How good is you're heater?? brrrr

[wright_t5]

Hi,

Need to gather some information about how good other peoples heaters are in the V70 Phase 2 models...

I have a "Police" estate, 03 plater.... the heater controls are pretty basic, a fan switch, air-con button and termperature control for left and right.

The temperature gauge moves up fairly quick and remains static for all driving conditions... so I don't "think" the thermostat is at fault.

The heater takes ages to "feel" hot, well hot is the wrong word, warm is a better description...

The car inside does eventually get warm, but never gets so warm you have to open the windows...

I wonder what might be wrong, or if it's the way they are??

Maybe this particular model has it like that because the occupants are always "well" dressed and would get hot if it worked like a proper heater!!! - just a thought..

Any hekp out there?

[princepugh]

My Phase 2 T5 starts kicking out warm air very quickly and I usually put the fan on when the temp gauge gets to the first mark on the scale. Rarely have to turn it over fan position 3 and have CC set within 24-26 during the winter.

There was an article on here recently about the temperature beign down on one side of the car - might be worth searching that out for a clue.

[wright_t5]

Umm, interesting....

Does anyone know the internal workings of the thermostat? generall Volvo have wierd and wonderful things, or the thermostat might just be a simple design..

The sympton gives me the thought that the stat has gone, but the gauge appears normal all the time, so I am confused... Other Volvo's and T5's I have had have all had good heaters!!!

[princepugh]

http://www.vpcuk.org/forums/showthre...ht=temperature

Is the recent post I was thinking of..

[wright_t5]

Umm, I suppose it could be that both servo motors are faulty!!!

But even air from side vents and windscreen vents are at the same termperature...

roll on Summer....

[thebadger]

Of course you're heater matrix could be shot. Does it have AC? If so, consider a clean & re-gas?

[rocket ronny]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/RAF-WWII-SHEEP...item6d6e3c06f9

[abdul]

volvo heaters have never been good compared to some cars

[streaky744]

beg to differ the really old t5 i have has a belting heater and warms in no time and my old v70 was the same. sounds pretty much to me like heater matrix may be slightly blocked or another cause could be a blocked pollen filter if car is fitted with one. (causes heater to struggle on bmw's if pollen filter is blocked so could be same on volvo)

but knowing my opinion totally wrong

[britten_mark]

A T5 heater should be awesome, you have a fault. Thermostats are cheap and should be changed routinely at high miles even if they don't appear on the service schedule. Changing from an 88 degree to a 92 degree will also give a startling improvement.

It may not turn out to be the root cause in this particular situation but it won't hurt.

[rocket ronny]

volvo heaters have never been good compared to some cars

what????? volvos are swedish ffs a country which has very long and very harsh winters i lived there for two years and -30 wasnt uncommon, therefore they design the heaters to be very good i havent had a volvo yet that didnt have a fantastic heater, very quick to produce warm air and lots of it , if your volvo heater isnt very good then theres a reason

[Porcine_Aviator]

Sounds like your heater needs a once over, maybe a flush out of the system and a change of thermostat. Before you start with the servos get your rads checked and see if the aircon one is OK.

Christine our V70 T5 chucks out a lot of heat and heats up quickly, so it sounds like a flush of the system would help.

[thebadger]

My heater usually belts out hot air within 5 mins of starting the car. I'm only dissapointed with the power of the blowers, I find that they are very weak most of the time.

I'd guess the thermostat is a good shout. The flush of the coolant system may help a lot too.

[straight5]

I have always thought my S60 T5 heater is pretty impressive. It is warm within about a minute.
I have noticed that diesel vehicles seem to take a lot longer to heat up than petrol. Anyone know if this is true.

[cornclose]

Yes, I think they do, at least that's my experience of diseasal vehicles. There was a thread recently discussing this, I think one of pedro's.

[jardon]

I haven't had a heater matrix since november and ice on the inside was a reality during the cold snap. Even with hat, scarf, gloves I had to sit on one hand to stop myself losing feeling and my feet were numb. I'll be installing a new one for next winter!

[LeeT5]

I have always thought my S60 T5 heater is pretty impressive. It is warm within about a minute.
I have noticed that diesel vehicles seem to take a lot longer to heat up than petrol. Anyone know if this is true.

Yes this true. It's just the very nature of diesel engines, they ALL take longer to heat up than petrol engines. Totally normal

[LeeT5]

Nowt wrong with the heating or fans in my car. 99% of the time i just leave both temp settings on 21 or 22 degrees and the ACC set to 'Auto'. From cold, withing a couple of minutes the fans start to speed up inline with engine warm up and then the windscreen clears very quickly. Then once the car has warmed up and it's all nice and cosy, the fans speed slows down and it remains comfortable.

[wright_t5]

Ok, so looking back..... It looks like I have a problem, or at least trends are that heaters are ok... I think mine has an issue.... so plane is to flush, new stat, and a hose flush through the matrix... check filters ( if I can find them ) and see where that leads...

Thanks for the tip of a big fleece!!! LOL...

Oh, and yes, Diesels are always cold, which when you're stuck in a traffic jam is a god send, they never overheat, due to running so cold!!!

Thanks chaps.... you're a great help.

[LeeT5]

Ok, so looking back..... It looks like I have a problem, or at least trends are that heaters are ok... I think mine has an issue.... so plane is to flush, new stat, and a hose flush through the matrix... check filters ( if I can find them ) and see where that leads...

Thanks for the tip of a big fleece!!! LOL...

Oh, and yes, Diesels are always cold, which when you're stuck in a traffic jam is a god send, they never overheat, due to running so cold!!!

Thanks chaps.... you're a great help.

Also don't forget to replace your pollen filter (if you have one). This will have a dramatic affect on the quality and quantity of air coming into the cabin. If it is a charcoal filter then it will look grey anyway. If in any doubt - change it. I replace mine every year in the spring so i know my air con will be working to it's full potential. Misty windows are a PITA.