just bought a 97 v70, the heater takes an age to warm up, there is no liquid leaking it to the cabin and no coolant level drop also the temp gauge on the dash only shows a running temp of two notches on the gauge, is the heater matrix U/S or could it be a different problem

 

Hello, Your thermostat is broken and stuck in the open position. EVERYONE says to buy an O/E thermostat (you'll need a gasket too), not a $4 cheapie from any old parts place.
Look at your coolant while you're at it. It's probably in need of changing.
Also, as happened to one car in the family; previous owners had poured tons of grey putty sealer into the cooling system due to radiator leaks (plural). This putty clogged the heater core such that NO heat came out of it. Getting rid of that stuff was a job. Changing your thermostat will be quite easy. Kira

 

Hi and thanks Kira, problem is i have now changed both the stat and coolant and the problem remains, any other suggestions

 

Hello, 1) Under the cowl (black plastic piece through which the windshield wipers are driven) is an air intake for the heater. Disconnect the drain hose and remove two torx screws and you can lift it up to see if it's plugged. No need to remove a wiper arm. It's on the right side of No. American cars. I guess it's on the left side in the UK. There may or may not be a filter over the opening. If there is none you can add one with a cheap little adapter. One side holds the filter and the other fits into the empty hole. 2) I don't know how the hot coolant is controlled through the core. See if there's a "heater bypass valve" and inspect it. I don't have a Haynes manual for that car anymore. 3) See if you can gain access to the coolant supply hoses to and from the heater core. See if the core is clogged. Kira

 

Hi georgeandkira, i have now returned the stat to the supplier (after advice) and re-fitted the replacement to find all problems solved, who would have thought a new stat from a good supplier would be dodgy, thank you for your help and advice on this matter and i'm now starting on the interior lights that dont come on if any or all doors are open, would you have any thoughts on this matter, yours, Gary.

 

Hello, As always, the first step is..."check the bulbs and fuse". If they're good see if contact is being made at the door jamb's switch (I assume that's where it is). See if juice is getting to the switch in the first place. Is there and override switch which kills all the interior lights? Get some scrap wire and jump around to isolate a possible bad wire in the car's harness. An extra pair of hands really helps with "feel out" jobs like this. Kira