heater swap - or improvement - anything to make it better!

so... on my quest to make the heater actually work I came across this thread: http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f6/best-place-find-heater-motor-166170.html

which seems like a good idea - less than 30 quid to get some decent airflow through the heater matrix

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but now I'm thinking there might be a better solution with a more modern fan and matrix, anyone got any suggestions? I'm going to turn the chicken shed into a comfortable daily driver if it kills me!

cheers

Terry

heater works fine on a series - just need to reduce the volume it is trying to heat and reduce the heatloss through the bodyshell. My truck cab was toastie (eventually) :~.

it's a 109, hardtop - so the volume of space to heat is ridiculous, especially with the ventilation gaps around the door and sides

i'm really more concerned with efficient demisting than temperature, but any heat would be a bonus!

spose I could put some sort of bulkhead in to reduce the volume of space to heat during the winter.....

First off, get some form of curtain divider for behind the front seats. Stuff for opening doors - plastic is good.
secondly insulate the main roof section and sides.
thirdly give the cooling system a damn good flush and make sure all the levers and valves operate as they should.
fourthly make sure the thermostat is operating as it should
fifthly get an electric fan, so the engine warms up quicker.

A defender fan though similar motor has more flow. You need to do a bit of fettling to make it fit but took me about an hour, a tin can and some body filler to make the square exit into a round exit. While youre at it give the matrix a good flush.
Unless you plan any desert driving an 80 degree thermostat makes a worthwhile difference.

Main problem though is that thr engine wont warm up until its driven hard for a few miles. A rad muff helps but my next spending is going to be on a leccy fan so itll warm up before I get there!

ive clocked summot an ickle bit betterer than a defender fan

get to the scrappys and rip the fan out of a saxo ( theyre the same size got 4 speeds built in and electronic thick plastic housing and at full tilt will blow yer flat cap clean orff )

just remember to get the plugs for the fan and the controll nob off the dash :doh:

still only cost me a pearl diver

I ve had a few series and the heaters in all of them were less effective then the dog breath Id get blowing down the back of my neck. To be honest my 90 is not a lot better either despite insulation, camping mats etc etc. The best way in my opinion if you can find a secondhand affordable on eis a diesel fuelled electirc heater such as a webasto or similar. They dont depend on driving 10 miles to get your engine warm and blow good hot air from the start. The only problem is finding one at a decent price.

I've got an electric rad fan, new water pump, decent rad, new pipework, thermostat is opening when it should be - rad is covered.... still takes 2 miles to warm up, so air flow is the issue - cold air on the windscreens is better than no air and my commute is only 5 miles, so I would only get 10 mins of heat, but that's better than nowt!

can't even get it to run on the LPG til I'm halfway but I have heard that the 2.6s run quite cool

saxo fan sounds like a nice bodge.... err I mean modification

i had a peugeot one - there is a write-up on here....

http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f6/mhm-lecky-fan-fitting-piccies-46314.html

i have seen ex mod 110's with what appears to be domestic radiators running the length of the rear tub uprights from the floor. Might be some form of arctic kit.

i should imagine someone competent would be able to knock something up, fine control of the temperature might be harder and i guess a bigger water pump?

i put a defender heater in my series and it made absolutely fook all difference ,i think insulation is the way to go

get a length of plastic hose from a vaccuum cleaner and connect directly to the heater hose, then put the end of the hose in your fly on your pants.

Try putting a double matrix in to improve heat.
Also for demisting put a milk bottle top into passenger side hose with 15mm hole in this gives more air flow to drivers side.

milk bottle top is just about my level of bodgery love it -

of course, one other issue I realised I have is that my LPG system uses the coolant to heat the vapouriser thingy - so more pipes and more cooling

perhaps buying a better hat would be a lot easier!

post 2005 defender heater box .