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2003 Passat 2.8 V6 no heat

Posted: Fri Jan 22, 2016 4:27 pm
by matt122s
Hi All,
I'm new to this forum, but not new to cars. I have an '03 V6 Passat 4 motion wagon with over 200,000 miles. The car runs great and is comfortable to drive. I really like everything about the car except it gets absolutely no heat. The blower works great, I can hear the flaps working when I select floor or dash for the vents. A/C is ice cold.
I bought the car a little over 2 years ago with 160,000 mikes on it in the spring and didn't really need the heat. I didn't discover the no heat issue until the fall/ winter. When I bought the car I didn't have any maintenance history so I changed the timing belt, cam and crank seals and the thermostat. I live just outside of Boston, Ma. so it gets pretty cold in the winter, temps can range between 20's to high 30's. I was told the heater core was plugged so last winter I had it replaced at just over $1,000. It seemed to work OK, better, but to me it just didn't seem hot enough. To me you should be able to crank the heat up in any car and start sweating in the middle of the winter. I couldn't do this with the new heater core, it would barely keep up defrosting the windshield. I brought it back to the garage that did the work and was told the cooling system had air in it and needed to be bled. I'd get it back and it seemed OK for a week or two. I'd bring it back and do the same thing every few weeks and then it was spring and warm and didn't really need the heat. Sorry for the long winded story, but wanted to give as much detail as possible. Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions.
Thanks in advance,
Matt

Re: 2003 Passat 2.8 V6 no heat

Posted: Fri Jan 22, 2016 5:00 pm
by BlueWagon
Have you checked your heater control valve to make sure it is opening fully to allow coolant through the heater core?

Re: 2003 Passat 2.8 V6 no heat

Posted: Mon Jan 25, 2016 7:07 pm
by matt122s
Hi BlueWagon,
I didn't know the 2003 V6 Passat had a heater control valve, I couldn't locate it in the Haynes manual. When I search online for a replacement part as a reference I come up blank. I thought the heater core got unregulated coolant at all times and the air mix was controlled by blend air doors in the heater box to let in less or more heated air. Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Matt

Re: 2003 Passat 2.8 V6 no heat

Posted: Fri Jan 29, 2016 8:12 pm
by saintmoody
I would almost put money on the climate control module... It is good to hear all the miles that car has, I have the same car and it will be great to see it go past 200,000.

Re: 2003 Passat 2.8 V6 no heat

Posted: Tue Feb 02, 2016 12:34 pm
by gfmatthe
These are notorious for getting air trapped in the system. It can be difficult to remove this air. The usual hide out is in the heater core.
A test for this:
set the temp to high with the fan on a low setting. Gently rev and hold at 2000 rpm, as you let off listen for bubbling sound from heater core.

When I replace TB and WP I vacuum fill system as a preventative measure. If you do not have this equipment it is possible to do it on the cheap by keeping the coolant above the top of the reservoir. Search Citroen Saxo bleeding bottle on the cheap. http://www.saxperience.com/forum/showth ... p?t=440302
When your happy thermostat has opened you can remove the access coolant from reservoir.

Regards,
Gary.

Re: 2003 Passat 2.8 V6 no heat

Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2016 8:27 am
by matt122s
Thanks for the replies and help saintmoody and gfmatthe. I had swapped out the climate control unit with a know good one earlier and still have the same issue. I have also tried bleeding the coolant system by the method in the Haynes manual, it seemed to work for a day or two but then goes back to cool/cold air all the time. I'll try the link you suggested and report back.

Saintmoody the the car is running great, a few minor issues here and there, but it's a tank.
Thanks, Matt