96 ram 1500 318 heat trouble

[forest]

i have problems with the heat in my truck. I have changed the following;

Clutch fan
Radiator
turpentine belt
Thermostat
Water pump.

all these parts were required, however....I still don't have very much heat in my truck....a mechanic said I need to check my head gasket and possible change it. I also heard it may be some vacuum hoses that control the heat. Anybody else have this problem? What can I do? Please help.

[BleedDodge]

Have you flushed or replaced the heater core?

[forest]

no. i havent replaced the heater core, but i have flushed it three times now, with the same result...water flows thru, and heat is given off...

i did check out the vacume hoses in the dash..and re-loobed the controls where the vacume lines attach..the heat seems to be staying on, however in extreme cold weather, not too much heat is given off.

[crazys182003]

are you loosing any anitfreeze? If your not then the head gasket to me can be ruled out.

[galea_joe]

Originally Posted by forest

i have problems with the heat in my truck. I have changed the following;

Clutch fan
Radiator
turpentine belt
Thermostat
Water pump.

all these parts were required, however....I still don't have very much heat in my truck....a mechanic said I need to check my head gasket and possible change it. I also heard it may be some vacuum hoses that control the heat. Anybody else have this problem? What can I do? Please help.

I wrote a posting not to long ago titled 99 Ram Heat Problem. I believe this is the same problem I have. Because of the reccommendations on my post, today I went out and bought some 7/32" vacuum hose and started replacing some vacuum lines. Believe it or not I have seen a difference but it hasn't cured my problem. I started with replacing the vacuum hose that connects right to the intake manifold. It did not have the tightest grip on the fitting so I started there. As soon as I replaced that 2" piece of hose I noticed that my controls started to act more immediate, as soon as I switched a position on my climate controls it reacted within a second. I also found that the check valve that connects to that 2" piece of hose was shot and I replaced that. Unfortunately I ran out of daylight so I could not change any more hose. I drove the truck later on this evening and found that the heat does seem to come out a little better but still seems like its a mix of hot air and cold air as I turn up the blower speed, almost as if a mixing door is not fully advanced. I will continue to replace hoses and fittings to see if there is any more improvements. I will keep updated.

[forest]

i am not loosing any anti freez, and that is correct...my brother-in-law said it can't be the headgasget for that exact reason...(also no antifreeze in my oil). good to hear the vacumme hose check is working for some ppl..i checked mine this weekend, and it seems ok..and my heat is working kinda ok.

[dadof4s]

Originally Posted by forest

i am not loosing any anti freez, and that is correct...my brother-in-law said it can't be the headgasget for that exact reason...(also no antifreeze in my oil). good to hear the vacumme hose check is working for some ppl..i checked mine this weekend, and it seems ok..and my heat is working kinda ok.

What is the temperature of the new thermostat that you put in?

[forest]

it is a winter thermostat. i think 195? but it is a winter one for sure

[meistermind]

Could be the motor assembly that moves the hot/cold door in you ducts. Might be stalled in one position or bad.

Check out some more details on this other posting here:

http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbul...d.php?t=495681

Good Luck!!

[forest]

thank you. i will check it out. but..i notice it is hotter when i leave it at a low fan setting...this could be due to the fact that it is warming up outside. i wont know until it gets cold again. thanks again. i will check that out too

[forest]

hmmm. do you think i should check out the head gasget? i still have problems with the heat...a mechanic said there could be a leak in the head gasget and it is sucking air causing an air pocket in the heater core..could this be??? no anti-freeze in the oil to confirm a head gasget blown. what should i do?

[crazys182003]

personally I don't think it is a head gasket. one thing I can think of is have you had your fluids flushed lately? I have ehard of some peopel flushing their own fluids and get air bubbles in but if you get it done at a dealer or shop they do a good job. I like to flush my fluids about once a year soemtiems more. it depends on my driving and how much I offroad and get water in my system.
The 195 thermostat is the proper one that should be in. some people end up putting in 180s which don't work as well.

[forest]

thank you

[kyhillbillymonster]

Ok, I am experiencing similar issues. I have a 98 Ram 318. I have had to change several parts on it. water pump, radiator, thermostat (4 times i have changed the thermostat). I have also flushed the system thoroughly and refilled with a 50/50 mix of antifreeze and deionized water. I have flushed the heater core thoroughly also. But my heat issue in the cab of the truck is directly related to my engine run temperature. During the summer it may come up to the range of 170 - 180 degrees. When it's about 30 degrees out it doesn't get above 140 - 150. I can do the cardboard trick and block a good portion of my radiator and get the engine temp to come up to the range of 200 - 210. And then my heat works great. I am now wondering if I could have an issue with my clutch fan engaging too much when it's running and causing the engine to not come up to temperature like it should. Has anyone else seen this? Thanks in advance.

[jamesslcx]

forest, what does your temp guage read when your engine is warm? kyhillbillymonster, I've had problems with poor quality thermostats in the past. Did you get all the air out of the system when you did the work? Do you hear the fan clutch engaging a lot? On my truck you can mainly only hear it when the engine is cold.