2007 Duratec, 101,000 miles, ATX. The heater used to blow very hot air in about two miles after startup. Now it just produces luke warm temps. I checked the coolant level and it is at the lower mark on the resovoir when the engine is cool, so it is correct according to the manual.
Heater not HOT, just Warm?
1 - 20 of 21 Posts
Joined
·
1,662 Posts
i'm lucky if mine blows warm before i get to school (10-15min drive) the colder it is outside then longer it is going to take to blow warm. i'm actually amazed they don't put a small electric heater that will work till it can switch to the heater core.
Joined
·
2,623 Posts
i woulld do a coolant flush
Joined
·
12 Posts
Could need a coolant flush or the thermostat could need cleaning up
Joined
·
523 Posts
thermostat either works or not, no need to clean it. Are you getting to running temperature? If the engine doesn't get warm enough then thats why you're not getting enough heat: it radiates all of the heat it produces. Try replacing the thermostat by one from the dealer, its about $15. I would not buy an aftermarket one, they tend to be less reliable and not designed on par with the Ford OEM one.
Try this and good luck.
PS You need to remove all the coolant before doing this. Would be a great time to flush the coolant and replace it. Remember to get the exact same thing that is in there.
Try this and good luck.
PS You need to remove all the coolant before doing this. Would be a great time to flush the coolant and replace it. Remember to get the exact same thing that is in there.
Joined
·
22,770 Posts
First off, let's check that. The CHT is fairly accurate, but I don't know if the gauge that's in the dash is very accurate. You can use the electronic odometer to get a digital readout in C of the temperature. You'll have to cycle through about 20 of the 30 functions of the electronic odometer test mode until you come across one that reads like this: [-5 C]. The actual readout will depend on the temperature, if the engine is running, then that number should be climbing. It will climb to about 92 C, then drop down, and rise back up again. That's because of the thermostat opening at 90 C. This is normal operation, and you'll clearly be able to see the thermostat opening, cooling the engine, and then closing again. You won't be able to do this idling in the driveway while it's cold outside. I suggest doing it on the way to work.
Now, if you find that the thermostat is working correctly, but you still have no heat, then I would assume that the heater core is clogged. A complete home DIY coolant flush (I would personally not pay anyone for this) is not very easy to do while it's so cold. I'd simply flush the heater core. This will expel a good amount of coolant anyway. You'll have to remove both heater hoses from the engine, then put a garden hose in one and run it until the water runs clear out of the other hose. Now put the water hose in the other heater hose, and run it until it runs clear out of the other heater hose. This takes about 5 minutes- total. Reconnect, add the appropriate coolant to fill the radiator. Drive the vehicle around, and check the coolant level again. That should be it.
Joined
·
22,770 Posts
OH I forgot to add, even though your vehicle's gauge is going to the middle, I think you're going to find that your actual engine temp never gets out of the 80-90 C range when you do the elect. odo trick- if it even gets that high. If the temp never gets to 90C, then that's a sign of a thermostat that is stuck open.
I have seen a few clogged heater cores, but really it's much more rare than a stuck thermostat because this particular design flows coolant through the core continuously, and that makes it rare for the core to clog up.
I have seen a few clogged heater cores, but really it's much more rare than a stuck thermostat because this particular design flows coolant through the core continuously, and that makes it rare for the core to clog up.
Joined
·
923 Posts
The heat in my car wasn't blowing as hot as usual just "kinda" warm. Figuring after 200K miles with the original thermostat I thought it might be time to replace it. Swapped in a new one and the car warms up much faster and the heater blows hot now. Quick and simple thing to try at least.
Joined
·
523 Posts
Mine was due at 90k. Its really not that hard nor expensive.
