Well something is wrong with the diverter so I took it out of the system and the temp control on the dash still makes it hot or cold. What does it really do anyway? Old SBC cars never used them did they?

Plus it makes room on the passenger side engine compartment if you remove it, which is always good.

 

The diverter is small, the amount of "room" you gain is minimal. I'd rather not have hot water flowing through the core at all times, I think it's a good thing.

Those things do break with age, if it's original, it's long overdue for replacement. Else, you risk losing all your coolant at the worst possible time.

 

Yep, the older cars also used the valve if they had factory A/C. Just never see the old cars with them anymore, most people removed them when they went bad and never bothered to replace them. I prefer mine as mentioned above, it keeps the hot coolant out of the heater core unless the control is turned to heat, it will also affect A/C performance if you remove it, so keep that in mind if you still have A/C that works, Larry.

 

Yeah that's what I figured. The A/C would be a little hotter. I think what I'll do is get a water valve at Menards and just open/close the heater water line when winter/summer comes along.

 

You can buy a brand new diverter valve from any parts store for about $20-$30.

The valve doesn't just shut off the water to the heater core. It "loops" the flow so the water goes back into the engine rather than hitting a dead end.