Adjusting water valve to maximize A/C performance (1 Viewer)

[JerseyCruiser]

After repairing and recharging my A/C system I started to adjust the heater valve cable and found that it does not move when I slide the temp control lever from hot to cold. Do I have a blown servo motor somewhere? Any help will be great before I start to get into it.

UPDATE:
I found that the cable was not connected to the servo control motor that is on top of the heater control box. If the cable is not moving the valve at all this needs to be checked. The motor can be accessed by removing the glove box and looking to the left in the area above the radio.


Thanks
George

 

[cartercd]

I recall that even at full shut according to the outer lever position there was a small gap still allowing some movement through the heater core to prevent corrosion or deposits.
DougM

I pulled my water valve today to see if mine had some flow when in the fully closed position. It did not - even after blasting it with a water hose. Maybe manufacturing tolerances result in slight flow with some valves in the closed position. Might be worth checking out for those of you that will be suffering in 110+ degree heat in a few months.

 

[retrofive]

I checked my for fun. Mine is dead on against the stop (engine running and slider at max cool). In case anyone cares I did lose all cooling last summer and had to re-fill R134, its been great since. Cool is cool, and Warm is nice and toasty.

 

[yoet308]

I reckon this is the best mod for under $100, i checked mine the other day and found that it was sitting approx 4mm from the stop, cause i have two kids that love to spend time with me in the shed playing with all the knobs and switches in the cruzer, i have zipp tied the the valve so it wont move. Living in Brisbane, we rarely get really cold days. Have told all the guys i know with 80 series about this, its suprising the difference it makes. BLOODY AWESOME.

 

[Tuning Haus]

i thought this thread was going to solve my cooling/heating issue... my ac isn't super cold and heater blows cold air... so i check this valve and sure enough, the cable is stuck and doesn't hardly move when i go from full HOT to full COLD.

so i tried to take the cable out and readjust it but the cable itself seems like it's bounded up and doesn't push or pull...

i took the cable off of the valve and pushed the valve all the way to the "HOT" side and waited for HOT air... but it was still blowing cold air...

any help? thanks

 

[UCBerzerkeley]

not to revive a dead thread, but to revive a dead thread, this WORKS

 

[Dave 2000]

Do you think this is a common practice in OEM design? In addition to the corrosion/deposit issue, could it also be to prevent thermal shock to the heater core?

Possible, it will also help prevent airlocks which once established can be a PITA to get out.

regards

Dave

 

[BP22]

Thanks for the write up Carter! Works great and only took a few minutes to do. We had some 90*+ days last week in SoCal and the change was definitely noticeable.

 

[sandcruiser]

another dead thread revival:

anyone have experience with the valve failing to close despite being on the metal stop?
my AC is a heater these days. Real bummer, tell ya, as it is damn hot here already.

a new valve is $100 or so (locally)... any thoughts?

 

[cartercd]

Have you removed the valve to make sure it is not fully closing when it is against the stops? That would be my first move. I got a used valve from Specter Off Road that was in great shape. With shipping to Costa Rica a used valve would probably be around $50.

 

[sandcruiser]

yeah, I pulled the valve. It seems to have been working.... but broke one "arm" off while removing it, so I'll be getting a new valve anyway

there may have been something blocking it- there was some debris there, but it could also have been from the busted valve.

ah, well, I'll figure something out. I can survive without a heater for a little while.

 

[VanGo]

I found water valve adjustment 4mm off of the stop. Made the adjustment as indicated, but the cable would not hold the position once adjusted. After closer investigation, I noticed that the cable was not properly locate in the cable clamp. Opening the clamp revealed two sharp tabs on the inside of the clamp closest to the water valve, after repositioning the cable to the two tabs and closing the clamp the cable holds the correct adjustment. HTH helps someone.

 

[jlm43]

So is it good to have the valve at the stop or should it be off the stop a little to allow for some water to circulate?

 

[cartercd]

I think if Toyota wanted there to be some circulation, it would have been designed into the valve assembly itself rather than relying on the cable adjustment. If you are in a hot climate and need max A/C performance, I would recommend the valve be completely closed.

 

[robertaleon]

I too found that the water valve was not operating after a coolant flush and trying to run heat to circulate the new fluid. Now my question is - how does this attach to the valve? Is it inteded to be a hook and loop situation where the end-loop of the cable rides on the tang of the valve adjust? Mine falls off when actuated from the interior.

Keeping at stop for today here in Sac - 100 degrees plus!

 

[cartercd]

You are correct - the round eye just fits over the tab on the valve. It is held in in place by tension in the cable and a little friction - not a really secure connection. You may want to consider some safety wire to make sure it stays put or maybe slightly bending the cable housing to orient the eye in a more favorable position.

 

[Blue Bomber]

Making this adjustment moved my air con from nice and cool to elbow numbing arctic blast. Best bang for the buck. Good job!

 

[plutonius]

Wow, I wish I had stumbled upon this thread a loooooong time ago. I just tried to slacken my cable in order to keep the valve at full stop with the slider on COLD, and with the cable clamp disconnected I do not have nearly enough slack to pull it out far enough. I need another 1/2", and for now I'm using a zip tie - such that the end of the eyelet is pushing against the valve's tab, rather than the eyelet mounted over the tab as it should be. Not a huge deal, but not perfect either. Anyone else run into this problem?

 

[pdx650]

Same problem

i thought this thread was going to solve my cooling/heating issue... my ac isn't super cold and heater blows cold air... so i check this valve and sure enough, the cable is stuck and doesn't hardly move when i go from full HOT to full COLD.

so i tried to take the cable out and readjust it but the cable itself seems like it's bounded up and doesn't push or pull...

i took the cable off of the valve and pushed the valve all the way to the "HOT" side and waited for HOT air... but it was still blowing cold air...

any help? thanks

I'm having the same problem. It is cold in Virginia January 2012 and I need to get the heat to come back into the passenger compartment. Last month, the heat suddenly stopped coming inside this area. Is the water valve the only thing I need to fix? I think I need to replace it anyway. there is a small coolant leak there. There are some drops forming on the adjustment arm and they are dropping onto the rear of my valve cover on my 2.7 liter 4 cylinder '97 4runner 4wd auto transmission.

And sorry for the resurrection too.

 

[94SRUNNER]

Do you have an 80 Series Land Cruiser or a 4Runner. While they are different beasts, I imagine they may have the same or similar valve. So the procedure may be the same. But if it is the rear hear you are having issues with, clarification is needed about which type of vehicle you do in fact have.