I have a 98 Dakota 4X4 with a 318. I start it up and let it get up to temp, temp gauge reads about 180 and turn on the heater it blows air that is just barely warm. I checked the coolent and it is full and looks good and clean. The heater hoses feel hot so I'm at a loss. I don't know if it could be the thermostat even though it appears to be up to tempereature. Anyone have this before or have any ideas?

Thanks, rhutson in NC

 

Sounds as if your heater core is clogged. Try flushing it in the opposite direction of normal flow and see if that helps.

 

you know dodge didnt do a very good job engineering the heaters in our trucks. Most people complain about that including me. There isnt much you can do about it unless you buy a new heater core.

 

Buying a new heater core will not do you any good until you find the reason your initial heater core failed. Furthermore, the only reason you would want to buy a new heater core is if your existing one is leaking. If it is not leaking, you just wasted some $$$. Simply do a reverse flush (it honestly takes about 10 minutes) and watch for debris or anyting else that might be clogging your heater core. If anyone does not know how to do this, I will post up some pics and make a tutorial over this coming weekend.

 

This is my 1st post here,.. Hope I get it right.
I also have poor heat out of my'99 318 4x4.
I took the pass side heater hose apart then,
the driver side heater hose. I took the garden
hose and forced the water thru from both sides for a while.
Only a small amount of crud came out.
Before I started the dash vent temp was only about 95 degrees.
After; 140.
Next day; 130.
And the day after it's down to a max of 115.
Any ideas what's going on? Or, how to fix it??
(I also replaced the thermostat with a new 195).

 

Virused, could you post up the pics and tutorial on the reverse flush, i think i too am in need of one badly. By the way i find all your posts very informative thanks for all the help. Also, sweet dak!

 

I have almost the same problem with my truck. i live about 6 mins from my work. On the colder morning I do warm the truck up about 10 mins and then leave to come to work some days it warmer in the truck then other days. I have a 05 neon and it does the same thing the heater temp is all over the place. I just think its one of those crazy dodge things

 

'99 Dakota 4X4 3.9L. Just had our first real cold snap in central ohio, and i've noticed my heat isn't too great. I am assuming heater core. I've been putting my heater to max AC and it gets warmer. Temporary solution until i get my heater core fixed. Not sure if that is good for the AC, but my AC went out 2 years ago so i'm not too worried. I'd be interested in knowing how to do the revesr flush, too. The shop wants a lot of money.

 

If you flushed your heater core, but it tends to just get clogged again, you might need a whole cooling system flush. Junk in your radiator might just clog the heater core again and again till you flush it.

2 cents

 

Twiztid, you bring up a great point. If for any reason, you were running only water, or an extremely low amount of coolant, check the color of the coolant. If it is beginning to have a reddish tint, then you might have rust forming inside the radiator/block. If this is the case, it will clog your heater core.

Offroadgolfer, thank you for the kind words! I need to flush mine out anyway, and have been putting it off. I will also be replacing my rack and pinion this weekend, so I will do to flush as well. Just an excuse to have some cold beers and listen to music in the garage. While I am slowly slipping into a nice buzz, I will snap some pictures along the way; or better yet, I will have the old lady do it. If anyone is interested, I can also take some pictures of how the rack & pinion install goes for future reference of our members. Let me know.