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Heater Tap controls

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fattypomba

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Hi all,
On a VS 1996 V6,,, Under the bonnet On the drivers side there is a little arm which operates the heater tap.

With the motor running,, When you turn the heat/cool control inside the car this little arm should open and close the heater tap????

I thought that the above would be true.
I took my car back to the place where I had the air Fixed and regased.
I claimed it was not working fully. They did tests etc for about 1 hour and said it was working as well as can be expected.
I came out on the work shop floor and talked with the mechanic. I asked about the heater tap,,as the heater tap was a problem on my VT.
He claimed the heater tap is OK. He also said it's movement does'nt come from the controls I was talking about.
When I had a closer at it look today it does NOT move when the heat/cool control is moved.
I am I correct in saying it SHOULD move??????
 

wamboin23

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it is always open unless the heater control knob is in the full cold position.

if it is not moving when in the full cold position, i'd bet that the vac switch under the dash isn't adjusted properly.
Plenty of info on that around here if you search for it.
 

hako

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It should move when you turn the heat knob from hard cold (fully anti-clockwise to hot....it's just that last 1/8th of a turn before cold that actually applies vacuum to the tap and turns the hot coolant off....and it's usually that bit that fails. See attached pics.
 

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ephect

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its vacuumed operated, so when u turn ur hot/cold control it should slowly adjust the tap.

i know some taps can get sticky and wont open when either in fully open or fully closed. which ever its stuck on, u can push the metal rod to help free it up. try setting it to hot and then manually pushing/pulling the rod half way to see if it moves the rest. if not adjust the control the other way and have someone see if it moves. try not to go full off or on.
 

aussie4life

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its vacuumed operated, so when u turn ur hot/cold control it should slowly adjust the tap.

i know some taps can get sticky and wont open when either in fully open or fully closed. which ever its stuck on, u can push the metal rod to help free it up. try setting it to hot and then manually pushing/pulling the rod half way to see if it moves the rest. if not adjust the control the other way and have someone see if it moves. try not to go full off or on.

the bold is not correct, as others have posted its only on full cold that the heater tap should operate. basically the control valve is 2 way. when the nipple on the front is pushed in, it allows vac from the engine or resevour to the tap diaphram. when you turn it back from full cold it releases the nipple cutting off the vac supply and the vac pressure is released out of the end of the control valve to allow the tap to open. so the above bold is not correct
 
F

fattypomba

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Thanks heaps for the replies and confirming that the heat/cool knob DOES make the heater tap turn off and on.
I knew I was right,,, but when a workshop mechanic says NO the knob inside the car only adjusts the flaps for air mixture inside the car.
When I was at the workshop I didn't look at the heater tap,,but I did ask about it. They said it was fine .
When I got home I checked it myself then rang them. That was when I was told the heater tap DOESN'T work that way.
I didn't bother arguing about it.
I know the heater tap isn't their fault. They only fixed a hose and gased it ,,,and at no time was I tring to get them to fix other things for free. I just mainly took it back incase the gas was leaking ( which they did do ) But they have assured me it is sound. Hahahh
They have done other work for me before and it's all good.
I hope all that scrible makes sense.
 

ephect

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the bold is not correct, as others have posted its only on full cold that the heater tap should operate. basically the control valve is 2 way. when the nipple on the front is pushed in, it allows vac from the engine or resevour to the tap diaphram. when you turn it back from full cold it releases the nipple cutting off the vac supply and the vac pressure is released out of the end of the control valve to allow the tap to open. so the above bold is not correct

my apologies, half my statement was incorrect. It is still vac controlled
 
F

fattypomba

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Thanks guys it was the adjustment in the heater controls. The pictures that Hako posted were exactly correct and helped heaps in finding where the vacuum hoses were.
The white plastic arm was only just touching the black plastic push rod. so it needed adjustment.
The black plastic push rod has to be pushed all the way in before the heater tap will close.
Well anyway the VS is fixed now, but my VT has the same problem. I just cable tied the heater tap on the VT
Does any know where the same hoses are on the VT
OR maybe I'll just search or ask that in the VT section.
 

drgt74

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Vt berlina v8 climate control issue

Did you sort out the issue with vt heater tap?sorry just saw date of this post.
Probably been closed.
My vt berlina v8 climate control system heater tap is always open.has vaccuum from manifold to check valve,all vent controls work,just had replacement compressor and regas and ac is ok but only with heater tap cable tied closed?if i cut cable tie and its open heater is great but will not close when cold temp selected as no vaccuum to it?so ac wont work?weird.heater tap opens and closes when i suck on vaccuum line so pretty sure its mechanically ok?no leaks and looks new
What else could it be?vaccuum solenoid,leak in vac resevoir? Coolant level fine no overheating thermostat ok? All vac lines are ok in engine bay?Got me?any help info appreciated

line=fattypomba;2324698]Thanks guys it was the adjustment in the heater controls. The pictures that Hako posted were exactly correct and helped heaps in finding where the vacuum hoses were.
The white plastic arm was only just touching the black plastic push rod. so it needed adjustment.
The black plastic push rod has to be pushed all the way in before the heater tap will close.
Well anyway the VS is fixed now, but my VT has the same problem. I just cable tied the heater tap on the VT
Does any know where the same hoses are on the VT
OR maybe I'll just search or ask that in the VT section.[/QUOTE]
 
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