What is this?

[Gripped]

The latest in the long list of things to look at.... and maybe fix...

Underneath the Bongo, on the drivers side about 2 feet from the drivers door towards the rear, there is a box section in the sill with rubber hoses coming out. There is rust around the points where the hoses connect. I'm wondering if this is part of the air conditioning system? Any ideas? Also, any ideas why the rust has developed? I was assuming condensate from the air con.

PS, the air con doesn't work - probably needs a re-gas.

[francophile1947]

It sounds like the rear heater matrix.

[Gripped]

Cheers. Why the rubber hoses? Is it hot water fed?

It would make sense that it is the heating, as the controls for the rear heating are in the cab above.

Excuse the ignorance, I am learning all the time.

[francophile1947]

Yes - it's all part of the engine cooling system

[Gripped]

What concerns me is that the unit seems to be part of the sill rather than a separate component like a radiator. This means the rust around the hose is rust in my sill !

[missfixit70]

It's mounted from inside in a "well", you can access it by removing the panel behind the drivers seat. There's a heater matrix & ac cooling matrix as well as a fan, & as you say a condensate drain, quite a few of us have found that to be a rust potential problem area.
A few people have also found that when driving through heavy rain & then parking pointing up a slope, a load of water runs out of the cill at the back of that area on the drivers side, no conclusion yet as to where it's getting in, as there doesn't seem to be corresponding deluge out of the other side.
This is what's in there - http://www.lushprojects.com/bongopartsm ... mgno=.html, it's a similar size "cut out" to the side door step.

[Alison01326]

Interesting, I can't say I had noticed but definitely shall keep a close eye on mine. We live in heavy rain and I permanently park uphill on a slope.