heater and suspension advice

[ruthless potato]

Hi first thing is the heaters on my mk2 , didnt work at all before it got nicked but now some how since i've got it back they work jsut enough to demist the windscreen. What problems could be causing this lack of heat? all other aspects of the heaters work fine. ALso the ride on my nova is shocking i can only really go over speed bumps at no more than walking pace which is an annoyance. Its clearly been lowered a fair bit my guess would be 60 40. But should the ride be this shocking?
any help would be very appreciated
cheers

[bmw156]

something might be blocked in the heaters?? do all the fan speeds work??

and post up some pics of the car and some poeple will let you know how lowered it is and maybe some pics of the suspension.

welcome to PNG btw

[ruthless potato]

ok cheers
yh all the fan speeds work. Where would be the best place to check for blockages ie which part of the system is easiest to get access to?
heres some pics of me car
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll309/bambeano_01/P270908_1649.jpg
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll309/bambeano_01/P270908_1701.jpg
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll309/bambeano_01/P270908_165001.jpg
cheers guys

[AlexW]

Im presuming you already have it on the 3rd speed when your trying to de-mist the screen. Mine is poo to be honest, its just somthing you have to love about novas.

As for the suspension, if its lowerd its just one of those things.

[CoolTiger]

looks like its lowered 40mm, yea if its lowered its one of those things you gotta choose from style or comfort

[ruthless potato]

ok fair doos
is the ride improved with coil overs?
obviously not with very stiff springs but in general?
cheers

[AlexW]

The handling will inprove and with the correct spring and dampness setup it should get a bit more comfy.

[Welsh Dan]

Does the coolant system pressurise once the engine has been running for around 10 mins?

[Pistol Pete]

Air lock in your system?

Lowered cars in general will become bit more harsh. Especially when it comes to speed bumps. Yours looks around a 40mm drop. Maybe consider some shocks to go with the springs, if they are the standard items?

[MK999]

Does the coolant system pressurise once the engine has been running for around 10 mins?

If the coolant doesn't circulate it tends to make it hotter, had my thermostat go recently on a one poo, it overheated like mad but the heaters were top notch when it got warmed up lol

[Welsh Dan]

The heaters were poor in mine when the radiator was leaking slightly. Lukewarm at best.

[MK999]

well if it's leaking you're loosing water so maybe the matrix was dry? Not gonna claim to be an expert or anything but that was my first thought.

[bmw156]

also about a stiff ride, check tyre pressures as i had my tyres changed recently and they pumped them up high like 36 psi, when they are ment to be like 26

i can feel a slight change in my ride, as i have stiff suspension as well

[Nova_Tek]

Hmm my Nova has always been brill with hot air. Even during winter and the car has warmed up to temp I sometimes need to have the fresh air vents pointing to me in order for me to be more comfortable as the heat gets very hot. I'd personally start tackling the cooling system bit by bit.

Maybe be an airlock is the problem. Try flushing the cooling system especially if its not been done in the last 2 years. Then stick some good antifreeze and top up the system run the car to get the airlock out. Check the fan area under the scuttle cover make sure there is no rubish blocking the fan and if you can check the vent ways for rubbish too. I had a whole load of leaves and shizzle when the car was stood for a while and it deffo made a difference once I cleared everything up.

As for the ride, try find out what springs you got. there should be some markings or codes stamped on the springs and do a search on the net to see if you can find whats fitted. Same goes for the shocks. If the shocks look like GM ones and look old then maybe hey are way past it.

A bit of investigation and you may find the casue of your problems :thumb:

Generally you get waht you pay for, better quality springs have beter ride characteritics. The front seems to be lowered more then 40 imo.

[craig green]

Novas have a bad ride anyway, even on std height springs they can feel crashy. So when lowered dont expect any better. Walking pace over speedhumps is the norm anyway.

As for the heaters, if the fan works but you get no warmth, get the stat checked (replaced) sadly a cambelt off job (assuming 8v) & if you can be bothered, remove the matrix & flush it, but in my experience you spend hours backflushing it & its still no improvement. New matrixes can be got cheap from; www.buypartsby.co.uk (http://www.buypartsby.co.uk)

[Nova_Tek]

True regarding the crashy ride but I can attack speed bumps at 20mph max and at about 15mph on the 3 indivdual speed humps.

I have been in cars with el-cheap-o springs and yeah need to be gone over at like 5mph.

[ruthless potato]

right cheers for the advice guys!I'll investigate into it and see how it goesi'll also have a look at me springs and see wot i've gotwhat u guys think of the car in general?its was originally a 1.2 but its agot a 1.6 gte lump in with custom exhaust system. Its polybushed all round got v6 brakes and disks speed line alloys and thats it really. picked it up for £700 what ya think?

[Nova_Tek]

Car looks good and tidy mate. What size tyres you got on there? They seem to bulge a bit from what I can see.

BTW The polybushes will also firm things up too.