Is it immediately unbearable? It takes awhile for it to get to the point where I want to turn it off.

No matter how cold the weather is? How cold does it get in Georgia? This morning my temp gauge read -7C. That has been pretty much the standard the last two months. I have seen -21.5C twice this winter already. I guess you live in Georgia and I live in Minnesota, that could make a huge difference.

No, only after the engine has reached normal operating temperature.

Sometimes it gets into the single digits F. Even then, I would not want my heat running full blast for too long. Maybe my religious cooling system flushes are paying off!!!

I meant immediately in terms of after the engine is at temp. You are saying that then (after the engine is warmed up) when you switch the heat on it is immediately unbearable? That is definitely not my case. It takes a good 10-20 min of full heat before I would say it is unbearable.

Sometimes it gets into the -20F here. I think that makes a difference.

But still, that brings me back then to suspecting my aux water pump (or lack there of). It seemed hotter when that was hooked up but then it was also summer! Maybe I will end up buying one. We'll see.

I don't know, it is fine for now at least. I am planning on doing a radiator/coolant flush and change this spring/summer.

Just looked at the weather for here (Twin Cities, MN) and there (Augusta, GA).

It is 61F in GA and it is 20F here. I would think that makes at least somewhat of a difference in the 'feel' of the heat in the car.

It was 22F here last week. And my 300D heater was capable of putting out way more heat that I could stand. If yours isn't, I don't think that the deficit is going to be explained by discussing differences in regional climatology.

My 300D heat is much more than adequate at 20F and can certainly keep me warm enough in below 0F temperatures so I don't usually wear a coat while driving.

Here is why I brought that up. I remember this summer (when my system was kicking out heat uncontrollably due to the faulty aux water pump) the heat seemed unbearable.

Since then I have removed my aux water pump. Now the heat does not seem unbearable.

Because of this I DO believe the differences in temperature ARE pertinent to this discussion since my system seemed hotter when the temperature was warmer. I am trying to verify or dispell the theory that my aux water pump would make my system hotter.

So...

Have you unplugged your monovalve when the temperatures were down to 22F or so? If so did you notice a difference from having it unplugged or plugged? Do you notice any difference in the heat intensity from 22F to 61F (or warmer)?

Craig,
I am able to take my jacket off too in really cold weather (around 0F or below), it just takes 20 minutes or so. Is this typical?

Can you be a little more specific. Do you not have your jacket on during a cold start? Or do you take it off once it warms up in the car (how long does that take)?

This makes complete sense. I too had my aux pump defeated for a while. On cold days (7F), the heat was only hot when engine RPM was about 2000. This is because the main water pump was the only pump feeding the heater core. When I re-enabled the aux pump, everything was back to normal (HOT) air even on cold days.

So, install a new aux pump, this will at least make it to where you can take your coat off in your car.

I was in Minnesota this winter with a rental car, it was DANG cold there. I'm just glad that the car had heated seats. Funny though, it didn't have a remote starter. I would think that should be a law. ALL cars in Minnesota should be required to have a remote starter!!! :earmuffs:

No it takes the engine a little while to get up to temperature, then I takes the cabin a little while longer. I'm sorta guessing at the times, but if it's very cold it will take the engine 5-10 minutes to really get up to temperature, than at least another 5-10 minutes until the cabin feels really comfortable and the blower starts to reduce speed. I would guess it's about 15-20 minutes until it's really warm enough to be comfortable without a jacket.

Keep in mind that I mostly do long distance travel, so in those kind of temperatures, I'm likely to let the car run while I'm checking out of the hotel and getting some coffee, then I'll take off my jacket and put up with a little cold until I get going on the highway.