Re: Had my bath today.

[FMARTIN <fmartin@ithaca.edu>]

>Date: Thu, 25 Sep 1986 17:37:23 -0700
>From: dsims@axtek.com (Donna Sims)
>Subject: Had my bath today.
>
edited......
>When I get to checking I see that hot, green radiator fluid is 
>leaking from under my dash (Not spraying, just rapidly dripping). 
>I check the heater hoses under the cowl cover where they go into 
>the heater under hood and they seem dry. 
>
>Am I to guess this is a damn heater core leaking?? The heater is 
>never used here in sunny Arizona so I don't know. I thought hot 
>water wouldn't be flowing through the heater core if the heater 
>was off. Any ideas please from somebody BTDT???
>
>Don S.

Yes, it sounds like the heater core is leaking.  

Until it's fixed, you may get away with shutting off the valve that 
supplies the hot fluid to the core. If your setup is like my 100Q 
(or most other cars), you'll find in the engine compartment, 
probably close to the firewall, a (white?) plastic unit in one of 
the heater hose lines that run into the fire wall. This will have a 
control arm on it, that swings back and forth to open and shut this 
valve. That arm will be actuated by either a cable, or with climate 
control, a small plastic tube running vacumn. Determine which way 
arm sits when the heat is on or off. Unhook the cable or vac. line. 
(plug the later with something). Tightly wire or tape or rubber 
band the arm in the shut position (It likely is spring loaded to 
default to the open position). 

This is a "temp"orary measure to get you around. When you're ready 
to do a permanent fix, don't mess around with "replacing" or 
"renewing" the old core, toss that sucker out and stick a new one 
in. (See earlier linguistics posts.)

HTHs, E-me if you do this and need help. 

Frank M. 
'89 100Q
'88 Mazda 323 GTX