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Quote:
Originally Posted by bdtutton
I found when I run the heater at full speed when it is really cold it pulls all the heat out of the engine and it takes forever for the engine to warm up. I know the thermostat is working because there is warm water going to the heater, but there is none going to the radiator. The passenger heater is using all the engine heat.
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What you are saying is not possible.
Think of the radiator, and the heater, as a heat exchanger. The efficiency of a heat exchanger is a function of the size, number of tubes, number of fins, airflow, and temperature differential between the coolant to ambient temperature.
There is absolutely no way that the cars heater, with its MUCH smaller size, fewer tubes, fewer fins, limited airflow (compared to a vehicle in motion), and a lesser temperature differential (in the vehicle vs outside air) could be so efficient as to slow the engine from warming up.
Exactly the opposite should be occurring. That is, while the thermostat is closed, the water returning to the engine from the heater would be "hotter" than the water returning if it had gone through the radiator. In effect, the thermostat is helping your car to warm up faster than it would if you were driving.