When you turn on the heater, your engine diverts coolant through the heater core to warm the air before it is blown into your vehicle’s interior. The heater core has a series of tubes through which the hot engine coolant travels, and, over time, these tubes can get clogged or start leaking. If your heater core is going bad, Eurotech Auto Service & Repair says you may notice one or more of the following signs.
No Heat
Lukewarm or cold air blowing out of your vents when you have your car’s heater on is a sign that there is a problem with the heater core. If the heater core is clogged or leaking, there will not be hot coolant to heat the incoming air. The blower motor will simply blow air over empty tubes and the result will be tepid or cold air inside your car even though you have the heater on.
Foggy Windows
The heater core also works with your vehicle’s defroster. It pushes the hot air through the defroster vents to defrost your windows when you need it to. If the heater core is leaking, you may end up with foggy windows even though you have turned on the defroster. Moisture and engine coolant will spray through the vents and create humid conditions inside your automobile that fog up the inside.
Coolant Odors
You may also smell engine coolant flowing through your vents. The smell is sweet, almost like fruit or maple syrup, and also musty. If the heater core is leaking coolant and you turn on the heater, as the air blows over the core, it will pick up some of the coolant’s odor. Your vents should never smell sweet or musty. If they do, you may have a heater core leak or mildew.
Coolant Leaks
You may also see your heater core leak. In most cases, the coolant will leak from underneath your dashboard. If you smell musty odors coming out of your vents, pull over, park in a safe place, kill the engine, and feel underneath the dashboard for wet spots. Also, check your carpeting or floor mats to see if they have been saturated by a heater core leak.
Low Coolant
It’s also important to pop the hood and check your coolant levels, but only when your engine is cold. Do not attempt to check your coolant when the engine is hot. If your coolant is low, it could be leaking from the heater core or another part in your cooling system. If the leak is bad enough, you will see coolant puddles underneath your automobile.
Overheating
If your engine does not have enough coolant, your vehicle will overheat. This being said, a clogged heater core can also make your engine overheat. As we said above, when you turn on the heater, your vehicle reroutes some of the coolant through the heater core. If this coolant is blocked from passing through and heading back into the cooling system, your vehicle might overheat.
Call Eurotech Auto Service & Repair in Fort Myers, FL, if you suspect you have a heater core problem. We’d be happy to inspect the core and fix it, and we can also get your vehicle’s air conditioner serviced so it’s ready for the summer.