Volvo Owners Club Forum - View Single Post - Heater Matrix Hell

andrew_s46 · Nov 30th, 2013, 18:46

Evening All,

As per the thread title, what a day.

After living with a leaking matrix for some time I decided action needed to be taken to fix it. New matrix ordered and fitted today (along with new Volvo O rings) following the guide on here. As per many of the threads on here, not so much a difficult job but more fiddly than anything else.

The problems started after running the car up to temperature. Initially the job looked to be a success - A bone dry cabin floor with no sign of any leaks and a nice hot heater.

THE DISASTER: Up to temperature and running for around 15-20 mins all of a sudden a rush of coolant into the cabin at what appeared to be pressurised to some extent. Turning the car off and inspecting the leak appears to be coming from one of the pipes into the matrix.

Having read the tips on this forum I assumed that I had maybe not fitted an O ring correctly. I duly stripped everything off again and refitted. I must have completed this process about 4-5 times, each time being faced with ‘the disaster’.

I am at a loss as to how this can be fixed but really don’t want to admit defeat.

My initial thoughts are that the new matrix may have some kind of restricted flow causing a build-up of pressure, leading to coolant blowing out the joint.

Does anyone have an idea why this might be happening or any tips that I could try tomorrow?

Thanks in advance!

Nov 30th, 2013, 18:46	#1
andrew_s46 S60 Driver Last Online: Jul 16th, 2020 22:41 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Durham	Heater Matrix Hell - What a day Evening All, As per the thread title, what a day. After living with a leaking matrix for some time I decided action needed to be taken to fix it. New matrix ordered and fitted today (along with new Volvo O rings) following the guide on here. As per many of the threads on here, not so much a difficult job but more fiddly than anything else. The problems started after running the car up to temperature. Initially the job looked to be a success - A bone dry cabin floor with no sign of any leaks and a nice hot heater. THE DISASTER: Up to temperature and running for around 15-20 mins all of a sudden a rush of coolant into the cabin at what appeared to be pressurised to some extent. Turning the car off and inspecting the leak appears to be coming from one of the pipes into the matrix. Having read the tips on this forum I assumed that I had maybe not fitted an O ring correctly. I duly stripped everything off again and refitted. I must have completed this process about 4-5 times, each time being faced with ‘the disaster’. I am at a loss as to how this can be fixed but really don’t want to admit defeat. My initial thoughts are that the new matrix may have some kind of restricted flow causing a build-up of pressure, leading to coolant blowing out the joint. Does anyone have an idea why this might be happening or any tips that I could try tomorrow? Thanks in advance!