Technical Tipo Issue - Heater cold

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Technical Tipo Issue - Heater cold

CagedBat

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Jan 27, 2009
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Hi there everyone, Long time reader - first time poster.
My girlfriend got a Tipo digidash DGT for christmas, couple of probs to fix, mostly electrics in doors however i'm kinda stumped over the heater not working, the matrix is clear, there dosn't seem to be an airlock and both pipes going into the heater matrix get cozy warm, just no warm air ever comes out, the fan works fine so kinda chilly and demisting is an adventure at this time of year..

I got some parts from a scrap later model analogue dash (mk 2?) 1.4 recently and while there noticed that a vaccum pipe that seems to go from exhaust maifold to carb had a teepiece which had a pipe that seemed to dissapear into behind the dash through the firewall, I wondered if the heater controls have a vaccum assist to control the flaps and that could be our problem as the teepiece on ours dosn't have a pipe on it, I can feel a slight vac from it using a finger, I wonder if it should be blocked or if the pipe is missing. (perhaps this extra pipe is for analogue economy guages or is missing somthing on ours?) I note blocking this teepiece dosn't seem to effect running of the engine..

I have read forum posts suggesting controls can fail or a valve within the heater assembly...any way to test these as the hot cold knob clearly moves two sets of pushrods on the side of the heater box.

Any advice appreciated.
 
a broken heater valve 'usually' results in a wet passenger floorwell, but not neccessarily. when you say the pipes are "cosy warm" do you mean not absolutely boiling hot? the valve can be found by taking out the glove box and removing a plastic end cover.

another way to test is to get the engine revs up a bit and feel if there's any sense of pressure difference in the pipes between setting the heat to hot or cold.
 
a broken heater valve 'usually' results in a wet passenger floorwell, but not neccessarily. when you say the pipes are "cosy warm" do you mean not absolutely boiling hot? the valve can be found by taking out the glove box and removing a plastic end cover.

another way to test is to get the engine revs up a bit and feel if there's any sense of pressure difference in the pipes between setting the heat to hot or cold.

Thanks for the reply, no wetness on the floor, the pipes are pretty much too hot to touch when engine at normal operating temp, about the same as any waterpipes around radiator..I found the pipes under the dash so stiff i was unable to squeeze them to detect any presure difference..it did however seem clear both pipes heated at the same rate and the matrix seems to remain cold apart from convection heat. So perhaps pointing the prob towards a bypass valve? which i would assume stops water circulating through matrix when you set heat to cold...maybe it's just stuck "open/closed?"

ANy thoughts?
 
:confused: hmmmmm, it does sound possibly like an air bypass problem not had any experience with that though, try setting the fan on hot, supplying air to fascia vents and footwells.

at mid section it's supposed to put cold air through the dash vents and hot air in the footwells, if it does this on the highest temperature setting then it might be down to a stretched cable.

when you turn it from hot to cold, does it sort of make a slight clunk noise, like a flap opening closing?

also is there any chance that it's just one pipe looped from one connector to the other bypassing the matrix? mine had similar but it was done in the engine bay when i first got mine.
 
If I remember correctly the Tipo has TWO methods of adjusting the air temperature. One is via a control valve on the passenger side of the central assembly. If both heater matrix pipes are hot then this is not the problem.

The major control for air temperature is an internal flap the selects 100% cold air from outside through to 100% hot air of the matrix. I think this is where your problem lies.

Can't remember which side of the heater unit this flap control lever is, but is you expose the sides and follow the control cable from the temperature control dial you will find it.
 
Thanks for the advise there folks, on removing the glovebox I did indeed discover the push rod assembly had broken off from the Hot/cold air flap control, a dremmel, couple of pins, some superglue and all is well and the missus has toasyness and the power to demist.

No idea why it broke, suspect just a week "pinion"

Thanks for all your assistance in figuring out this fix.
 
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