Heater not Hot
Well, I done the flush and inspected the Blend Door Actuator. Everything is fine and in working condition, but the heat is still not as it use to be. Could this be the Thermostat ? I really hate to buy one and install and it not be it since the Thermo is built into the housing. The dealers want around $220.00 but I can get it from their supplier for $164.00. Yes, these figures are correct, the cheapest is One Hundred Sixty Four Dollars. I spoke to a Service Manager and they told me that they could connect a laptop to the car and find out what exactly is wrong with it, any thoughts.
cold feet
Well, I done the flush and inspected the Blend Door Actuator. Everything is fine and in working condition, but the heat is still not as it use to be. Could this be the Thermostat ? I really hate to buy one and install and it not be it since the Thermo is built into the housing. The dealers want around $220.00 but I can get it from their supplier for $164.00. Yes, these figures are correct, the cheapest is One Hundred Sixty Four Dollars. I spoke to a Service Manager and they told me that they could connect a laptop to the car and find out what exactly is wrong with it, any thoughts.
cold feet
Joined
·
5,898 Posts
Hey Herman,
Been a bit chilly in your neck of the woods the last couple of days. I'm thinking a working heater would be much appreciated [
]!Give your local Ford dealer Service Manager the opportunity to diagnose the Focus properly. They'll also be able to inform you if the needed repair will or will not be under warranty coverage.
Also, Owner.Ford.com provides warranty information as well as available parts for your Focus. Check it out when you have a moment.
Keep us posted on them cold feet!
Noemi
Heater not blowing hot air- I fixed my problem today
Problem with 2002 focus. Heater blows only cool air. The flipper in the heat/cool dial works with no problem and there is no suspected problem with the thermostat (as I replaced it last year).
Fix. turn your car on, let it run for about 10 minutes to heat up. Then, locate the heater core hoses going into the cabin (they are black hoses right next to each other). If you don't know where they're located, here's a brief description. One of the hoses leads from the top of the radiator to the cabin past the thermostat housing into a connection at the cabin wall (then into the heater core). the other hose goes from the thermostat housing to the cabin into a connection at the cabin wall (then into the heater core). the hoses are one on top of the other at the cabin wall close to the center of the wall in the lower portion of the wall. They are black and about an 1 OD. They are a little difficult to reach, but definitely reachable unless you have a very large arm.
After the car heats, feel both hoses at the cabin wall. If both hoses are hot, that means the coolant is properly circulating and the heater core is not the problem. If only one or neither hoses is hot, then you have a blockage which needs to be cleared.
One of my hoses was noticeably cooler than the other. So I figured that was the problem. I disconnected the top black hose (which was the cooler hose) at the cabin wall with some pliers by pulling back the hose clamp, which is the most difficult part of the job. I then disconnected on end of the other hose, although not at the cabin wall because I couldn't easily reach the clamp holding the hose. I traced the hose away from the cabin wall and noticed it had a connector close to the thermostat (on the cabin wall side of the thermostat, not at the radiator) which allowed me to disconnect it at that point (by loosing the clamp). I then forced water into the connection at the cabin wall with a water hose. At first, the water didn't want to go in very easily. After 30 seconds or so it got easier and it was apparent the clog was cleared (at least a good part of it). I then reverse forced water at the other end, connected everything back. I had to put in about a 1/2 gallon of antifreeze that had drained out when the hoses were unhooked. I started the car up. At first, I was disappointed because the air was still cool even though the temp gauge was at operating temperature. So I revved it up to about 2800 rpm and wala, the heat was hot. Pretty Sweet. I haven't test driven it yet, but think its fixed.
On a somewhat different note, about a year ago, I replaced my radiator, waterpump and thermostat because my temp gauge would go up almost to the red. I had a shop do the work and after all that work, it still would read near the red on drives longer than 30 minutes or so (but not all the time). The mechanice told me he was sure it was a temp gauge problem-computer sensor issue.
However, I'm hoping it may have just been due to this clogged heater core. We'll see.
Thanks to focus fanatic's I've saved a ton of money on fixing it myself. (with 3 different fixes).
Below is my problem and how I fixed it.
Problem with 2002 focus. Heater blows only cool air. The flipper in the heat/cool dial works with no problem and there is no suspected problem with the thermostat (as I replaced it last year).
