88 gli

[landscaper414]

i've owned my 1988 jetta gli 16 v. w/1.8 liter. manual tranny for 10 years. i have had it in the garage for 3 months dec-feb. i was installing new brakes from master cyl to 4 new rotors, calipers, pads, dust covers, bearings, hardware etc.. the works. the vehicle stops great. my problem is this... during the last 3 months its been cold. so i finish my brake job last week fire up the car, it took about 10 minutes but did fire up. PROBLEM i noticed i busted off the fitting on the top driverside location of the air conditioner/radiator. its not on the radiator its the smaller finned cooler mounted infront of the radiator towards the grill and headlights. the fitting and hose are connected and hanging next to where it should be attached. i think its the inlet to the cooler? all the hoses regarding this are in some way or another connected to the a/c or are a/c related. i didnt notice this untill i fired up the car and after 15 minutes had no heat. upon further investigation i found that almost all of my water hoses, radiator and reservoir were packed full of slush and ice. last nite i drained and flushed the cooling system, my questions are this. is the broken fitting going into the cooler and a/c system affecting my heat situation? and, i'm guessing i had a weak water/coolant mixture and this is why it froze up in my hoses, is this possible? and is that more likely to affect my heat situation. lastly, i donot use or need the a/c in this car, what should i do about repairing this fitting and evidentaly the a/c cooler since its damages. i dont mind having to remove the a/c hoses and related parts from the vehicle forever. i need to keep the compressor installed due to alternator belt. thanks.

[denisond3]

If you broke off a fitting for the a.c. system's condenser (the finned goody in front of the radiator) then the only problem is that the a.c. wont work anymore. You can just ignore it. It would have Zero to do with your heater. If you really want to remove the a.c. hoses you could do it. I know they are definitely in the way sometimes. But you dont need to. With the refrigerant gone (it was probably all gone long before you broke the fitting) the compressor clutch wont engage - but the compressor pulley will keep spinning. My Jettas (both 1990 1.8L 8 valve) are the same way, neither a.c. works, though I might fix them someday. We will want to be able to drive the Jettas into Mexico and cross deserts where its over 100° in the shade - except there isnt any shade. Hot!
If your system had slush in it at the radiator and hoses - it would have had slush in the heater core and hoses too. So until it gets warm enough for that slush to move around, you cant expect any heat. You may be able to drive the car, assuming you have a good 50-50 mixture of water and antifreeze in the cooling system now - and the heater will thaw out when it gets warm enough. Driving it may help it get warm too, just from the engine heat coming through the firewall insulation.

[landscaper414]

thanks for the info on the a/c... ill keep the unit intact and maybe this spring repair and recharge the a/c. either way, the slush is gone and the car runs smooth, just not gettin a consistent hot air from the venting. its more like cool warm air. i put straight coolant/antifreeze in the system, no water.?. also, my temperature light went on and stayed on 2 out of 4 times ive driven the car between last nite and today. temperature stays between the middle and slightly over the line towards hot on the dash. it does not overheat and the last time i drove the car 1pm today the light was not on for the temp.. like i say ive had this car for 10 years and can usually figure easy things out but the heat not gettin hot makes me wonder. so if ya have any ideas id appreciate it. thanks again.

[denisond3]

Nope. Im out of ideas. I suppose a damaged thermostat could cause that - but I dont know, since it hasnt happened to me. It was 75°f today, and here in Southern Texas we havent had a frost yet this winter.
As for your straight antifreeze coolant; it has a warmer 'freezing' point than a 50-50 of antifreeze & water does. 50-50 works to something like -60°. Also, pure antifreeze expands/contracts more than water does, by quite a bit, but the system should be able to handle that okay.