heater has died in banger. know of a good 12v heater?
Discussion
hello. it seems only days ago i was telling of the virtues of my mondeo banger. well since then my fuel gauge, speedo, odometer, oil temp gauge, front screen demister thingy and heater have all packed in lol!
i can put up with it all apart from the heater and a recent trip to scotland yesterday showed me a broken heater is not fun. looking for a good 12v ciggarette plug-in heater if anybody knows of one. tried to fix the mondeo but no blown fuses, pulled the dashboard out and the turn/switch is working properly and to be honest its probably the thermostat but i think it might be beyond my skills and the cars not worth spending cash on really. no idea of costings.
all help gratefully received.
i can put up with it all apart from the heater and a recent trip to scotland yesterday showed me a broken heater is not fun. looking for a good 12v ciggarette plug-in heater if anybody knows of one. tried to fix the mondeo but no blown fuses, pulled the dashboard out and the turn/switch is working properly and to be honest its probably the thermostat but i think it might be beyond my skills and the cars not worth spending cash on really. no idea of costings.
all help gratefully received.
Is it a Mk I/II?
If so, look in the driver footwell by the centre console and you'll see a plastic lever. It will be in the down position. Push it up and tie it there and you'll get your hot air back. The problem is the rotary temperature control which instead of pushing the cable into the sleeve, allows it to bend and it does nothing, just keeps bending the cable. If you pull it apart, you can straighten the cable with pliers, add a bit of lube and used gently, it will operate the lever correctly until some doxy passenger gives it a hard twirl again.
If so, look in the driver footwell by the centre console and you'll see a plastic lever. It will be in the down position. Push it up and tie it there and you'll get your hot air back. The problem is the rotary temperature control which instead of pushing the cable into the sleeve, allows it to bend and it does nothing, just keeps bending the cable. If you pull it apart, you can straighten the cable with pliers, add a bit of lube and used gently, it will operate the lever correctly until some doxy passenger gives it a hard twirl again.
it's a mk2. god i love this site.
in fact lus1fer that sounds spot on because as i was on my way to sunny scotland i did possibly turn it with some gusto and it made a 'clunk' and it felt different the action to previously 'twists' of the control.
today i pulled apart the front of the dash and the passenger footwell bit. effectively everywhere but where i needed to look!
i'll have a peek and update as to whether it worked tomorrow. if so i owe you a beer!
in fact lus1fer that sounds spot on because as i was on my way to sunny scotland i did possibly turn it with some gusto and it made a 'clunk' and it felt different the action to previously 'twists' of the control.
today i pulled apart the front of the dash and the passenger footwell bit. effectively everywhere but where i needed to look!
i'll have a peek and update as to whether it worked tomorrow. if so i owe you a beer!
Edited by pimping on Monday 27th September 20:59
Sideways Tim said:
Better off putting a couple of those disposable BBQ's on a sheet of asbestos on the back seat and fire them up 1/2 hour before you leave.
Toasty
Fantastic way to end up dead!Toasty

A common suicide method, unfortunately.
The BBQ uses up the oxygen in the atmoshpere very quickly, and produces lots of carbon monoxide instead.
Much quicker than the old hosepipe from the exhaust, and a lot less likely to be noticed by some passing busy-body.
They are all terrible. We bought the best rated one out of a shocking bunch
the heat it gave out was at best luke warm I could put my hand on the output for whole journeys without any benefit of temp. The other great side of this was the gentle and I mean gentle gust it would give. Make that gently waving paper would create.
the heat it gave out was at best luke warm I could put my hand on the output for whole journeys without any benefit of temp. The other great side of this was the gentle and I mean gentle gust it would give. Make that gently waving paper would create.
Look on the bright side. If you have all your fan speeds as well, your Mondeo is a good one. Mine only had half the heated screen too, another common fault and yes, it was the passenger side that worked....
The rotary control is a little more faffy as there is a ratchet but it's all cheap plastic and once you get the cable straight, it all forces back into place. It's more obvious when you look at it.
