Pinto Heater Pipe.

[Guest elgey7]

If you run a Pinto without a heater can you blank off the heater pipe at the manifold and water pump ends instead of looping it ? Does anyone run their's like this?

Would it cause any cooling problems? I don't see the point of having a length of heater

pipe doing nothing!

 

Thanks

Colin

[Longboarder]

Some people do run like this and get away with it. If the heater pipe is blanked there is no circulation of water in the block or head till the thermostat opens. The situation is effectively like running without a fan belt till the thermostat opens. Why would you want to do that even if you would probably get away with it?

 

Nigel

[Guest Petemate]

Colin

IMHO most water-cooled engines will be better for an idling circuit in the cooling system. Even if you don't want a heater, as Nigel says if blanked off the engine will run without any circulation until the stat opens. Not a good idea, likelyhood of undesirable hotspots. Surely better to have at least a loop plumbed in the same way as the heater circuit? For this reason with mine, as I have a heater on/off tap, I've fitted a second tap which closes when the heater tap opens and vice versa. This provides a by-pass circuit when the heater is off, works well. BTW, most modern cars have a permanently "live" heater matrix, with flaps controlling the heater temp. But the A series engined BL cars, for example, with a heater tap, have a small by-pass hose twixt head and w/pump ensuring circulation.

FWIW

Pete

[Guest Duncan Venn]

I've got a heater, but I want to make some sort of manually controlled bypass so that the cockpit doesn't get too hot in the summer.

 

I've looked at central heating bits in B&Q and reckon that with 2 taps and a couple of T-pieces I could bodge something that would work, though I'm a bit concerned about the constriction inside the taps, which I suspect might affect the efficiency of the system in some way.

 

Has anyone got a means of bypassing the heater matrix. If so how have you done it?

 

Duncan

[Dave R]

you can get a valve thats either or, with 3 connections

that an a tee piece will do what you want

i intend to do the same to mine soon if i get the other jobs done first

[Guest salty_monk]

You can blank off the holes as suggested & drill some small holes (say 3 x 3mm) in the flange of the Thermostat to provide some flow before the stat opens... I've heard of people doing this successfully in Mini's & Morris Minors when using one of the Unleaded Metro heads that has no stat bypass, can't see why it wouldn't work on a Pinto...

 

Dan

[Guest Duncan Venn]

Thanks guys, I think I'll go for the tap & T piece - should be pretty straightforward to fit

 

Duncan