A little about the device
It just so happens that Russian winters are some of the coldest, which means cars should be produced taking this little feature into account. In such weather conditions, the undoubted advantage of the Kalina is its powerful stove. It will not only bring the interior temperature to an acceptable minimum in a matter of minutes, but will also warm its owner with the warmth of the Russian automotive heart. However, there is a small drawback to this device - over time, you begin to notice how the main heat source leaks, forming oily drops on the rubber mats.
How to change the heater radiator on a Lada Kalina
The “weak point” in the interior heating system of the VAZ Kalina is the heater radiator. The heat exchanger on this car is made of aluminum (tubes and honeycombs) and plastic (tanks), so the service life of this part is not that long. Over time, the radiator loses its seal and begins to leak, which can lead to serious problems. The designers placed the engine ECU under the heater housing. If the radiator leaks, the antifreeze flowing from it gets onto the control unit, which causes it to burn out.
How to replace a stove radiator?
1. Trust the professionals and take the car in for service.
2. Try to solve the problem yourself by spending a whole day disassembling half the car.
3. Without removing the panels, complete all work in half a day.
If you see in the price list the item “replacing the heater radiator on Kalina”, the price is unlikely to pleasantly surprise you. The cost of the service is about five thousand rubles. After this, you will want to spend the whole day, invite friends and, after disassembling a considerable part of the car, replace the radiator yourself. But don’t rush into this either. Replacing the radiator of a Kalina stove without removing the panel, although a rather labor-intensive process due to some inconveniences, is the fastest.
Radiator installation methods
You can install a new radiator by:
- shortening fittings;
- trimming the heater housing;
- expanded installation of a heat exchanger.
One of the methods for installing the VAZ Kalina heater radiator is to shorten the fittings. Having trimmed them, we put the heat exchanger in place. But using this method, you will have to additionally change the rubber coolant supply pipes to longer ones (the pipes from the VAZ-2109 are suitable) and slightly modify the plate with the seal.
The disadvantage of this method is that after shortening the fittings, their connection with the rubber pipes is located in the passenger compartment, and in the event of a leak at the connection, the leaked antifreeze will end up on the floor.
In order not to shorten the fittings, we trim the body a little on the side and bottom. By cutting out a piece of the case, the window for placing the radiator in the seat will increase, which will allow you to install a new element. After installation, the cut pieces of the body are installed in place and secured with bolts, and the cut line is sealed with sealant. The negative fact of this method is cutting the body. In addition, if the cut lines are poorly sealed, the efficiency of the stove will decrease due to dissipation of air flow.
The third method is an expanded installation. With this installation, the fittings are directed towards the passenger compartment. To connect the heat exchanger of the stove to the cooling system with such an installation, you will need long pipes and special corner adapters with which the tubes are connected to the fittings. This installation method does not require cutting the body or shortening the fittings, but it is not suitable for the VAZ Kalina equipped with air conditioning, since some elements of the air conditioning system interfere with the pulling of the tubes.
It is up to the car owner to decide which replacement method to use. Finally, a little advice - during the work process, pay attention to the ECU - move it to another place or at least securely wrap it with plastic film to protect it from antifreeze.
Video: Replacing the radiator of the KALINA stove. Simplified version
Without removing the panels
There are many options for replacing a radiator without removing the panel. Let's focus on one of them.
1. The first thing we need is sufficient room for action, namely the ability to fully open the driver's door.
2. After this, open the hood to disconnect the air filter along with the air duct, and also remove the battery along with the platform.
3. Drain the antifreeze.
Remember that it is under pressure while the engine is running. Therefore, carry out all actions after first making sure that nothing threatens your health. Wait until the engine has completely cooled down.
4. Now you can dismantle the old radiator.
We disconnect the pipes attached to the engine fittings. Then we find the same fittings, but on the heater radiator, and remove the pipes from them. Thus, we disconnected the two hoses leading to the stove.
Having completed these simple operations, you will notice that between the hoses there is a nut with which the metal casing is attached to the engine shield. It needs to be unscrewed.
Replacing the heater radiator on the Kalina is in full swing.
Remove the gas pedal and loosen the nuts on the brake pedal to move it a little to the side for easier work. Why don't you remove the brake pedal? Firstly, this is not the first need, the pedal won’t hurt much, and secondly, you won’t be able to remove it anyway.
So, we have completely freed up space and can now remove the old radiator.
5. We install a working part.
When you pick up a new radiator, you will immediately understand that it does not want to go back to its original place. The plastic tubes attached to the structure are in the way.
What to do? We cut them about a centimeter. During dismantling, we removed the hoses, which means we need to put them back in place. Before doing this, heat the plastic edges of the tubes with a regular lighter, and then press them against any surface, preferably metal, so that an obstacle is formed and the hoses do not jump off in the future.
