extreme cockpit heat?

howdy folks,

I manage to get the vette back on the road today after fixing some big problems with the speedo, radiator and others.

Going down the interstate, this car in florida is unbearable. The heat seems to come from the dash area instead of the console. I would say that there is a hole somewhere in the bulkhead, but I couldnt find one and the factory insulation is good and intact.

Is there any mods I can do? You can put your hand on anything under the dash and its hot. if you drive it more than 30 minutes, your done like thanksgiving turkey.

In my 79 I used a product called Koolmat and it works great. No more heat or hot feet. There are other less expensive insulation products available but living in Florida when its 96 out I chose Koolmat.. Check out their web site http://koolmat.com

Smallblock,

You have email!

Sounds like the heater water control valve is not closing and is allowing hot water to circulate through the heater core. This will increase heat. Also check the vacuum actuators that control the hot or cold air flow. The heater box door may not be closing or sealed properly and allowing hot air in when you don't want it. I replaced the heater water control valve on mine and it made a big difference in heat coming in from the heater core.

I looked at the Kool mat, almost fell out of my chair when i saw the price of 400 bucks!

A friend of a friend builds race cars and recommends this stuff http://www.low-e.com/Applications/Auto/Auto.html

Anyone heard of this stuff?

Rick

My 1973 has a simple shut off valve in line with the heater hose. In the summer I just shut it off. It makes a big difference.

You can get blanket insulation for house at Home Depot that does the trick too. there is a post about somewhere else here on that. alot cheaper than Koolmat. It is foil backed and inslated well you cut it to fit.
Found it on page 5 here's a link to check out on insulating the cockpit there.



http://mywebpages.comcast.net/vettfixr/page14.htm

|UPDATED|4/16/2004 5:37:08 PM (AZT)|/UPDATED|

Just a thought, don't know if you've resolved the issue yet. However, my 75 was very hot 105+ temps in the cabin even with tops off on an 80s day. What gives? Well its a Vette I'll suffer, no money to spend on these Koolmat/insulation ideas from the forums. Two summers later one of my headers shrapnels. Suckers were rusted through almost completely and were paper thin. I put new Jet-Hot coated headers on them and in the heat of August (90+ weather) the cabin was comfortable without A/C. A/C is still non-functional, but that's why its got T-Tops!

Point is...check the condition of your headers/manifolds. If they're rusted thin they may be part of the problem.

Scot

Hope you get cool! Summer is coming!

What kind of valve are those of you using in the heater hoses? Is it something I can get in the auto parts store if I just ask for some kind of manual valve? And how can I tell if the old valve that is there is still working?
Thanks all

|UPDATED|4/25/2004 3:38:29 PM (AZT)|/UPDATED|

You can get them at any auto parts store. I just told them I wanted one for my heater hose.