 | Home > Technical > lower dash vents immovable - help my heater! |
 
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| donmacn Member Since: 07 Nov 2017 Location: Nth Scotland Posts: 1829  |
Hi
It's a pretty basic and simple system - and the diagram is pretty good. I've been in here a couple of times, and might have some photos somewhere. " do I need to remove the lower dash to get to them - presumably so - & if so does the dash top need to come out too? Once the lower dash is out are the heater flaps contained within it?" The lower dash is effectively one large unit - essentially a heating duct - the hot air comes in from one side and goes out through the windscreen or footwell vents. To get into the flaps, you'll need to take the duct off the bulkhead and then take the top off it - a lot of little fiddley self-tappers. (It might be possible to leave it on the bulkhead to do this, but you wouldn't gain much by doing so.) Has anyone got any photos of this? I'll have a look and see what I might have. I know I do have a flap/rod assembly sitting on top of a shelving unit. A pic of that might be useful. What might be causing the lower flaps to jam? If I reach in with my fingers I can't move the flaps either. If the operating cable has jammed in its liner, it would probably stop the flaps moving. Have you disconnected the cable from the lever to check if the lever itself moves OK? It's right by the driver's window and might have been exposed to the elements. If that moves OK, then the issue will either be the cable itself, or the flaps. It's possible the flaps are just rusty - maybe water's got in there over time; or that the cable is seized or even disconnected. It's even feasible that 'something' has got in via the top vents if they were ever disconnected. Something could be physically blocking the flaps from moving. If it was me I'd 1) disconnect the cable from the lever and see what that tells you; 2) with the cable disconnected, try to see what the flaps are like - any give at all? 3) You don't happen to have one of those cheapy mobile phone endoscope cameras? Might be useful here. If none of that seems to work, you will probably need to strip the bulkhead to get to the duct. In my experience it's the first thing to go onto the bare bulkhead/last thing to come off. Not a technically difficult job, but it can be awkward. Donald 1994 Defender 300Tdi 110 SW - owned since 2002 - 230k miles and going strong (The 'rolling restoration' or tinkering thread: http://www.defender2.net/forum/topic58538.html ) 2000 Range Rover P38 4.0L V8 in the past.. RR classic - fitted with 200Tdi 1984 RR classic - V8 with ZF auto box 1993 Discovery 300Tdi not to mention the minis and the Type 2 VW camper... |
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13th Sep 2022 1:05pm |
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11240  
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With the cable disconnected, try and squirt some penetrating fluid (not WD40
 ) down the inside of the cable sheath, as there's a good chance that that's the bit that's seized. Darren
110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia |
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13th Sep 2022 1:21pm |
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| donmacn Member Since: 07 Nov 2017 Location: Nth Scotland Posts: 1829 |
I surprise myself sometimes, the s**t I take photos of!
Here's a couple that might help. This is the lower dash/heater duct stripped down - top taken off it, vents/flaps removed. Rust preventer and LR #1 tool close at hand!  Click image to enlarge This is what I was doing - trying to stop it behaving exactly like a drum. Here, the flaps and connecting rod are back in place. Click image to enlarge This is a close-up of how the flap works. You can see that the cable pulls one flap, and the connecting rod moves the other. The cable is actually quite a rigid piece of wire - as it needs to be to push the flaps shut again. You can also see the small 'plate spring' (under the cable in the pic) this helps to push /keep the flaps shut. Click image to enlarge As you can see, it could be a few things - the cable itself, the lever, or the flaps mechanism. At least now you have an idea what you're dealing with. Donald 1994 Defender 300Tdi 110 SW - owned since 2002 - 230k miles and going strong (The 'rolling restoration' or tinkering thread: http://www.defender2.net/forum/topic58538.html ) 2000 Range Rover P38 4.0L V8 in the past.. RR classic - fitted with 200Tdi 1984 RR classic - V8 with ZF auto box 1993 Discovery 300Tdi not to mention the minis and the Type 2 VW camper... |
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13th Sep 2022 1:21pm |
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| northernerindevon Member Since: 28 Feb 2018 Location: Bristol Posts: 58 
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Donald, thank you so much for the detailed reply and the photos
That information & photos are really helpful. First up I'll try disconnecting the cable at the dash control end and see what happens when I try to move the flaps with my fingers (this just sounds wrong - I've been offshore too long...) then depending on that outcome I have some PlusGas (not WD40 Darren!) that I'll use to squirt down the cable. Its a 1986 90 so quite possible that things have seized up a bit with the passage of time. The endoscope camera is an intriguing prospect - I'm off to have a look at those! Donald - if I remember rightly, you fitted an Allisport upgraded heater matrix to yours didn't you? How have you found it? Worth the extra over a standard one? Once again, thanks for the reply and photos. Its appreciated. Cheers, Paul |
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13th Sep 2022 1:50pm |
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| donmacn Member Since: 07 Nov 2017 Location: Nth Scotland Posts: 1829 |
Hi Paul,
Glad to help if I can - just paying back some of the assistance I've had from the forum over the years. The endoscope thing, I bought one as I saw it recommended in one of the LR mags. Mine was about £35 for an android one. It's been handy a couple of times. Depstech, or something like that. Just plugs in to the USB-C port. Little LED lights at the end, with a brightness control on the cable. I have fitted the Allisport matrix. It's always difficult to make a precise comparison. I know the standard matrix it replaced wasn't original to the car, but maybe 10 years old; and it's one of those things that you 'fit and forget' to some extent. On balance though, I think it was worth the effort, there's a lot more heat there when you need it... but in Devon..!?  Donald
1994 Defender 300Tdi 110 SW - owned since 2002 - 230k miles and going strong (The 'rolling restoration' or tinkering thread: http://www.defender2.net/forum/topic58538.html ) 2000 Range Rover P38 4.0L V8 in the past.. RR classic - fitted with 200Tdi 1984 RR classic - V8 with ZF auto box 1993 Discovery 300Tdi not to mention the minis and the Type 2 VW camper... |
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13th Sep 2022 1:58pm |
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| northernerindevon Member Since: 28 Feb 2018 Location: Bristol Posts: 58
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Fair point! It doesn't exactly get freezing cold here but I'd love to take the Landy to Iceland in a few years...
I'm of the mind, if I was to replace the matrix I might as well upgrade it while I'm in there. Cheers, Paul |
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13th Sep 2022 2:36pm |
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