Leaking heater box

[Ranga]

I've got substantial coolant leaking from below the heater box in the 130. Any ideas on the cause and repair?

[flagg]

Rusted matrix? If your 'duckbill' is blocked it can collect water in the heater housing and rust out.

[Ranga]

Rusted matrix? If your 'duckbill' is blocked it can collect water in the heater housing and rust out.

Given the green colour, pretty sure it's the matrix. I'll order another one this week.

[jimr1]

Hi you don't say what 130 you have . Once the core has gone , It's not serviceable . The good news is there not very dear to buy $ 70 I'm talking pre Puma . The bad news is you have to take the heater box out , and if you have A/C you have to disconnect that , to get to the heater box fixings . The bolts are up under the footwell . don't be surprised if there rusty . I replaced mine a few months back . I thought It would be an easy little job , It turned out to be a bit more than I expected . I was pleased when It was done . Just a tip fill it up before you re connect the heater hoses !!.. Jim :)

[86mud]

Hi Ranga

Mine started doing the same about a month ago - two days before going away on holidays.

I just went to Enzed on Nudgee Road and picked up 3/4 inch (20mm) brass fittings to bypass the heater - two x elbows with hose tails and 1 x union to join the two hose tails. Don't forget to use thread tape/sealant when joining fittings. Cost me $40.

Heater was never that great anyway. Just carry some fire wood and get a fire going on the passenger floor :D

Cheers
Andrew

[jimr1]

Hi Ranga

Mine started doing the same about a month ago - two days before going away on holidays.

I just went to Enzed on Nudgee Road and picked up 3/4 inch (20mm) brass fittings to bypass the heater - two x elbows with hose tails and 1 x union to join the two hose tails. Don't forget to use thread tape/sealant when joining fittings. Cost me $40.

Heater was never that great anyway. Just carry some fire wood and get a fire going on the passenger floor :D

Cheers
Andrew
Hi Andrew , like you when mine went I bypassed It . My fix was I had a bit of dowl about 18mm dia . so I cut two bits about 50mm long plugged the hoses , put two hose clamps on . Tha fixed It till I got a new core !!.. Jim

[Defendozer]

I wouldn't recommend a standard heater matrix to anyone, the new one I fitted only a couple of years ago has just started to leak again, an Allisport full alloy matrix is the only option in my opinion, not at all cheap but reliable.

[Ranga]

I wouldn't recommend a standard heater matrix to anyone, the new one I fitted only a couple of years ago has just started to leak again, an Allisport full alloy matrix is the only option in my opinion, not at all cheap but reliable.

Holy **** - ~$500 delivered! Think I might just chance a steel one.

[Defendozer]

Yes definitely getting up there, you would probably get six or seven standard ones for that price but for the hassle of the job it might be worth it, I had a ***** of a time getting the heater box out last time! Maybe there is a trick to it that I haven't learnt?!
Its the plastic end tanks on the standard ones that are the weak point I think, my first one cracked at the top and the current one appears to be leaking from the bottom plastic bit (which I can see through the vent I have cut in the LH side guard), yet to pull it out yet though...

[flagg]

hmmm if you keep your inlet clean and in good shape water shouldn't get in and make it rust... The rusted matrix is a symptom of a greater problem!

[jimr1]

What I found with mine , after taken It out , was the gasket that is between the aluminum core and the plastic end cap had gone brittle . It looked like It was made from some sort of rubberized material . That when new would have been springy and flexible . Mine had gone hard as , and every brittle . There is no doubt these have a shelf life . It's a shame there a bugger to change !!.. Jim

[Ranga]

So, it's correct to deduce that you can't remove the heater matrix without removing the whole heater box?

[jimr1]

So, it's correct to deduce that you can't remove the heater matrix without removing the whole heater box?
Probably like you , started loosing coolant , then the tell tell signs water stains under the hearer box . First thing I did was plug the hoses off . My thought's were just take the screws out of to top of the heater box and slip it out . Soon found out you can't do that , The heater box does have to come out . That got me scratching my head . You need long socket extention to reach the fixing bolts , the problem is you need to hold the nuts in the foot well ,or they spin . Once you get them out the other bits are not to bad , the inlet easy . The core in mine is made out of aluminum and plastic , that's the old one , and the new one . One other tip make sire you put the protective packing back in or even replace It . Without that I would think vibration would soon damage the new core . Jim

[Blknight.aus]

IF you can get one the older county and series ones hold up better.

while you have the box apart find and gut a 12v heater mount the electric element in the cabin side of the ducting wire it up on a relay that also connects to the low speed fan setting so if you turn the elec heater on the fan also comes on on low speed.

on those really cold mornings its not enough to heat the cab but it will demist and de ice the windshield. as I have a permanent Dual battery setup Mines powered off the Aux battery so I can turn it on without worrying about the main battery while the engines not running.

[mox]

Hi Andrew , like you when mine went I bypassed It . My fix was I had a bit of dowl about 18mm dia . so I cut two bits about 50mm long plugged the hoses , put two hose clamps on . Tha fixed It till I got a new core !!.. Jim



Seems to me this should be used just for short term fix, not longer term in hot and heavy load conditions. With this heater turned off, water still should flow through the element. Note how reported damage to 300Tdi's from overheating seems to occur first around No 4 cylinder. Not a good idea to reduce or stop coolant flow there. Water obviously would not circulate past it as much in the head with heater circuit blocked off with these plugs. Would also be slowed by partially blocked element. So the solution as proposed by 86mud is preferable. Or as I had when heater was removed, one piece of three quarter inch standard heater hose connected to the fitting on the head, doing three quarters of a loop and the other end connected to the return pipe.


