Yes. And eliminated a failure point. Mainly that heater valve. Some interesting reading below:

Thanks to djb383 for this:

One thing you may want to consider is removing/eliminating the heater control valve, if you haven't already. '96 down have the HCV, '97 up the Factory eliminated it.

During the warm months, with a HCV, (temp lever/**** never moved off cold) coolant sits and stagnates inside the heater core.....There's no fresh coolant/corrosion protection circulation through the heater core.

With the HCV removed/eliminated, coolant/corrosion protection flows through the heater core constantly when the motor is running, regardless of where the temp lever/**** is set.

Also, you don't have to remember to turn/slide the heat lever/**** when flushing/re-filling the cooling system because coolant is flowing to/through the heater core when the motor is running and the HCV is absent.

Be sure to plug/cap the small vacuum hose when eliminating the HCV.


HCV Removal



The heat is controlled by the blend air door. I've eliminated at least 10 of them here in Arizona and my AC always works perfectly.

Actual field experience has proven time and time again, by numerous different people, that there is NO downside to eliminating the HCV..

It flat works. Period.

The other benefits are keeping coolant flowing versus being stagnant in the heater core and the dangers/disastrous results of having a valve fail unexpectedly whether you're poking around the engine bay or driving down the highway or trail.

 

^^^ That makes sense and makes you wonder what they were thinking in the first place from an efficiency point of view but more so regarding the cost of the vehicle. Small things add up.

 

I suspect the HCV is just a design holdover from earlier vehicles where it might have actually made a difference. When cars with engines originally designed to run cooler had higher temp thermostats put in them in the 70s for emissions purposes, I suspect people driving cars without A/C (back when cars didn't automatically come with it standard) didn't appreciate having hot air blowing on them from the ventilation system. The old AMC vehicles had them in the 70s, so the engineers probably just designed it into the XJ without really thinking about whether it was really needed.

People these days take A/C for granted. Are there any new vehicles left with quarter front windows that open? Those were mandatory to get cool air into the cabin, yet I don't know of any current vehicle that has them. The original XJs had them. Cars don't need them now, because almost everything comes with A/C as part of the base package. And A/C makes the HCV completely obsolete even if the heater core does warm the cabin air a little, because a properly working A/C system can easily counteract it.