57 replies to this topic

[mk3 Cooper S]

I'm thinking about fitting a heater from T7 Designs ( http://www.t7design.co.uk/ ). I believe they are better (heat and blowing) than even the later 2speed Mini heaters, but my reason for considering T7 is they are more compact - i.e. less clutter under the dash rail.

Is your alternator up to it?

[roofless]

Twin speed heater and a 91 degree thermostat works well as a combination.......toasty within 5 minutes or so :)

[Vulcan]

Anyone thought of using one of those Kenlowe pre-heaters?

If this makes anyone feel better though, I remember the 114s I used to have. The heater only had a cold air feed from off the hood and the sunroof had that plastic mesh. It would collect ice, you try to scrape it off but it only drove it into the mesh. So, half an hour later when the car had finally warmed up, the ice would melt and start dripping down the back of your neck........ Minis are 'kin luxury compared to that!!!!!!!

[adam davies]

I just run the hot tap for a bit and then throw it over my windows. Normally end up scraping some frost off the inside of the windscreen too I then start my journey to work with the heater on and within 5 mins the screen is as clear as............. well glass

[colinu]

seancv1... I think this T7 is the one I'd use http://www.t7design....products_id=310

mk3 Cooper S... You asked if my alternator is up to the task of driving it. I'd say yes. It only draws 3amps at start up, then 2amp when running. That can't be much more than the Mini's normal heater. The 3.5kW figure refers to how much its heater matrix can extract from the engine coolant... the 2 or 3amps is only driving the blower - not an electric heater element.

[Noah]

Honestly if its that much of a problem to you, I'm pretty sure rain-X has anti-freezing properties in it...

[jaydee]

More than antifreeze it avoids the ice to stick to the screen making it easy to wipe off

[Pewizzle]

What do you mean defrosting the car. Surely you just scraped the ice of jump in and drive?

this is what I do; a can of de-icer spray and a scraper and thats it.

my heater actually frosts up the screen again because it was blowing out cold air and my scraper didnt cope very well with doing the inside because of the way that the two are arched so i had to use a towel to rub the ice off on the inside. yes de-icer spray would be a good call but i would rather source the problem of my **** heater which is the point of this post

[mk3 Cooper S]

seancv1... I think this T7 is the one I'd use http://www.t7design....products_id=310

mk3 Cooper S... You asked if my alternator is up to the task of driving it. I'd say yes. It only draws 3amps at start up, then 2amp when running. That can't be much more than the Mini's normal heater. The 3.5kW figure refers to how much its heater matrix can extract from the engine coolant... the 2 or 3amps is only driving the blower - not an electric heater element.

It depends on your vehicle usage and a load balance calculation should be done as in winter driving conditions deep cycle starter loads, HRW, lights etc can take more out of the battery than is put back in. Lots of short journies are obviously worse.

[Joe-C]

What do you mean defrosting the car. Surely you just scraped the ice of jump in and drive?

this is what I do; a can of de-icer spray and a scraper and thats it.

my heater actually frosts up the screen again because it was blowing out cold air and my scraper didnt cope very well with doing the inside because of the way that the two are arched so i had to use a towel to rub the ice off on the inside. yes de-icer spray would be a good call but i would rather source the problem of my **** heater which is the point of this post

I'm just saying what I do the title is how do you work round the heater not fix it.

I've not had ice on the inside of the screen so can't help with that .

[mk3 Cooper S]

Ice on the inside is usually a sign of moisture or damp within the car

[Pewizzle]

What do you mean defrosting the car. Surely you just scraped the ice of jump in and drive?

this is what I do; a can of de-icer spray and a scraper and thats it.

my heater actually frosts up the screen again because it was blowing out cold air and my scraper didnt cope very well with doing the inside because of the way that the two are arched so i had to use a towel to rub the ice off on the inside. yes de-icer spray would be a good call but i would rather source the problem of my **** heater which is the point of this post

I'm just saying what I do the title is how do you work round the heater not fix it.

I've not had ice on the inside of the screen so can't help with that .

that is very true haha my bad, i was looking for alternatives like fit in heaters but they do seem to be non existent

[Pewizzle]

Ice on the inside is usually a sign of moisture or damp within the car

i know that there is a small leak somewhere but i cant source it so this maybe where it is coming from

[minisilverbullet]

Your problem is moisture in the car. you need to solve that.


Check your radiator fluid level. It could well be the leaking coolant which is causing your issue with "foggy" windows. You can buy a additive which stops with small leaks, probably wynns or similar. I have used it in the past on a mk3 golf and it was fine. maybe others can comment on its use in a mini?

Edited by minisilverbullet, 12 December 2012 - 08:58 AM.

[jackmason]

I've had plenty of heater related problems in the past.

- When i first started driving with my 998 the heater would take ages to warm and never got hot, i took the heater matrix out, flushed it out with the garden hose and it was much better.
- Then when i had my 1380 it warmed up very quickly but i noticed the passenger side of the screen not clearing, turns out the pipe had come off the vent behind the dash.
- The foam in my heater has totally fallen apart so to make sure as much air gets blown up the the screen i put a strip of Duck tape across the bottom vent on the heater which helped alot.
- I also have a water leak in my car somewhere (which ive given up on trying to find) which causes the condensation to freeze and the rear windows to stay permanently steamed up.

Its all part of owning a mini, im just glad i have my mondeo with heated front and rear screens for this time of year.