Fix. turn your car on, let it run for about 10 minutes to heat up. Then, locate the heater core hoses going into the cabin (they are black hoses right next to each other). If you don't know where they're located, here's a brief description. One of the hoses leads from the top of the radiator to the cabin past the thermostat housing into a connection at the cabin wall (then into the heater core). the other hose goes from the thermostat housing to the cabin into a connection at the cabin wall (then into the heater core). the hoses are one on top of the other at the cabin wall close to the center of the wall in the lower portion of the wall. They are black and about an 1 OD. They are a little difficult to reach, but definitely reachable unless you have a very large arm.
After the car heats, feel both hoses at the cabin wall. If both hoses are hot, that means the coolant is properly circulating and the heater core is not the problem. If only one or neither hoses is hot, then you have a blockage which needs to be cleared.
One of my hoses was noticeably cooler than the other. So I figured that was the problem. I disconnected the top black hose (which was the cooler hose) at the cabin wall with some pliers by pulling back the hose clamp, which is the most difficult part of the job. I then disconnected on end of the other hose, although not at the cabin wall because I couldn't easily reach the clamp holding the hose. I traced the hose away from the cabin wall and noticed it had a connector close to the thermostat (on the cabin wall side of the thermostat, not at the radiator) which allowed me to disconnect it at that point (by loosing the clamp). I then forced water into the connection at the cabin wall with a water hose. At first, the water didn't want to go in very easily. After 30 seconds or so it got easier and it was apparent the clog was cleared (at least a good part of it). I then reverse forced water at the other end, connected everything back. I had to put in about a 1/2 gallon of antifreeze that had drained out when the hoses were unhooked. I started the car up. At first, I was disappointed because the air was still cool even though the temp gauge was at operating temperature. So I revved it up to about 2800 rpm and wala, the heat was hot. Pretty Sweet. I haven't test driven it yet, but think its fixed.
On a somewhat different note, about a year ago, I replaced my radiator, waterpump and thermostat because my temp gauge would go up almost to the red. I had a shop do the work and after all that work, it still would read near the red on drives longer than 30 minutes or so (but not all the time). The mechanice told me he was sure it was a temp gauge problem-computer sensor issue.
However, I'm hoping it may have just been due to this clogged heater core. We'll see.
Thanks to focus fanatic's I've saved a ton of money on fixing it myself. (with 3 different fixes).
Joined
·
85 Posts
Are you saying that the Foci don't have a heater core shutoff valve that's connected to the cold/hot blend control? On other vehicles I've owned, there's a valve that blocks off flow to the heater core if the controls are on cold.
I don't know the answer to that question. I just followed some advice seen on some of the focus threads regarding clogged heater core. I should know in a few days whether the hose flush is a good fix or just temporary.
Joined
·
3,044 Posts
That is correct--there is no heater control valve in the Focus. The heat is "shut off" by blend control only.
Joined
·
48 Posts
Thanks for the suggestion WHYNOTTHINK.... My Focus is showing +90 to +100 degrees C but the output inside the vehicle only gets up to + 110 F using a window thermometer Now, around here in January, it is very cold. How do I get a garden hose to flush out the heater in THE MIDDLE OF WINTER? I think your advise and suggestion is the answer to my low temperature output. BTW - WHAT do you (or anyone else) think about driving my Focus around with the coolant flush juice in the cooling system - would that loosen the gunk inside the heater core? Maybe if I took 'er out on the highway - doing 50 - 60 MPH then maybe the heater core would clear or become unclogged - any suggestions???
Joined
·
50,838 Posts
Wish I could remember temps right now, stick a probe type (like a kitchen one) in the dash outlet but usually just look at it for A/C temps..
Remember that the heater temps can be 20* colder on high fan than low, just can't remember the normal for sure right now. Might be 140-160 measured inside the outlet, could even be 160-180 when fully warmed up.
Remember that the heater temps can be 20* colder on high fan than low, just can't remember the normal for sure right now. Might be 140-160 measured inside the outlet, could even be 160-180 when fully warmed up.
1 - 20 of 21 Posts
