New member - Problems with heater control valve

seanj · Post by **seanj** » 23 Apr 2016, 12:24

Hi everyone,

This is my first post here. I have been a long time lurker and have found a lot of useful posts here which have helped me through the years. I have a '91 Volvo 244 that I bought about 4 years ago with 219k miles. It now has 237k miles. Don't drive it during winter months or inclement weather as I have a Subaru AWD for those days.

Anyhow, I have been having issues with my floor getting wet. Only the driver's side gets wet. And it would manifest itself as clear (slightly oily) water when I dabbed it off the carpet. No coolant smell in the car and no goofy vapors on the windhshield. I poured water through the cowl vents and sunroof drain - they function as they should. Heater works phenomenally well as it should and I am able to modulate the temperature pretty well.

So I finally took the carpeting out and ripped the sound dampeners on the bottom (gray mats with the foam on the back). When I run the car with heat on I get a steady stream of coolant flowing down - see attached pictures. As soon as I put the slider on the blue/cool side - no more coolant leak. This means my heater control valve is bad - correct? If this is the case, what is the recommended brand for buying? I tend to stay away from generic parts on FleaBay - but I cant find anything OEM on ipd or FCP either. I would like to do it once and do it right and forget about it for years to come.

Also, if anyone can post instructions on how to replace it or guide me to an older post/link with all instructions would be much appreciated.
I found this helpful line - https://www.brickboard.com/RWD/index.ht ... show_all=1 - but the pictures do not load.

93Regina · Post by **93Regina** » 23 Apr 2016, 15:23

seanj wrote: '91 Volvo 244

Read thru this thread, heater control valve, and focus on post ten.

seanj · Post by **seanj** » 23 Apr 2016, 15:41

Thanks. Couple of things - is my diagnosis of a leaky valve correct or could this be a heater core? The packaging is tight in there and my hands don't fit in there very well at all....

Also, where can I find decent quality replacement parts? If it is indeed the valve, then do I get the alternate design from euro parts house or is there a good quality direct swap available somewhere? I would prefer not to put to anything from eBay (all parts on my car are OEM and serve me well).

lummert · Post by **lummert** » 23 Apr 2016, 16:26

eEuroparts has a kit that includes the hoses. Supplied by Proparts.

seanj · Post by **seanj** » 24 Apr 2016, 17:16

Those proparts have terrible reviews on VW forums. I looked at the IPD website and they also give parts that have horrible reviews.

So I want to replace it with a metal valve. Can anyone please tell me the size of the outlets on the current valves our 240s have?
Are they both 5/8"? I am contemplating using the Four Seasons 74827 or 74828 - can anyone recommend which one to use?

lummert · Post by **lummert** » 24 Apr 2016, 18:25

Is it cable controlled or is it vacuum controlled?

seanj · Post by **seanj** » 24 Apr 2016, 19:23

It's cable operated. The current plastic one (which is leaky) is p/n# 9131998. The 74828 looks like it is pull type. Pull to open so that coolant flows - which is what I believe the cable in my 244 does.

Has anyone tried this? Europartshouse has something similar but it costs me $70 with shipping while I can buy the valve on Amazon for $17 with shipping. Just curious to see and know what others have done and if this is an advisable solution.

lummert · Post by **lummert** » 24 Apr 2016, 19:26

Many VW cars use cable controlled heater control valves. Inlet/outlet size should be 5/8" (16mm).

seanj · Post by **seanj** » 24 Apr 2016, 19:31

Thanks. I will order the four seasons valve and see how it turns out. Might be a few days though before I get to it.

The final question I have is: can I put it inline between the hoses without adding a 90 degree elbow? If so, will the mechanical cable still be able to push/pull on the lever?

The valve I am talking about:
https://www.amazon.com/Four-Seasons-7482 ... B001B7BUAU

Instructions on Europartshouse:
http://europartshouse.com/index.php?main_page=page&id=7

See how he has the 90degree elbow added? Can I just avoid using it and install the valve inline and still have mechanical force to push/pull?

lummert · Post by **lummert** » 24 Apr 2016, 19:33

NAPA part number TEM 935812 is same part as Four Seasons 74828. $16.31