How to make my heater hotter?

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cam.man67

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Unfortunately, my winter beater '79 chevy looks like it's going to be out of service, so at least for the time being I need to use my Dart for DD-duty this winter. That's all well and good...except one thing. The heater sucks. I have flushed the heater core I don't know how many times ( to the point that water is running straight through with no rust), will be re-sealing my doors and windows soon with new stripping, but still the heater is barely adequate. Above freezing it's ok, but below that forget it. The car has always taken forever to warm up despite replacing the thermostat, but even when it is warmed up the heater doesn't do well.

So...how do I improve the heater? How can I get the car to warm up in less than the current 15 minutes? Help!!:)
 
Thank you! I should have mentioned that I came to that conclusion too, and that it is a 195.
 
Are the foam seals in the hevac unit shot?

If they get old and disintegrate, they will let the air flow around the heater core, instead of through it to get the heat. You may have to remove the duct unit, take it apart, and replace the foam seals all through it.


The A body heaters crank when they work right. I drove them for daily drivers for years.
 
Cardboard in front of radiator.
I know its tacky but it works.


Be careful doing that. I overheated a Road Runner in middle of winter doing that once... :banghead: :banghead: :banghead:


Who would have thunk that you could over heat a car in 20° weather??? #-o
 
Is it an a/c system?

Make sure your controls are working properly. This is a good idea with or with out a/c.
The doors that direct the air flow may not be opening properly or you my have debris in the duct work.
 
Be careful doing that. I overheated a Road Runner in middle of winter doing that once... :banghead: :banghead: :banghead:


Who would have thunk that you could over heat a car in 20° weather??? #-o

I agree. The engine still is producing heat so you need air flow for the coolant to dissipate the internal engine heat.
 
Are the foam seals in the hevac unit shot?

If they get old and disintegrate, they will let the air flow around the heater core, instead of through it to get the heat. You may have to remove the duct unit, take it apart, and replace the foam seals all through it.


The A body heaters crank when they work right. I drove them for daily drivers for years.

Hmmm, intriguing...this actually sounds very logical. Where can I get those seals? And you're talking about the ducting under the dash, right?

Is it an a/c system?

Make sure your controls are working properly. This is a good idea with or with out a/c.
The doors that direct the air flow may not be opening properly or you my have debris in the duct work.

Nope, no a/c...the doors I've tested and they work as they're supposed to.

Cardboard in front of radiator.
I know its tacky but it works.

Haha, you have no idea how many times I've thought about that when it's 10 outside and I've already been driving 15 minutes without heat. ;)
 
If you're going to take the heater box apart you may as well replace the heater core while you're at it. They tend to leak anyway after 40 years or so and you'll probably get more heat out of it.
 
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