Heat coming up bottom of steering column

davran

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 24, 2003
Location
Vancouver Island BC Canada
TDI
'05 Passat TDI Wagon
I have quite a bit of heat blowing at me from the bottom of my steering column, no matter what setting the hvac is on, or the temperature setting.
Would there be a shield or something missing in the engine bay, allowing heat to come up the steering column? Is there a vent I don't know about? I don't have a manual, and can't find one a any local wreckers.
Thanks, Dave.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
It is actually BLOWING up? So the intensity varies with blower motor speed?

When you have the temp set to COLD, is the air coming up from there still hot?

Only thing I could think is the HVAC case is somehow damaged.

The way these (like most cars) work is hot coolant is always flowing through the heater core, so there is always a hot portion of the HVAC case. But the temp blend door controls how much air gets ducted forward and over the core itself. When the temp is on cold, NO air at all should be passing over the hot heater core, at all.

There is a floor duct that comes off the center distribution housing, but that should not be getting any different temp than anything else, so even if it was missing or disconnected, which would explain the strange flow, it would still be limited to the temp setting and still really only limited to when the mode is switched to floor.
 

davran

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 24, 2003
Location
Vancouver Island BC Canada
TDI
'05 Passat TDI Wagon
The hot air blows at me from under the steering column.

It varies with road speed, not with fan speed or any other hvac function; the hvac settings don't affect the hot, steering column air in any way. This is why I wondered if there's a vent I don't know about.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
That is what I am thinking. Look at the firewall where the heater hoses pass through (you will have to remove the plastic cover).
 
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