New heater core, now only heat from passenger vents

jpg98

Member
Joined
Oct 9, 2015
Location
central IL
TDI
2014 TDI SEL Premium
Hello all. I bought a 2014 SEL Premium with 53K miles on it about a month ago. I could tell that the heat from the passenger vents was sorely lacking. Then I had a check engine light come on. My car had the warranty extension for the core, so I took it to the dealer. I just got it back tonight and found that I get full heat from all passenger side vents regardless of where the temp is set.
The car didn't have much heat from the passenger vents before the replacement core, so I can't say for certain whether the blend door was working before the repair. Would a blend door actuator problem tend to generate a code? The only code the dealer found was p245700 for EGR cooler efficiency, which they said was related to the heater core being plugged.
This car is not a CPO car, so I'm trying to figure out how to proceed. I haven't been able to find any diagrams of the hvac system yet and I don't have a way to scan it myself...yet.
Thanks for any help you can provide.
Jared
 

06bluebeetletdi

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 30, 2012
Location
Middlesex, NC
TDI
'14 Passat TDI SEL and '13 Beetle TDI
I remember reading other threads about arms for doors being knocked loose during heater core replacement, i would take it back to the dealer that did the heater core replacement.
 

jpg98

Member
Joined
Oct 9, 2015
Location
central IL
TDI
2014 TDI SEL Premium
Ok, so I went out to take a look under the passenger side dash. It seems that the car lot I bought this car from "fixed" the heat before I bought it. What a bunch of losers. See pic below where they used a nylon tie to lock it to full heat.
I guess I need an actuator for the passenger side. Will this require any vcds work or should I be able to just plug it in?
Am I missing any linkages here too? A picture of what it's supposed to look like would be super helpful.


 
Last edited:

c3kTDi

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 3, 2019
Location
Undisclosed
TDI
2015 Passat
Ouch.

Depending on the lot and how long ago you purchased it, I'd pass the bill on to them, but I sure wouldn't let them touch it.
 

jpg98

Member
Joined
Oct 9, 2015
Location
central IL
TDI
2014 TDI SEL Premium
Update- No heat from driver's side now?!!

I drove the car this morning and found that I don't get any heat at all from any of the driver's side vents. I didn't notice it yesterday because it was 60°F outside and the passenger vents were blasting hot air. Now that it's 35° it's quite noticeable.
I can see the driver's side blend door actuator arm moving as the temperature is adjusted and I had heat on this side before the heater core repair. Has anyone seen this problem?
Also, can anyone confirm whether or not vcds is needed to replace an actuator?
 
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