Effectively same result but probably easier to obtain bits to achieve it than 86mud used. No need to wrap tape around fitting in head of mine. Standard 5/8"" diameter to fit into special hose and with 3/8" BSP thread had earlier been replaced with more sensible standard one which fits 3/4" hose. The outlet hole in cylinder head has been bored and tapped to take 1/2" BSP. (Note that British Standard Pipe sizes are the approximate diameters of the pipe bores. Diameters of where threads are is much larger and these are the measurements that are critical.)

[jimr1]

Seems to me this should be used just for short term fix, not longer term in hot and heavy load conditions. With this heater turned off, water still should flow through the element. Note how reported damage to 300Tdi's from overheating seems to occur first around No 4 cylinder. Not a good idea to reduce or stop coolant flow there. Water obviously would not circulate past it as much in the head with heater circuit blocked off with these plugs. Would also be slowed by partially blocked element. So the solution as proposed by 86mud is preferable. Or as I had when heater was removed, one piece of three quarter inch standard heater hose connected to the fitting on the head, doing three quarters of a loop and the other end connected to the return pipe.


Effectively same result but probably easier to obtain bits to achieve it than 86mud used. No need to wrap tape around fitting in head of mine. Standard 5/8"" diameter to fit into special hose and with 3/8" BSP thread had earlier been replaced with more sensible standard one which fits 3/4" hose. The outlet hole in cylinder head has been bored and tapped to take 1/2" BSP. (Note that British Standard Pipe sizes are the approximate diameters of the pipe bores. Diameters of where threads are is much larger and these are the measurements that are critical.)
If you read what I said , It was a temporary fix ,until I got a new heating core , two day's later . This fix is only a temporary bush fix It would get you home . My truck is a td5 , there is a lot of plumbing on them . I don't think they rely on the heater core as part of the cooling system , plus Melbourne is not Tropical . I suppose if your heater goes , when out back and you have all these bit to do a repair , that's great !!..

[Ranga]

IF you can get one the older county and series ones hold up better.

while you have the box apart find and gut a 12v heater mount the electric element in the cabin side of the ducting wire it up on a relay that also connects to the low speed fan setting so if you turn the elec heater on the fan also comes on on low speed.

on those really cold mornings its not enough to heat the cab but it will demist and de ice the windshield. as I have a permanent Dual battery setup Mines powered off the Aux battery so I can turn it on without worrying about the main battery while the engines not running.
Where would one find one of these 12v heaters?

[Blknight.aus]

inside the heater box of any defender, county or D1 I've done alpine prep on.

:twisted::angel:

probably of more use would be the 12v shop, ebay, jaycar and specialist RV shops.

the last ones I got were from bay $6 each but they were advertised as 12v hair riers. the wre a perfect fit into duct that directs air up to the demist of the windhsield.

[Ranga]

inside the heater box of any defender, county or D1 I've done alpine prep on.

:twisted::angel:

probably of more use would be the 12v shop, ebay, jaycar and specialist RV shops.

the last ones I got were from bay $6 each but they were advertised as 12v hair riers. the wre a perfect fit into duct that directs air up to the demist of the windhsield.
Running them for prolonged periods doesn't burn them out?

[Blknight.aus]

only if you dont have airflow to them or run them without the in built protection (which on the chepaies is just a fuse and the thin wire that acts as a current limitier)

In the disco it used to take about 15 minutes to warm up the windshield enough for the ipswich winter ice to "slush" off with the first swipe of the wipers.

they wont hold up against higher speed driving in the cold but then youd hope the cooling sytem powered heater comes up before the predemist work is undone. (always did for me if I was heading into town but not if I was heading straight for base or the highway)

of course tht was just a pair of $6 each hair driers, a better heater will have a better result

[flagg]

this is a tiny bit OT but I looking at many 110 / Defender heaters I found them to be the highest point of the cooling system, so likely to have air locks in them. I fitted an air release valve to mine - I run a heater from a td5 in a 4BD1-T and it gets so hot that in Canberra Winter I can have the windows a bit open at night in sub zero temps and still be completely toasty warm.

In fact I was worried about melting the vents and stuff.

Just food for thought if you are considering why your heater is crap!

[BC0019]

Hi, I replaced the heater matrix in my 2001 130 (with air conditioning) recently. The crimped seal between the alloy core and the plastic ends on the matrix appeared to be the cause of my leaks.

The heater box must be removed from the vehicle to replace the matrix. The top two retaining bolts on the heater box are straight forward as there are captive nuts in the firewall. However, the lower two retaining bolts/nuts are plain through bolts with the heads high up behind the aircon unit in the passengers footwell. Impossible to reach without disconnecting the aircon in my opinion.

My approach was to cut through the lower nuts with a dremel or similar - punch the bolt heads into the cabin - and install captive nuts on the firewall same as the top mounts. This is the way Land Rover should have installed in the first place - obviously aircon was an afterthought!

Worked for me. Hope this technique helps others.