The rotary control is a little more faffy as there is a ratchet but it's all cheap plastic and once you get the cable straight, it all forces back into place. It's more obvious when you look at it.
er only setting 4 works on the blower but this matters none as it blows HOT now!
and both front and rear screen worked last night but after me faffing about the rear one works but the front one has died lol.
the plug at the end of the cable had popped out on the arm for the heater near where you mentioned in the drivers side footwell. i thought about popping it back in but decided to zip tie it in place due to not wanting it popping out on one of my lengthy journeys and nearly freezing to death like the other day on the way to scotland at 4 in the morning.
actually got my sleeping bag out and put it on my lap it was that cold. what a big girls blouse!
and both front and rear screen worked last night but after me faffing about the rear one works but the front one has died lol.
the plug at the end of the cable had popped out on the arm for the heater near where you mentioned in the drivers side footwell. i thought about popping it back in but decided to zip tie it in place due to not wanting it popping out on one of my lengthy journeys and nearly freezing to death like the other day on the way to scotland at 4 in the morning.
actually got my sleeping bag out and put it on my lap it was that cold. what a big girls blouse!
Dave - that reminds me of the times years ago when we used to magnetise screwdrivers by wrapping a coil of thick wire round the shank and dropping each end of the wire on to the terminals of a good strong 12v battery, you remember? Connect and retire immediately. Following would be a sizzling sound, loads of whitish smoke, an acrid plastic burning smell - kick the wire away and hey presto! a magnetic screwdriver. First time you were truly amazed at the phemomenon...
Sorry to go a bit O/T but I know PHers like their humour
Sorry to go a bit O/T but I know PHers like their humour
Edited by Petemate on Monday 27th September 22:56
LuS1fer said:
Look on the bright side. If you have all your fan speeds as well, your Mondeo is a good one. Mine only had half the heated screen too, another common fault and yes, it was the passenger side that worked....
Mine had that problem too - the driver's side plug had come loose, by the look of it when Ford put the plastic scuttle panel in at the factory. You need to remove the wipers, pop off the scuttle and you'll see the two plugs, one at each bottom corner of the screen.HellDiver said:
LuS1fer said:
Look on the bright side. If you have all your fan speeds as well, your Mondeo is a good one. Mine only had half the heated screen too, another common fault and yes, it was the passenger side that worked....
Mine had that problem too - the driver's side plug had come loose, by the look of it when Ford put the plastic scuttle panel in at the factory. You need to remove the wipers, pop off the scuttle and you'll see the two plugs, one at each bottom corner of the screen.Hi
While on this subject, I used to have a Lotus Elan +2 and I fitted a Webasto Hi-Top heater. It plumbed into the petrol and water and preheated the engine. It also had an exhaust that I used to have pointed at the sump. It had an electronic timer, so even in the hardeast winter the car would be near operating temp when I got in.
Berni
While on this subject, I used to have a Lotus Elan +2 and I fitted a Webasto Hi-Top heater. It plumbed into the petrol and water and preheated the engine. It also had an exhaust that I used to have pointed at the sump. It had an electronic timer, so even in the hardeast winter the car would be near operating temp when I got in.
Berni
berni29 said:
Hi
While on this subject, I used to have a Lotus Elan +2 and I fitted a Webasto Hi-Top heater. It plumbed into the petrol and water and preheated the engine. It also had an exhaust that I used to have pointed at the sump. It had an electronic timer, so even in the hardeast winter the car would be near operating temp when I got in.
Berni
I'm curious about these heaters, are they expensive to buy / have installed?While on this subject, I used to have a Lotus Elan +2 and I fitted a Webasto Hi-Top heater. It plumbed into the petrol and water and preheated the engine. It also had an exhaust that I used to have pointed at the sump. It had an electronic timer, so even in the hardeast winter the car would be near operating temp when I got in.
Berni
berni29 said:
Hi
While on this subject, I used to have a Lotus Elan +2 and I fitted a Webasto Hi-Top heater. It plumbed into the petrol and water and preheated the engine. It also had an exhaust that I used to have pointed at the sump. It had an electronic timer, so even in the hardeast winter the car would be near operating temp when I got in.
Berni
Now that is a good idea - however thats a lot of stress to put on your battery in the freezing conditions, oil may be nice & warm but no power left to turn over the engine.While on this subject, I used to have a Lotus Elan +2 and I fitted a Webasto Hi-Top heater. It plumbed into the petrol and water and preheated the engine. It also had an exhaust that I used to have pointed at the sump. It had an electronic timer, so even in the hardeast winter the car would be near operating temp when I got in.
Berni
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