Inside cabin getting hot

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Themasteryeti
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Inside cabin getting hot

Post by Themasteryeti » Fri Aug 26, 2022 10:09 pm

I bought my first 480s the other day and I simply love the car! Now I might just be getting paranoid as my temp gauge doesn't work so I currently don't know what's it's running at while I'm driving but I feel like the inside cabin by the foot well gets really warm, now idk if this is a normal thing, I did wonder if the car was overheating and I didn't know bcoz of the Guage not working but I put on of them thermometer dohickies against the engine and it's running at a nice 80°, I did notice alot of heat coming from under the car but soon found out that when the fan kicked it it was blowing all the hot air under the car so I thought maybe this is why the cabins getting hotter too? Wondered if anyone can be of any help!? :shock:
1973 vw beetle
1993 480s

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WillC9303
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Re: Inside cabin getting hot

Post by WillC9303 » Fri Aug 26, 2022 10:21 pm

I know it sounds really obvious, but is the heater on and the vent set to floor by any chance?

You say the engine isn’t overheating, but it could be a blockage in the exhaust system or a missing heat shield somewhere?
William

1993 2.0i Limited Edition

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Themasteryeti
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Re: Inside cabin getting hot

Post by Themasteryeti » Fri Aug 26, 2022 11:09 pm

Definitely not the heater, I always have it set to cold and set to the windscreen, but if the heat is on I do notice it comes through both the vents and the floor a little bit, I'm not sure about missingheat shield as I'm very new to these cars and don't know what bits should be under there! Likewise with the exhaust, I'm not sure how you can tell if there's a blockage 😩
1973 vw beetle
1993 480s

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WillC9303
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Re: Inside cabin getting hot

Post by WillC9303 » Fri Aug 26, 2022 11:10 pm

(From memory) I believe there should be a heat shield over the exhaust manifold, or at least around that area. I can double check for you tomorrow…
William

1993 2.0i Limited Edition

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Themasteryeti
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Re: Inside cabin getting hot

Post by Themasteryeti » Sat Aug 27, 2022 8:59 am

Thank you! :)
1973 vw beetle
1993 480s

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WillC9303
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Re: Inside cabin getting hot

Post by WillC9303 » Sat Aug 27, 2022 12:16 pm

Ok, so I can only speak for the 2.0 engine in my ES - I don’t know if the 1.7 in your S has a slightly different setup:

There should be a large silver heat shield above the catalytic converter and around the transmission tunnel. There should also be a silver metal plate between the exhaust manifold and the chassis bulkhead as well. If either of those are missing, that may be the cause of a toasty footwell - unless the heater is stuck on somehow without you knowing???

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If not that, then I’m pretty sure it will be something electrical then - I’m afraid someone else is going to have to help you with that, as I have even less of a clue when it comes to that sort of thing :(

What part of the world are you based in out of interest?
William

1993 2.0i Limited Edition

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jamescarruthers
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Re: Inside cabin getting hot

Post by jamescarruthers » Sat Aug 27, 2022 1:06 pm

The heater matrix, behind the centre console, will still get hot, regardless of whether you select hot or cold on the VEM.
1987 Volvo 480 ES, 507274, 217 - Red (Ness)
2006 Citroen C6 Exclusive 3.0 petrol/LPG
2008 Mini Cooper convertible (Mau)

Previous 480's:
J123 CFU -- ES
J449 MNL -- ES auto
D864 CPV -- ES
L691 JFC -- Turbo
F70 MNR -- ES
H858 FGV -- Turbo auto
E981 KHM -- ES (509849)

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Themasteryeti
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Re: Inside cabin getting hot

Post by Themasteryeti » Sun Aug 28, 2022 6:23 am

WillC9303 wrote:
Sat Aug 27, 2022 12:16 pm
Ok, so I can only speak for the 2.0 engine in my ES - I don’t know if the 1.7 in your S has a slightly different setup:

There should be a large silver heat shield above the catalytic converter and around the transmission tunnel. There should also be a silver metal plate between the exhaust manifold and the chassis bulkhead as well. If either of those are missing, that may be the cause of a toasty footwell - unless the heater is stuck on somehow without you knowing???

Image

If not that, then I’m pretty sure it will be something electrical then - I’m afraid someone else is going to have to help you with that, as I have even less of a clue when it comes to that sort of thing :(

What part of the world are you based in out of interest?

Thanks for the picture! I'll have a crawl under today to see if the bits are there 🙂 fingers crossed it is something simple like that
& I love in Bedfordshire! Surprisingly as I've never actually seen another 480 in the person alot it seems quite alot of other members live quite close!
1973 vw beetle
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Themasteryeti
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Re: Inside cabin getting hot

Post by Themasteryeti » Sun Aug 28, 2022 6:26 am

jamescarruthers wrote:
Sat Aug 27, 2022 1:06 pm
The heater matrix, behind the centre console, will still get hot, regardless of whether you select hot or cold on the VEM.
In which case is it a normal thing to happen? Which wouldn't be the worst as it's like like a fully blast heat, I just feel like my feet are getting a bit warmer than the rest of me 😂 but once again it might be down to paranoia with it being a new car I'm still getting used to 😂
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dcwalker
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Re: Inside cabin getting hot

Post by dcwalker » Sun Aug 28, 2022 8:17 am

With the 480's heating system, wherever you direct the air you will always get some through the fascia vents. That is by design and the only way to stop it is by closing them.

If you are directed on the windscreen any air to the floor will be minimal. Furthermore, if you are not directing any cold air down there, and thus not circulating it, the proximity to the engine bay and exhaust under the car, as well as the blocked off by a flap, but nevertheless hot, heater matrix, will always mean the footwell gets warm.

Try directing the cold air to the floor vents and see what happens. Put the blower fan on and check your are getting air out of the footwell vents (just to eliminate any possible cable issues). For cooling the interior of the car I'd set the direction for vents and floor - assuming you have the two slider system that's mid way between them. If you definitely want cold air to the windscreen, set the slider half way between windscreen and floor. Try also switching the blower fan on at its slowest speed.

Those minor alterations in settings could well make all the difference to you!

David
Current: 1994 480 GT, 1996 460 CD & 1997 440 LE with lots of optional extras & 2007 V50 SE Sport
Previous: Celebration 331 (re-homed with Richard S), Celebration 467 (returned to Martin Mc); Celebration 346 (re-homed with Alan480); Celebration 269 (scrapped abandoned project), Celebration 73 (sold on after 6 years), 1992 ES, 1988 ES - and numerous other non-480 Volvos!

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MisterH
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Re: Inside cabin getting hot

Post by MisterH » Sun Aug 28, 2022 9:47 am

In my experience the 480 is like a Sauna on wheels, it gets stiflingly hot inside whatever you do, especially in sunny weather. Now, if you are in doubt about the engine being too hot, I would just put the heater on full blast for a bit to help get rid of excess heat. It may not be pleasant, but it will ease things nicely. As for whether there could be a fault with the car, I will let more experienced hands comment on that :D
Current Jobs to do (23/1/22):
Fix Central Locking
Fix drivers side speaker
Annoying Scratching Squeak
Water leaks
Complete Front O/S rebuild

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