Engine cooling system problems?
Most often, problems with the stove arise due to the EDS (engine cooling system). The first step is to check the coolant level in the expansion tank and, if necessary, add it to a level between o and “MAX”. By the way, many car enthusiasts in winter specifically add coolant only to the “MIN” mark; the less liquid there is in the system, the faster it will heat up, and therefore Kalina’s stove will start blowing warm air a little earlier than usual.
If coolant has to be added all the time, then the cooling system is leaking somewhere. You should carefully inspect all pipes for leaks, and also tighten the clamps. If the stove (radiator) is leaking, then it should be replaced.
Now you should check the circulation of antifreeze in the system, paying attention to the expansion tank.
Results
Having completed all the work and enjoyed the warmth in the cabin, we can say that replacing the heater radiator on a Kalina does not take as much time as it seemed. And the invaluable experience gained during repair work allows you to be proud of yourself and your skills.
For those blog readers who subscribe to my YouTube channel, this article will not be new, since I already told you everything in the video review. Well, for those who only read the blog, I will describe my personal experience in using sealants here.
So where did it all start? The windows began to fog up, and the search for the cause indicated that it was a leak from the heater radiator that was to blame. The recirculation flap was in the "correct" position, the cabin filter was fine, and was replaced a couple of months ago. When antifreeze began to drip in the area where the heater radiator was installed, there was no longer any doubt about its leakage.
How to understand that the heater radiator is faulty?
Below are five main signs that indicate this particular problem. It is quite simple to understand that the heater radiator has malfunctioned or is out of order. But replacing this radiator is not an easy task.
Important information! Only one or a few signs of a heater core malfunction may appear at a time, but there are situations in which these signs appear all at once. This mainly depends on the age and condition of the car at the time the radiator failed.
Foggy windows
The very first sign of a malfunctioning heater core is sudden fogging of the inner surface of the windows without any obvious reason. Fogging of the windows does not mean slight fogging of the edge of the windshield, but the abundant formation of warm condensation over the entire area of all the windows of the car.
Temporary solution to the problem using cooling system sealant
Since the time for such a repair, namely replacing the stove radiator, is not entirely suitable, especially considering that this is a Lada Kalina. Many owners are well aware of the repairs that will need to be made in such cases. And the second point that did not give me the opportunity to fix the breakdown was the constant lack of time, and the toad does not yet allow me to give the car for service.
It was decided to pour sealant into the cooling system, thereby trying to eliminate the leak with its help. Well, then the story itself will go that you shouldn’t overpay triple the price for imported sealants if domestic ones do it faster and more efficiently.
Second dismantling method
It can be called “barbaric”, although it is often used. This is not to say that it is much simpler, but you won’t have to dismantle it and completely disconnect all the wiring (hence, during assembly there is no chance that you will forget to connect something). The essence of the method is that you will need to remove the gas pedal, which is attached to three nuts. Then remove the electric power steering, having first removed the decorative trim.
You will also have to remove the brake pedal, but if possible, you need to move it to the side. Now it's a small matter - we cut off the hoses and make a cut on the radiator seat. Now you can pull out the driver's side radiator. Do not forget that before starting work you must drain the coolant. Moreover, when draining, open the heater tap so that all the antifreeze comes out of the radiator.
Comparison of LIQUI MOLY and SINTEC sealants
So, first, as many people do, I bought an expensive imported cooling system sealant called LIQUI MOLY. Moreover, there were many positive reviews online. I did everything strictly according to the instructions:
- Warmed up the Kalina engine to operating temperature
- Set the heater switch to the “hot” position
- Opened the expansion tank cap
- Poured the contents of the bottle into the cooling system
- Tighten the plug and let the engine run for at least 10 minutes.
Diagnostics of the stove operation
The operation of the heating system should be periodically monitored. Such a check can be carried out as follows.
- With the engine running, check the operation of the stove without heating the air in all fan speed modes.
- We control the change in the direction of air flow when adjusting the direction switch.
- When the engine reaches operating temperature, check the degree of heating of the air entering the cabin by moving the regulator to the red zone.
- We check the operation of the heating system dampers by periodically moving the regulator from the red zone to the blue sector. The degree of air heating should change.
The owner of the car may not immediately understand that the stove is leaking. The carpets in the cabin are not necessarily wet and a persistent smell of antifreeze does not always appear. This is explained by the possible rapid evaporation of the leaking liquid. The stove in the Lada Kalina does not have pipes leading into the cabin that could wear out.
If it has been determined that the radiator is the culprit for the ineffective operation of the heating system and leaking coolant, it is time to repair it. Sometimes it may be necessary to replace this unit.
