173 replies to this topic

[haggi961]

I haven't got steel bolts only stainless steel. So annoying as I would of liked to of finished this tonight.

[out on the bike]

Just fitted mine today only major problem was removing the screen wash bracket one bolt was missing which was probably for the best as the other two just span as the riv nuts were loose so I had to cut them off and replace the riv nuts still got it done in a day.Also I should have bought a new battery as when I got it out I saw a sticker on it saying tested 2004 so it looks like my car still has its original battery hopefully when it finally dies its replacement will last as long.

[Tony H]

My fez heater is stuck on hot regardless of knob position. What should I check?

[fezzasus]

My fez heater is stuck on hot regardless of knob position. What should I check?

 

Unplug the connector going to the valve, put the heater dial in the mid position and use a multi meter to measure the voltage. If it's constant 12v then you need a replacement controller. Is this is the earlier one or later one? (later ones have a potted controller with a plug, which are fully potted and therefore much more weather resistant, earlier ones have to be wired into the circuit and tend to fail)

[haggi961]

Hey Tom, any ideas why my car temp is slightly running higher after fitting the heater?

[fezzasus]

Hey Tom, any ideas why my car temp is slightly running higher after fitting the heater?

 

Yup, the heater pulls out more heat from the hot water flowing from the engine to the thermostat, so the thermostat opens later.

[pezley]

Just a note that may help, my fez heater often sticks on hot but I have found if I put it on cold and restart the engine it will work correctly. If I start the engine with it on hot then It will be like that until next time it's started again. Odd but certainly not a problem considering the other benefits it give me... such as warm toes  

 

I have also found that the inlet tunnel that the heater connects to under the dash has a nice 2 mm gap all around it which was the cause of letting in cool air from the foot vents when moving at speed. It's a pain to get to but once I had sealed it all up it was so much better !

[haggi961]

Hey Tom, any ideas why my car temp is slightly running higher after fitting the heater?

  Yup, the heater pulls out more heat from the hot water flowing from the engine to the thermostat, so the thermostat opens later.

Anyway I can reduce it other then running a cooler thermostat?

[siztenboots]

My fez heater is stuck on hot regardless of knob position. What should I check?

  Unplug the connector going to the valve, put the heater dial in the mid position and use a multi meter to measure the voltage. If it's constant 12v then you need a replacement controller. Is this is the earlier one or later one? (later ones have a potted controller with a plug, which are fully potted and therefore much more weather resistant, earlier ones have to be wired into the circuit and tend to fail)

need to check this on mine , stuck on hot

[ee601]

Fitted my 2.5 today (and yesterday - I'm not much of a spanner expert) and though I haven't fit yes the dash back properly yet (going to get it covered while it's off..) I've just offered it into position so it's just resting a few cm higher than its supposed to when fitted, and even like that there's loads of warm / hot air coming through. Tom - what a fantastic upgrade. In fact we discovered a couple of tricks that could be worth trying if anyone's about to fit one. First - take the front bonnet off. Gives such better access and I can't imagine his we'd have managed it without. Needs a bit of trial and error getting it lined up nicely when you fit it back but worth it. Placing a few layers of bubble wrap underneath the vertical open bonnet and on the top of the clam below so it forms a cushion between open bonnet and bodywork both prevents bodywork damage and holds the bonnet in roughly the right place for a second person to line it up. Second - if you're having trouble fitting the large air hose to the top of the heater unit under the brake servo, it does need to be scrunched up slightly to get it close enough to the heater to offer it to the position. So to access the joint from hose to heater, and to reform the hose to circular rather than scrunched oval (which won't fit onto the heater) try putting your arm down inside the hose to the bottom of it and using your hand to ease it onto the heater connector from inside. Worked for us anyway.. Other than that, thanks and congrats to Tom for coming up with such an effective and necessary mod (even if it did take most of the skin off the backs of our hands - but then, we are absolute monkeys at this so if we can do it, I think anyone can..!) Cheers, Ian

[ee601]

"I haven't *FITTED* the dash back yet".  Flaming' iPad Auto Type...

[booshtukka]

Started mine today - all going great until I started trying to get the old heater out. The visible bolt is just spinning, and I'm having no fun getting any traction on the other bolt at all! Cold and dark now. I'll cut off the visible bolt tomorrow, and have another go at the other with a smaller ratchet, but beginning to panic that that one will just spin too!

[fezzasus]

It might, this happens about 1 in 10 cars i've fitted heaters to.

 

Thankfully the new heater only reuses one bolt mounting, so you will have three mounting points available to bolt the heater to. If you want to do it properly you can also replace the rivnut. (M6 zinc plated - don't use stainless as it will corrode the chassis)

[booshtukka]

Finding it impossible to even cut the visible bolt off. There's just no room in there!

[techieboy]

A few well aimed punches solved it for me and no more cuts and bruises than removing it usually causes.

[booshtukka]

Managed to cut the bolt off, and smashed the old heater apart to get it out. It looks fairly similar to your pile of pieces there. If you did that with "a few well aimed punches" you must have some serious 1-inch punch Bruce Lee action going on…

[booshtukka]

The front under tray is now filling with a mixture of a bit of coolant that I couldn't catch, and water from a kettle to loosen the old hoses. The liquid does not appear to be draining…

 

Also, I slipped pulling on a pair of pliers and punched myself in the eye. It is safe to say this is not the most fun I have had this week.

[fezzasus]

Welcome to my world.

 

The coolant will drain. There's a channel cut in the rear bulkhead which drains coolant out of the lower wishbone channel.

[booshtukka]

Got most of the coolant out with an oil extractor pump, and mopped the rest up. It's clean now, not that anyone will ever know! Now to put the new heater in.

[fezzasus]

This is the easy bit. Leave the two bolts retaining the matrix to the bracket in place (but loose) this means you don't need to try to re-attach the bolt without a clear view of it.