JP Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 Hi All I think I may have a heater matrix leak - I'm seeing wafts of steam from the top of the heater once up to temp. I've been in touch with Clayton CC who tell me that they do make the matrix still, but they do not make the surround. The surround on mine has become brittle - I cracked it when removing it from the car. Can anyone offer any advice on how to gently dismantle the heater surround to get at the matrix, or would it be better simply to buy a whole new unit - assuming that the new ones fit the older cars? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted February 22 Member Share Posted February 22 Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leadership Team SLR No.77 Posted February 22 Leadership Team Share Posted February 22 You can fit the later heater to an earlier car but you'll need an adapter plate, Caterham part no.77053. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP Posted February 22 Author Share Posted February 22 Right, I think I'll close off the heater and see if there are issues with overheating in traffic. If not, then I might just bin the heater... I bin the heater do I just replace the 2 hoses to the heater with a single hose between the 2 take off points on the engine? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leadership Team SLR No.77 Posted February 22 Leadership Team Share Posted February 22 To take the heater "out of circuit" you can simply connect the two heater hoses together to create a "bypass hose" around the rear of the engine. The ideal way to join the two hoses is to use a bleed-T to make filling/bleeding much easier in the future. Stu. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP Posted February 22 Author Share Posted February 22 Thanks Stu - good plan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative Nick Chan Posted February 22 Area Representative Share Posted February 22 (edited) Its very easy to change the old matrix for a new one too. From memory it simply sits in the plastic surround and is easy to extract and replace. I seem to recall buying the new one from eBay. They are pretty generic Edited February 22 by Nick Chan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrightpayne Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 I thought they were a classic mini core. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldAndrewE Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 3 minutes ago, Wrightpayne said: I thought they were a classic mini core. Quite possibly but there are 5 (I think) variations on the classic Mini heater matrix 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative paul richards Posted February 22 Area Representative Share Posted February 22 My heater case also cracked and broke. I dismantled by taking out the little plastic plugs. I then repaired the case using glue and some bits of carbon fibre sheet that I had knocking around. I rebuilt using pop rovers to replace the plastic plugs. I understand that Clayton can supply the new matrix but recall they were eye wateringly expensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP Posted February 22 Author Share Posted February 22 (edited) They are - £220 +VAT + delivery for the matrix only! Having said that, I've just found this: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/303200272268?fits=Car+Make%3ACaterham&itmmeta=01HQ9BR7A236DBSRRXBD5NSJHD&hash=item469824ff8c:g:6woAAOSwspRe5Ph1&itmprp=enc%3AAQAIAAAA0MXaSkpveQiIdgv5aKJ2X%2Fi9ZL2jumBIBlUcBwe6NAPRDA5oosg3AL9yLGk1G9Vc2p9FkA2OJ1PAErwRAVtyzhTSL8jQAqLn8pz4w7Wqlj7LJwHNmB7vUlM24VTVoVVQYCruat5X%2FwqJhmwvpRU%2B9QRWe%2Bowo1kmFKywnwu97sn10VCILgXGUA7%2FzBifZHy%2FiCG9M4gppx7BDRhDIGLAwEtBWsmYtVanu32HmmO2%2F7DYxH53SALchCb7chFZwHT%2Fhu04ZE%2FhO0NkUUeLm%2BTOm3g%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR4714Ku6Yw which looks like it should do the trick... Edited February 22 by JP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PROBE2 Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 I have swapped a few of the Clayton ‘7’ type heater matrix, the metal version on eBay link above fits plus there is also a plastic version that fits and is much cheaper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP Posted February 23 Author Share Posted February 23 Thanks Probe2 - I've also spotted that the same ebay seller sells the same matrix marketed as being for a Mini for about £15 less! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leadership Team SLR No.77 Posted February 23 Leadership Team Share Posted February 23 Is it this one from Minispares? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john milner Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 I fitted the one off Ebay a few years ago. It is probably a better quality than the original. My car needed some minor plastic cutting to get it to fit but others say theirs slotted straight in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john milner Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 Some photos of mine here: https://www.caterhamlotus7.club/forums/topic/228410-heater-matrix-repair-replacement/#comment-2339888 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical Moz Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 The original (same as the late 80's Mini) matrix can often leak from the pipe flange joint. The plastic flange warps and the o-rings can also leak, the core may be OK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP Posted February 23 Author Share Posted February 23 5 hours ago, SLR No.77 said: Is it this one from Minispares? Looks like it - certainly advertised for that generation of Mini... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP Posted February 26 Author Share Posted February 26 I think, given that the matrix seems to be the Mini one and is therefore quite cheap, I'm going to have a crack at replacing it. Can anyone point me to a source for the correct type and size of plastic "rivet" so I can rebuild the surround once I change the matrix please? I found this video on line which makes it look quite simple, but the part where he shows the rivets is a bit blurry... Grateful for any help.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative paul richards Posted February 26 Area Representative Share Posted February 26 I simply used black pop rivets (carefully). The ones I used were quite soft aluminium. You could potentially reuse the plastic ones. They work in a similar way to a pop rivet. When you remove them pull the centre out first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leadership Team SLR No.77 Posted February 27 Leadership Team Share Posted February 27 A quick search on ebay might have found the clips you need …. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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