Why Isn’t My Car Heat Working?

This is a sponsored post. All opinions however are my own. 

Well it’s clear that summer has come and gone, and now we’re left with chilly weather ahead. I wasn’t too concerned about the cooler air until I got into my car last week and tried to turn the heat on. It took me a while to realize that my vehicle was actually blowing cold air, even though my heat controls were turned all the way to hot. So what do you do when your vehicle’s heat decides it’s just not going to work? Thankfully I got some helpful tips from a Washington Chevrolet dealer.

Here are some of the top reasons your vehicle’s heat might not be working.

1. Your vehicle might be low on coolant in your radiator. Check the coolant levels in your radiator, and make sure there is enough in there. Beyond that, make sure that your radiator cap is not leaking.
2. You have a plugged heater core. Over time, debris can clog your heater core and ultimately stop the flow of coolant. Replacing your heater core may be the necessary action to take in order to restore heat in your vehicle.
3. Your coolant level is low. You may need to add coolant if you are low. If there isn’t enough coolant, it won’t be able to go through to your heater core to produce warm air.
4. Your airflow controller is broken. If you’ve found that even your defrost doesn’t work in your vehicle, you may need to have a mechanic fix a loose cable or vacuum hose.
5. You have a broken thermostat. If you notice that your vehicle’s temperature gauge stays low (on ‘cold’) even after it’s had a chance to warm up, you may actually have a broken thermostat.

In my case, it turns out that I had a less common problem; the blend door needed to be fixed. Essentially this little flap can break or get stuck in one position and unfortunately for me, it was stuck in the cold air position. It was fine to be that way for the summer, but now that the weather is much colder outside, it was time to get it fixed.

Have you had issues getting your heat to work in your vehicle? What was the cause in your case? I’d love to hear in the comments. It keeps us all informed!

Sarah

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