If this is in the wrong section I'm sorry I'm new. I have a 2003 maxima. I had a problem where I had no heat at all so I tried flushing the heater core with just water I got a lot of muddy looking water and some chuncks of dirt out. After this I put clr in and let it sit before flushing it again. I now have heat while I'm driving but only for about 15 mins then it turns back to cold air not ac cold but still cold. I get heat if I sit still and rev the car to 2000 then lose it once I stop please help it's getting below 30 in pa now

 

I also did get air bubbles out of the system forgot to mention that above

 

Thread moved to the proper forum.

 

Thank you wizard can anyone help me with this

 

Is your temp guage fluctuating at all?

 

Those are the symptoms of a water pump with fins corroded mostly off. With the fins damaged the water wont circulate at low RPMs. The muddy water helps to confirm that the conditions were right for corrosion. Even old coolant should be clear with a color tint.

Those are also symptoms of low coolant but that's easy enough to check. These cars burp pretty easily so it sounds like you got any air out of the system.

 

My temp gauge sits right below half way that's how it's always been could it be the thermostat. What gets me is having heat for a good 15 mins of my drive then just cold air and once I drive and stop to sit outside of work I get heat sitting still till I go to drive again.

 

This is no matter the Rpms low or high doesn't make a difference

 

OUCH, sound like someone didn't make a regular coolant changes, coolant is the most commonly forgotten fluid to change. It's recommended to check at least annually to check the condition, since coolant do break down due to age and wear which the chemical rust inhibitor start to break down into corrosive start attacking metal alloys which thus turn into rusty and muddy which you should do a coolant flush and replace with brand new fresh coolant. Hopefully the damage hasn't been serious as some the org says the water pump fin probably got eroded due to old coolant.

 

That's the opposite of what's supposed to happen with an air pocket.

 

Did you only flush the heater core? If there was that much garbage in the heater core, then the suffice it to say the coolant in the block & radiator probably doesn't look good either.

 

I disagree. I believe transmission fluid is much more underlooked than coolant. Most shops will tell you to change coolant, while transmission fluid goes forgotten.

 

I disagree with your disagreement
I'd say PS fluid is the most forgotten since most manufacturers don't even have a schedule change interval for it . Although the PS system doesn't see combustion gases or extreme heat, the fluid still breaks down over time and needs periodic attention.

 

Obviously blinker fluid sees less attention than P/S fluid . Lol, kidding aside, I'll agree that power steering fluid does not get changed much, tranny fluid is more important.

 

How do you flush the block? Or should I leave that to the experts?

 

The block drain plugs are a pain to access.

Just drain & fill the rad several times w/ distilled water until the runoff is clear.
Then fill the system with straight antifreeze so the final mixture is close to 50/50.

 

ok will give it a try.

 

So should I try replacing the thermostatic water pump I plan on draining the system when I do this anyway and I wouldn't say the heater core was that bad I mean the antifreeze was dirty but when I seen it I didn't think it was terrible and looks fine in the radiator. I just need heat I'll try anything at this point.

 

I mean thermostat or water pump

 

Interesting discussion. I talked to my regular mechanic about this issue a few months ago. I have a 2005 Ford F150 with roughly 60K miles. I asked him whether I should change all the fluids. I was especially concerned about coolant, due to the possibility of breakdown with age. He said no way would he recommend flushing the coolant with so few miles on the vehicle.

 

You need to change your mechanic.

 

Looks to be like you're replacing the water pump. Make sure you drain the system very well as to not get coolant in the timing cahin cover. Buy a nice, OEM one so you only have to do the job once.

 

100k is fine if it's long life. But knowing these cheap *** manufacturers...

Just reread OP's post. It sounds like it's full of air, but idk why it would work for a while at the beginning. You would imagine that there would never be normal heat if it were the pump. You'd always have to rev it high AND the car would consistently overheat.

 

Maybe there's like 1 fin left that is able to circulate the coolant very minimally.

 

I agree. Do these cars have a heater core bypass valve? Some Corvette years do that.

 

This is one thing I was wondering as well anyone have an answer I really need to get my heat fixed

 

Negative.

Park it on a steep incline facing up and try burping it some more. Once the t-stat opens. Rev it up and down and see what happens.

Sticking a tight fitting funnel in the rad will keep you from spilling a lot of coolant. If you dont have a steep hill, you can just use a jack with the funnel and fill it up. The air really seems to burp that way.