Cabin Heater has stopped heating

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kenogren

Member
Joined
Dec 10, 2021
Messages
21
I don't use the heater much, have even gotten to cracking the window to keep the windows from fogging. I use the go times, and the car had been warmed when I get in in the morning. The other night I was taking my wife into town and she was complaining about how cold the air was coming out ( I was running the heater because it was a short trip). I got to looking into it the next day after I got a couple of yellow wrenches on my way to work (it cleared itself at least a few times). I found that the coolant was low, so I stopped and picked up a jug of pre-mixed. It took all of that, and was still low after it gurgled down.

I make the assumption that this didn't go away slowly over time, but can't be sure. i plan to get some more coolant and put the car on concrete so that I can notice if there is a leak.

Is there somewhere I should check before adding more coolant? are there known culprits? How would I know if it was internal to the battery?

This is a 2013 with about 60,000 miles on it. I just recently had the windshield replaced.

I am looking to get a FORscan adapter. advice for the minimum that would be effective (I don't have a laptop)

Thanks for any help you can provide, and please let me know if I haven't been clear.
 
You can't do much with forscan and just a phone. you really need a laptop for forscan unless you just want to use it as gauges.

Unfortunately the only way to know if your battery is leaking is to take it apart or if it's leaking bad enough to be dripping it will be obvious.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news but unless there is an obvious leak somewhere else, I'd be surprised if it isn't your battery leaking :(
 
To this point I don't see any leaks, or wet areas near the batteries. I'm not too sure where to look though. I have it plugged in to 220v and the hood open. I could hear a pump running, and could feel something happening in the hose at the lower driver's side of the motor.
 
Now here is where it gets weird. If a gallon of coolant leaked into the battery, would not a SSN message appear on the instrument cluster and the car be undriveable? Yet that has not happened.
There are two plugs on opposite corners of the bottom surface of both batteries.
Supposedly you can just pull theseout and check for a fluid to drain. You might need to lift one side of the car.
 
So I pulled the car into the garage and plugged it into 110v. I let things dry out over night, then added more coolant (about 2/3rds of a gallon) this morning. Still no heat, but there appears to be a leak in the center front of the car (motor cooling?) I'm going to look into removing the pan below the motor to see if I can identify where it is coming from. I thought it was interesting as well that I could hear a solenoid near the coolant reservoir that is clicking every once in a while.

I pulled the pan from below the motor. I can see is some drips of orange on the bottom of the motor, and it looks like there is some orange fluid around the hose connection to the passenger side of the motor (maybe no. 7 DC -to- DC converter-to electric motor hose)

I took off the top foam cover. There is a bit of orange fluid pooled at the front edge of the top metal cover. There was also a wet area near the top back that seemed like it had been misted.
 
If you're getting no heat it is entirely possible the leak is in the heater loop. You have 3 loops that can be separated and joined as needed - the motor + DC/DC converter, the battery + charger and the heater loop. The heater is usually closed off from the rest unless you turn the heat on while the motor loop is hot and it runs the coolant through instead of running the electric heater. There are some diagrams that have been posted in other threads, I'll edit them in here as I find them.

The last 2 comments on this thread http://www.myfocuselectric.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=5000
 
There is a small hole in the tube that returns to the reservoir near the A pillar. No idea what would have cause the hole, could be heat, or wear, but not sure from what. Now I just need to locate the part, and perhaps figure out how to purge the air from the system.

any reason I shouldn't use a 6mm push-lock union to repair this? Or maybe a small piece of 6mm id hose with hose clamps?

Seeing that I don't have cabin heat, I am assuming that I will need to purge the system. Does anyone have a recommendation for a FORscan adapter that will do the job without spending a bunch. I can borrow a laptop.
 
So long as it seals everything up I doubt it matters what type of physical repair you do. It's a lot less demanding then an ICE coolant loop.

I use an OBDLink MX+ but if you're looking to not spend money I'd find out if anyone can loan one out to you. You might even be able to get a loaner from the auto parts store that can trigger the degas function and skip the laptop entirely.
 
I got the repair done with a piece of 1/4" fuel hose and some hose clamps. seems to have sealed things up, but still no heat. Hopefully that is just some air in the line, and I'll be able to get the degas process to run.
 
