At 03:07 PM 12/30/98 -0600, KEVIN EDDINS wrote:
>The hot/cold cable goes to the heater control valve on the platform of
>your firewall. You can lube the valve with some lithium grease, or I'm
>sure someone else has a better alternative for lubing it.
Here's mine:
Cables don't like grease. I would recommend a graphite-based lubricant
such as a speedo cable lube (available in most auto parts stores). This
stays slippery and does not get hard and gummy like grease.
BUT, as previously mentioned, disconnect the cable from heater valve first,
and actuate the lever, to determine whether the cable or the heater water
valve is what is offering the resistance.. On my Spifire, the valve is
stiff. Lubricating that with grease is what made the most improvement in my
heater control's feel.
BTW the Spit controls the amount of heat provided solely by its heater flow
valve, not by an air mix door as on more modern designs. So, you shouldn't
have to pull the heater box to repair a heater problem unless the core
needs service. Cold drafts are usually caused by air leaks in the firewall
grommets or tranny cover. A secondary problem could be bad or missing foam
seals on the _direction_ control doors, check them while you have the dash
apart. (My seals were OK on my '79.)
Warmly yours,
Atwell Haines
'79 Spitfire (with snug-fitting hardtop. Good thing, because its going
down to ZERO F. here tonight!)
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