Heater/Ventilation problems **NEWBIE**

[Crockshire]

Hi guys looking for some help, have an old P plate A4 Avant which appears to have a problem with the heaters/ ventilation. Since I bought the car it has not cleared the windscreen when it is fogged no matter what temperature it was running at. A few months ago I was driving along and put the heaters on to try and clear the windscreen and a load of smoky fumes poured out of all the heater vents. The car now has a permanent, although mild rubbery/burning/fumes smell to it and still the windscreen does not clear although the air coming from the vents is hot

Any ideas gratefully received

Cheers

 

[AndyMac]

Does it still smell if you switch on the recirculate button?
Check your pollen filter is nice & dry first, but sounds like something more serious

 

[macattax]

Probably your drain holes are blocked found to the left of the battery compartment check some posts here as its a common problem.
I would say that you might be getting water leakage because drains are blocked which could be shorting the a/c fan or related a/c electrics.
Does your a/c function properly or does it only run on high settings?
I had this problem on an A3 I used to have and that was the main reason I sold it but now I know better and I am pretty sure it was water leakage.
The windows used to fog up at night causing bad visbility and the a/c wouldnt clear it. At first the a/c would only run on high settings but didnt feel like much air was coming out. I narrowed that part down to being a resistor so had it replaced but still was getting fogged windows.
The carpets were always wet so I gave up and sold the car.
But now I know better! It was a leak from the battery compartment so because there was too much moisture inside the car the heat from people and a/c was causing condensation. So the cure if i was going to fix that car now would be unblock the drain holes and dry out the car inside carpets etc.
Take the glovebox off to see what the fan is doing and check any fried wires or connectors on the a/c system.
Are your carpets damp to the touch?

 

[Crockshire]

The car doesn't have a/c, yes it's old - 1997- but you're right in that there is a damp feel to the car, although not soaking wet inside if I leave something in there it gets dampish so i'll have a look at that cheers

 

[AndyMac]

You need to pull up the carpet as they can apppear dry from the top, but there's a **** load of foam underneath that isn't sealed so just soaks it up. One side of the car can hold 5 litres of water just in the foam without appearing wet.

 

[Crockshire]

Brilliant thanks very much will check all that. Have to say though that i'm slightly worried about the smokey fumes that were pouring out of the vents the other week, would seem more serious than just blocked drains???

 

[Crockshire]

Brilliant thanks very much will check all that. Have to say though that i'm slightly worried about the smokey fumes that were pouring out of the vents the other week, would seem more serious than just blocked drains???

 

[macattax]

Like I said the water coming in from the blocked drains has more than likley fried some connection and thats why you saw smoke. After you have cleared the drainholes and dried the carpets take off the glove box to see the bits and bobs of the heating system and see what damage was done.

I would hate for that to happen to me thats why I check the drain holes every 2 or 3 months, just to be on the safe side as our house is surrounded by pine trees and those pesky pine needles get in everywhere.

Good luck with it.

 

[Crockshire]

Thanks very much you've been really helpful

Cheers