For the Forscan adapter, either of these two will work fine, I have both:
https://www.amazon.com/OBDLink-EX-FORScan-OBD-Adapter/dp/B081VQVD3F

https://www.amazon.com/Vgate-vLinker-Adapter-FORScan-MS-CAN/dp/B094Z7PBLS

I provided Amazon links, but you can find them elsewhere. Prices vary.
While bluetooth and wifi adapters are small and convenient, they just aren't as reliable as corded. Notice that these adapters have automatic CAN bus switching. Having that feature is worth the extra cost, as remembering to flip that switch can be annoying, and if you are not paying attention, problematic.
 
Hopefully the heater didn't get damaged while cavitated :/

kenogren said:
I got the repair done with a piece of 1/4" fuel hose and some hose clamps. seems to have sealed things up, but still no heat. Hopefully that is just some air in the line, and I'll be able to get the degas process to run.
 
Heima said:
For the Forscan adapter, either of these two will work fine, I have both:
https://www.amazon.com/OBDLink-EX-FORScan-OBD-Adapter/dp/B081VQVD3F

https://www.amazon.com/Vgate-vLinker-Adapter-FORScan-MS-CAN/dp/B094Z7PBLS

I provided Amazon links, but you can find them elsewhere. Prices vary.
While bluetooth and wifi adapters are small and convenient, they just aren't as reliable as corded. Notice that these adapters have automatic CAN bus switching. Having that feature is worth the extra cost, as remembering to flip that switch can be annoying, and if you are not paying attention, problematic.

I ordered the first one. I can borrow a laptop. I expect I will be needing some help running the process. If anyone has info that could help I would appreciate it. :)
 
In ForScan, there's an option to set the diverter positions and pump speeds. Pretty sure the degas command just sets the diverters to their middle setting and runs the pumps on hi for 15 or 20 minutes.
 
A word of caution, nonchalantly setting valve positions and pumps speeds can cause pressure drops in the smaller tubes going to the degas bottle, thereby bringing air into the coolant loop.
If you were to check the default valve positions and pump speeds with Forscan , and then just increased pump speeds, you might able to avoid the air entrapment.
Alternatively, you could overfill the degas bottle so that when the pressure drops in the tubes, coolant flows back into the tube.

A handy tool to remove trapped air in any cooling system is a vacuum bleeder. These do require shop air at about 120 psi to function optimally.
This is the cheapest one I have ever seen, and its design might require that you block off the weep hole at the Degas cap. I have to do this when I use mine.
https://www.amazon.com/Prokomon-Automotive-Cooling-Radiator-Coolant/dp/B087WGV3RC

Oh geez, I just saw, delivery February 14th? Happy Valentines Day! LOL.
 
I have a vacuum pump. What is the concept being implemented to remove the trapped air. Perhaps I can hook up my vacuum pump to remove it?
 
I got my obd scanner, and borrowed a laptop. i have the FORscan installed, had to install the drivers for the scanner. got it up and running and it is connected. i see there are some error codes, the coolant pump A being one. I see where and how to get the controls into the dashboard and view them in the oscilloscope, but haven't figured out how to make anything happen. I did reset the DTC and the pump code came back. p0cea:00-0F

Not sure if I looked at it wrong, but the next time I looked the code was p0cea:00-oC, I cleared it again and it stayed off when I checked the DTC again.
 
I figured out how to command the valves open, and the pumps to run. I got the degas tank to drop about 10oz or so. I ran the cabin pump with the heater on and got heat in the car. Now to test it on the road. Wish me luck.
 
How long did you run it in degas? Also, did you command them to open or move to their midpoint?

They aren't valves as much as diverters that can be set to allow some proportion of their flow down one path or another.

The degas function parks them at their midpoint because it wants coolant running along all paths to dislodge bubbles.
 
Anti_Climax said:
How long did you run it in degas? Also, did you command them to open or move to their midpoint?

They aren't valves as much as diverters that can be set to allow some proportion of their flow down one path or another.

The degas function parks them at their midpoint because it wants coolant running along all paths to dislodge bubbles.

I ran them all at first about a 1/3 of the way open and about 1/3 speed. Maybe for 5 minutes or so. That is when the tank went down most significantly. I didn't see a degas mode. I just manually ran it. i tested the heat after that, but had none still. I ran it starting at 1/2, then opened everything up all the way. I ran that way for 5 to 10 minutes. Still need to take it for a drive.
 
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