Heat...............?

O.K. 75 CJ5 w/258 is going to become my regular driver for a ten mile commute each day. Here in Atlanta weather is pretty mild..even in the winter...but occasionally temps get down in the teens.

My factory heater makes a lot of racket on high speed but as far as output....its feels similar to a chihuahua breathing on your leg. I am thinking of adding either a Backseat Heat hardwired to the battery or possibly a 110volt ceramic heater used in conjuction with an inverter. Any members had any experience with these options or should I go another route....see links below:

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=189-79996-HZ510MP&lpage=none

http://www.autobarn.net/3000c.html

 

You may check the fan and motor on your current heat.Critters like to make their homes in the squirrelcage fan and it gets clogged with nests etc.

 

Check out this unit too, a little more $$ than what you're looking at now but it may be worth it. http://www.4x4review.com/products/interior/mojave-review.asp

 

Question: Check out the Mojave unit at the top of that article, and then compare it to the one that they actually installed. Do they look like different animals to you? The one that they actually installed looks like it might have a vent that would blow directly on my cold feet and keep them warm. The only ones I see for sale are the ones pictured at the top of the page that only blows forward, apparently right into the passenger's knee caps. I like warm feet. Anyone know if this is a design change, or did they just take the grille off or something?

 

Different model. Both are Mojave. Quadratec has them in the XMas book.

 

i have the mojave in mine, works good but its still a jeep

 

I like how it runs of the coolant. I too am looking for a heater. How water resistant are these?

 

I've got a Mojave. Great heater although I don't drive my Jeep in the dead of Chicago winters. The add on directional vents also have another port for the defroster. If you don't need the add for the defrost on the heat blows out the bottom.

 

Hey springer, just tear down your original heater, can't be much wrong, I live in Hiram ga. and drive mine to the airport almost everyday, its not worth the extra money to upgrade the heater here. you will be fine once its working properly.

 

Hey Springerfever, you may want to check out this thread I found, I don't know if it would apply in your case, (I'm sure someone will tell me if it doesn't! ) but it could be an option too. http://www.4wd.com/4wdforums/archive/index.php?t-1356.html
If anyone has had experience with this swap let me know, cuz my defrost is a dry rag sitting next to me. (You know how these dry Pacific Northwest winters are!R) )
Mike

 

I would go through the stock heater and replace the motor and clean it out a bit. I live in NH/Maine and i find it is up to the task, I start to get heat after about a mile. Also Check to see if the defrost hoses are split up under the dash. If you want even more heat you could install another heater in the rear, i would go with a heater that uses coolant as its heat sorce.

 

I just got one of these but haven't installed it yet. The directional vents are a separate, add-on piece, not a different model.

 

As far as the chevy blower motor in a pre 76 jeep it is easier in that you don't have to remove the whole heater to do it. My daughter just walked out with my camera so I can't go get pics. I have the heater sitting on the floor in my garage right now. I have a 01 Grand Prix blower motor that I am going to graft in there. My biggest stumbling block so far is getting the squirrel cage off of the GP blower motor without damaging it. I think the blazer motor the squirrel cage has a set screw. The GP is molded plastic.

There was also another post on heaters that I was reading on Great Lakes 4X4 web site. Someone on here linked to it. The guy was installing the mojave unit with the plenum attachemt. Looked to be a good setup.

 

Did more research on the Chevy blower motor upgrade for the heater, and it sounds like the way to go (for me, at least). You use a blower motor out of a '73 Blazer 4wd 350, no A/C (shorter fan shaft), standard heating. Enlarge your hole in the firewall to 3 1/4", and do the swap. There is a lot of information if you Google it. Also, the price for a new Chevy blower motor is ~$25 from your FLAPS, so it might not be worth rebuilding/buying your old JEEP blower motor.

 

I totaly agree with 73CJ5,,, check out your existing unit befor adding "bandaid" fixes. I drive my '75 in below O temps with plenty of heat. The only thing that needs help is the defroster system,, I think my old VW Bettle defroster was even better!! I'll post pics of my improved Jeep CJ defroster this weekend,, it works like a charm !!!!

 

Another comment - after 30 years the core may not leak but it may be full of sediment. Replacing the core may perk it up a lot. I recall my OEM heaters kept my toes warm (73 & 75), though it may not be much of a test since I lived in SoCal. The defrosters were pathetic though.

 

Thanks for all the responses.

Yep, my defrost is pretty lame and the overall output is lacking. I totally flushed the block and heater core about a year ago when I replaced the radiator. My top is fairly snug with the majority of leakage around the doors.I'm currently running a 195 thermostat. I have about decided to go with this Summit unit (which I was told was actually built by the same outfit as the Mojave). Three speed blower,compact dimensions, 28,000 BTU, 260CFM, and less money.

http://store.summitracing.com/partd...art=SUM-991102&N=700+-128255+115&autoview=sku

Hookup and fit should be fairly easy. I plan on running a couple of additional heater hoses through the firewall, but can I just 'splice' them into the existing heater hoses using a Y adapter or is there a better solution ?

 

After searching for heaters on the site, I came across this idea with the hoses. No need to splice into the originals. Inlet hose from the engine to the original heater core remains untouched. Just run the outlet from the original heater core into the new core's inlet and attach the original outlet hose to the new core's outlet. Lot cleaner and I believe it would function better.

BTW..I totally abandoned the idea of a total electric heater due to fact most require at least 1500 watts. There are inverters that can provide this output but they are expensive and just not the right approach. Using the engine heat via the coolant is the most efficient and practical.

 

I was actually gonna suggest doing the coolant line in series like you have decided to do. I think that if you tried to Y or T them or whatever you would have flow problems and neither heater would really get enough water to work right.