I'm replacing yet another water pump on the 92 Laredo. Pulling into the drive there was the unmistakable rattle of shaft bearings. Couldn't see any other signs of problems so I drove to the NAPA for a new pump. As I was pulling up to the garage a Wiff of steam caught my eye out of the right side of the hood. Sure enough the heater control valve was busted with the green stuff all over the dizzy and right side. It appears the vacuum pot was bouncing on the dipstick tube rather than "floating" on the water hoses. I'm guessing this vibration was the fault of the upper hose nipple cracking clean off.

And the premature water pump failure? I drove a good 30 miles yesterday without much water. Heater worked and water temp was in the normal range. Figure the pump bearings musta got hot.

FYI for those swapping a HCV.

 

unless it was a cruddy waterpump the number one cause for premature bearing failure on any engine accessory is typically an over tightened drive belt.

 

Delete that piece of unnecessary high liability piece of crap!!!!

 

X2.

 

 

Its my daily driver/service vehicle. So staying comfortable in the summer is somewhat important to me. But.... I'll consider that suggestion.

 

Gates 91132 Belt Tension Tester

So as my recent search here discovered the proper tension is 200.
Is this a good number? Or is there more to the story?

 

You WILL be comfortable without it. I live in Arizona and I eliminate everyone I see. My aC blows 38* on a hot day with 134a. Is that enough of a testimony for ya?

The heat is controlled by a door, not the valve....

 

for a new belt yes, I think a used belt is between 160-180.

 

Wait what are we deleting and still getting the AC to work? Does the heat still work too? Im in michigan so i get cold and hot.

 

HCV = Heater Control Valve. Chrysler eliminated it in later models. It was just a bunch of trouble, with zero benefit. Just one more thing to go wrong with the cooling system, and it usually does.


And he's not the only Arizonan on this board who advises ripping them out. It's an easy job, and there are no downsides.

 

Well that's the plan then.
Bye bye HCV

Thanks for the responses guys!

 

Don't forget to plug the vacuum line.

 

 

also try and get a new heater hose instead of splicing something in you can probably get a section of bulk hose at napa for less than 5 bucks... again this is in the interest of removing weak points.