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Condensation in my car


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It's probably not the cause of the steaming, but do check (as clownaround suggests) the drainage is not blocked around the heater intake. On my Mk 3 Astra it drains into a central rubber tube and this had become blocked allowing the channel to fill and overflow down the air intake resulting in swamped carpets. I had to strip out the floorpan sound proofing and leave to dry out during the summer months.

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I once had a Mk 4 Astra and the head gasket was the problem. The engine cooling system built up pressure due to the compression stroke pushing boiling water through the block at high pressure and fracturing the heater matrix supply pipe within the dash board area but only very slightly so it took ages to trace where the problem was. The car interior developed a very "acidic" pungent smell. Cost fortunes to sort...

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I once had a Mk 4 Astra and the head gasket was the problem. The engine cooling system built up pressure due to the compression stroke pushing boiling water through the block at high pressure and fracturing the heater matrix supply pipe within the dash board area but only very slightly so it took ages to trace where the problem was. The car interior developed a very "acidic" pungent smell. Cost fortunes to sort...

 

Just like i said. See all the ha ha ha ha ha ha ha was unfounded.

Happy days.

Thanks PAYMEPAL!

They thought i was talking sh!!

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I don't have an Astra,but I have had this condensation problem more than usual this winter.

 

One cause I discovered was that the rear window wash tube had come away from the nozzle and everytime I attempted to spray the rear window (thinking it was just blocked with ice) I was soaking the boot lining instead. Tube probably came adrift due to it being frozen solid and thus not bending with the wiper mechanism.

 

Another cause was the wet mats (especially the driver's side) from constant covering of slush.

 

Thirdly, as already mentioned by someone, putting the blower on 'outside source' and having the window open slighly helped freshen the air.

 

Finally, I have heard it said that turning the heater off and allowing the internal air to cool down to closer to the outside temperatue prior to securing the car for the night helps reduce the moisture content which is causing the condensation.

 

Oh, and if the windscreen has ever been frozen on the inside, then water from this ice will probably have trickled down into the demist blower.

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It could be the heater matrix

 

1, Does it get worse when you tunr on the heaer to clear the windows

2, Does it smell like an anti freeze smell - sweet kinoff

3. Is the carpet in front footwell wet -depends where youre heate matrix is

 

if so can replace reatively easily if you want to do yourself or take it in

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When we have bad condensation it's usually due to the dog bed getting all soggy after she's lain down on it a few times when she's got really wet while out and about or I've left a wet waterproof coat in the car after a walk.

 

The other thing, of course, is that in cold weather human beings' breath is moisture laden so if you've had a car full of people for a while then the air will be a lot more moist than the outside air.

 

Start off by removing anything obviously wet like outdoor clothes, drying out seats, floor mats and the like and drive with the air conditioning on warm and the windows open a little whenever you can. If that doesn't sort it out then changing the filter on your heater system may help, but if there's another cause (like the aforementioned window wash tube soaking the boot lining) then none of those will help until you've sorted the initial problem.

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