side). theres no hope in hell of getting it, so i put another lip of rtv around the t-stat housing aqnd ran her for about 20 minutes...no leaks so i hope all is well.