Heater valve at firewall is bubbling. (1 Viewer)

[Kennyfzj80]

The heater valve at the firewall is bubbling on the bottom.

After a tune up and jb welding the bypass hose on the radiator, I took a drive and noticed the water temp increasing very quickly.

Stopped the car and noticed the upper hose left of the heater valve dripping coolant. I loosened the clamp and the valve itself started bubbling. It seemed like loosening the clamp relieved some kind of pressure.

The bypass hose at radiator is not clogged because it is very hot to the touch and seems like coolant is flowing through it.

Also when replacing the valve cover gasket, I didn't remove the throttle body and just pulled it back. That might of shook something out of place.

TIA for the input.

Edit: Just checked the temp now and the valve bubbles at low temps also, so I'm assuming the bubbling is a pressure thing. What would make the valve bubble like that? Is it time for a replacement?

 

[Grim Reaper]

Temp rising quickly can be air in the system, cap or some other point not holding pressure including blown head gasket. If it's leaking and you are sure it's not just a leak around the clamped hose its timers replace.

 

[Kennyfzj80]

Some more info: I'm pretty sure it is drivable, but the higher temps are worrying me. The car temps won't go over 210 degrees.

At 2000 RPM it goes to 208
At 3000 RPM it starts to drop.

Is this a fan clutch issue?


Also....

I did my tune up on a slope facing a little downward.

So I put it up a hill jacked up the front end and opened the radiator cap.

With the radiator cap off, the heater control valve does not bubble. With it on it bubbles.

So...

Am I looking at fan clutch, radiator cap and heater valve replacement?

 

[ajax1]

Did you burp all the air out? Sounds like you got a bubble and not enough coolant, do you have heat off the heater?

 

[Chester]

^^ what he said^^
it's a closed and pressurized system. if you're seeing bubbles, you have an opening in the system that doesn't belong. The nipples on each end are plastic, and crack easily. I'd check both ends, but that constant tension clamp may have been tension-ed a bit too much. Once this is solved, run the heat open, include the rear, and follow the FSM directions to de-froth. In a pinch, you can bypass the cabin, it's June.

 

[Rookie2]

Yep, same thing happened to mine about a year ago. The nipple was cracked about half way around. When I removed the clamp and tried to remove the hose, it broke he rest of the way off. You can bypass the valve in a pinch until you can get a new one in.

 

[Kennyfzj80]

Ok... got a new aftermarket cap and valve. Replaced both. Took a drive and temp went up to 225 within 5 minutes. There is no bubbling at the valve anymore. Next step is to replace the fan clutch.

Pic is of the old valve. It was mangled.

Edit: Yes I have heat. Temp goes down about 5 to 10 when I blast it.

Fan clutch: when I put everything back together after the tune up and no3 bypass fix, I noticed that the car didnt start with the same umph as before. Is that a symptom of a weak fan clutch?

 

[Kennyfzj80]

Got this sorted out.

BTW, there should be a tutorial on how to remove those small screws out of the heater valve bracket.

I underestimated how much coolant the "bubbling" was leaking out.

The temps got higher and higher because I was losing fluid.

After replacing the heater valve, I thought the my problem wasn't fixed. But I realized I needed more coolant. I poured 1 gallon of distilled water and now I'm at 185 average.

Thanks for the input guys. It really helped me figure this thing out.