no heat?

I have noticed this problem recently on my 96. When i start the car and let it warm up, hot air eventually begins to come out of the vents like normal, but as i continue to drive, the temperature goes down to warm then to cool without any action by me. The temp on the climate control still reads 90 degrees, but the air coming out of the vents is way colder. I read in the manual that leaving the car in idle can cause this but it occurs while im driving. I have the climate control on manual setting. Help?

Thanks.

Thermostat may be stuck open.... heats up just enough while sitting but as soon as you move the thermostat doesnt restrict enough water to heat up..what are your coolant temps??

that or your heater core is half plugged..

My coolant temps are at, or just a little over 200, how would i go about checking these things?

if you can locate the heater core hoses with your hands safely...while the car is at op temperature....see if one of them is cold.....if so then your heater core is plugged..

I know i probably sound stupid but whats plugging it? and can i unplug it or is this something i would need to take it in for?

ususally corrosion/sediment, especially if the system hasnt been flushed,and coolant changed as normal maintanance...you could try an flush the system,you can pick up the flush liquid at any autoparts store if your inclined to do it yourself...

on the bright side,it doesnt seem that its totally plugged,it thats the problem... otherwise it may require a new core to be installed. which will probably result in taking it somewhere.

Alright thanks for the help

I think I'm having thermostat problems again. Last time i was having trouble getting heat and it was easily solved by replacing the thermostat. Now I'm experiencing some spotty heating troubles. All i find my self doing while driving is watch the temp gauge dance between around 170-210. Whenever the temp reads over 200 i get cold air blowing out of the vents until the gauge bounces back below 200 to about 170. The gauge also seems to like to creep past 200 while idling or while I'm stopped at a stoplight. I tried to replace the thermostat again but it didn't fix it. Anyone have any ideas?

sounds like an air pocket in the cooling system. Above the thermostat housing is a bleeder screw you can use to let the air pocket out...

Sweet, thanks!

The heater core has been replaced, no air in the lines but still no heat, the temp is about 200. Also how can I tell if the heated seat is working?

Sounds like the heater door actuators are not working. There is a posting on this editboard about that, search for 'actuator' and I think it will be one of the threads you find.

Albertj

You can tell if the heated seats are working when they get warm lol

albertj wrote:

Sounds like the heater door actuators are not working. There is a posting on this editboard about that, search for 'actuator' and I think it will be one of the threads you find.

Albertj

I've tried to search for 'actuator' but nothing comes up. Do u know what side the actuator is on?

SuperRiv07 wrote:

You can tell if the heated seats are working when they get warm lol

Does it get real hot? It seams to get warm but I cant realy tell, I guess I'll just put my amp meter on it

well Mine on high get pretty dam hot amd on low is nice and toasty

Look here:
https://rivperformance.editboard.com/interior-f20/write-up-hvac-assembly-t2500.htm

Thanks Randall.

Albertj

99Rivman wrote:

Look here:
https://rivperformance.editboard.com/interior-f20/write-up-hvac-assembly-t2500.htm

Thanks Randall,

does anyone have wire diagram for the heated seat?

did you check if the air conditioning is on? When I start my car it takes a while for the AC to come on

alright guys im trying to figure this out before the weather gets any worse and its coming quick so i have to do this fast.......

heres my problem..

-all my vents are blowing out cold air.
-you cannot turn the temp up only down
-there is no disply at all were its supposed to tell you the temp
-but the heated seat and the rear defrost still work good.


so whats the problem with my heat going out??

is the center counsel thing with all the heat controls blow??

Based on what you've described I would guess that it is the HVAC control head in the dashboard.
Maybe someone else can confirm this.

Note: The heated seats and rear defrost are on two totally separate circuits.
So the control head could be bad and these will still work.

brmcm15 wrote:

alright guys im trying to figure this out before the weather gets any worse and its coming quick so i have to do this fast.......

heres my problem..

-all my vents are blowing out cold air.
-you cannot turn the temp up only down
-there is no disply at all were its supposed to tell you the temp
-but the heated seat and the rear defrost still work good.


so whats the problem with my heat going out??

is the center counsel thing with all the heat controls blow??

Start with the simple stuff first. The number one cause of no heat is low level in the radiator. You need to remove the cap and verify coolant level in the radiator. The overflow level can still be good with the radiator low, you need to check it. Then I would verify that the thermostat is working and the coolant is coming up to normal temperature. Feel the 2 heater hoses. Are they both hot?


The climate control head can still work with the display blank. Pretty common really. I used a guy on E Bay to fix mine. Excellent service, and he works on an exchange basis, so no down time. It is 80.00 + 10.00 shipping + 100.00 core charge. He sends you a control head that has been totally gone through. You install it, and send your control head back to him. He then credits you the core charge. His number is 860-583-0629.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/95-96-97-98-99-BUICK-LESABRE-DIGITAL-CLIMATE-AC-CONTROL_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem41417438ebQQitemZ280271010027QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories

Alright i checked the hoses and yes there hot...lol

and yea i saw that on ebay and was debating weather or not that was the absolute problem..

so you guys think that it is all in the control unit in the center console??