California Webasto B-pillar night heater retrofit.

[Skyliner33]

In relation to this:

Sold - genuine California Webasto diesel parking heater, vented step, b pillar posts

basically started accumulating parts a few years back to retro fit this to a panel van using genuine parts. genuine Webasto air top. with bracket drivers vented step ( cold air intake) B pillar post with outlet vents b pillar ducting pretty much everything you need to retro fit the heater with...

www.t6forum.com

does anyone know what controllers and other things I would need to get the heater working? Thanks

 

[oldiebut goodie]

Those heaters are not standalone - they need coding in to the van as they are factory fit, also they use the vw controller. Either that or you need to get a standard universal ecu to replace the vw one. The ecus are not cheap, I have half a dozen or more of useless vw ecus from these heaters that I have removed. The 3500ST heaters are a pain - a new glow pin is around £180 to replace but a standard 3500 one can be got for around £20! I just use the vw ones for parts.

 

[JOG]

Those heaters are not standalone - they need coding in to the van as they are factory fit, also they use the vw controller. Either that or you need to get a standard universal ecu to replace the vw one. The ecus are not cheap, I have half a dozen or more of useless vw ecus from these heaters that I have removed. The 3500ST heaters are a pain - a new glow pin is around £180 to replace but a standard 3500 one can be got for around £20! I just use the vw ones for parts.

Wow! That’s interesting insight, thank you. Out of interest, would there be as many issues if installing as a replacement for an existing VW heater?

 

[oldiebut goodie]

I don't know - the current oem fitment is a 4Kw Airtronic M2 Eberspacher for the T6, these heaters are from T5s when Webastos were used. I think that Webastos were a specific optional extra on T6s - if you just asked for a heater it was an Eberspacher. So a T6 with a factory fit Webasto is a rare beast.
Strange relationship between the 3 companies, Beetles had Webasto air heaters, T3s were either fitted with a Webasto water preheater or an Eberspacher air heater so vw likes to ring the changes between the 2 heater manufacturers.
For some reason they haven't started to fit Chinese heaters!

 

[Skyliner33]

I don't know - the current oem fitment is a 4Kw Airtronic M2 Eberspacher for the T6, these heaters are from T5s when Webastos were used. I think that Webastos were a specific optional extra on T6s - if you just asked for a heater it was an Eberspacher. So a T6 with a factory fit Webasto is a rare beast.
Strange relationship between the 3 companies, Beetles had Webasto air heaters, T3s were either fitted with a Webasto water preheater or an Eberspacher air heater so vw likes to ring the changes between the 2 heater manufacturers.
For some reason they haven't started to fit Chinese heaters!

Do the fit a 4kW, meaning they don't think a 2KW one is powerful enough? Interesting for when I come to fit one.

 

[oldiebut goodie]

Do the fit a 4kW, meaning they don't think a 2KW one is powerful enough? Interesting for when I come to fit one.

I fitted a 4Kw Webasto Air Top Evo 40 to my own hightop van. VWs standard fit on the tintop T5s was a 3.5Kw ones as above but neither Webasto nor Eberspacher manufacture a 3.5Kw one now so the choice is between 2Kw or 4Kw. A 2Kw will most probably suffice for a van without a tent on top but have a tent and all the heat will dissipate quickly in winter so the heater will need to run flat out constantly. I only use mine for a quick blast of heat not for overnight heating, I prefer to breathe cool natural air at night! If you are a wimp or the other half is a 2Kw is better for running at a lower heat output setting if you must have heat overnight. All these heaters run cleaner if run at high output rather than tickover, constant tickover can lead to premature coking of the burner pad. I have seen the effects of this many times on heaters that have never been run on full heat due to overspecifying the size of the heater. I quite often see 5/5.5Kw heaters coked up and upon checking the running pattern recorded in the ecu they have rarely been run on full chat.
Here are a couple of examples, first a 2Kw and 3.9Kw run correctly, second a 5.5Kw run incorrectly ( look at the operating data ):

 

[JOG]

I agree! Run at full tilt every so often rather than tickover. I prefer cool air and warm duvet

 

[Skyliner33]

I fitted a 4Kw Webasto Air Top Evo 40 to my own hightop van. VWs standard fit on the tintop T5s was a 3.5Kw ones as above but neither Webasto nor Eberspacher manufacture a 3.5Kw one now so the choice is between 2Kw or 4Kw. A 2Kw will most probably suffice for a van without a tent on top but have a tent and all the heat will dissipate quickly in winter so the heater will need to run flat out constantly. I only use mine for a quick blast of heat not for overnight heating, I prefer to breathe cool natural air at night! If you are a wimp or the other half is a 2Kw is better for running at a lower heat output setting if you must have heat overnight. All these heaters run cleaner if run at high output rather than tickover, constant tickover can lead to premature coking of the burner pad. I have seen the effects of this many times on heaters that have never been run on full heat due to overspecifying the size of the heater. I quite often see 5/5.5Kw heaters coked up and upon checking the running pattern recorded in the ecu they have rarely been run on full chat.
Here are a couple of examples, first a 2Kw and 3.9Kw run correctly, second a 5.5Kw run incorrectly ( look at the operating data ):



View attachment 135589







View attachment 135587











View attachment 135588

Great info, thank you.

 

[AndyM66]

Those heaters are not standalone - they need coding in to the van as they are factory fit, also they use the vw controller. Either that or you need to get a standard universal ecu to replace the vw one. The ecus are not cheap, I have half a dozen or more of useless vw ecus from these heaters that I have removed. The 3500ST heaters are a pain - a new glow pin is around £180 to replace but a standard 3500 one can be got for around £20! I just use the vw ones for parts.

Hi, how can I find out if I would need a controller? I've got a 2019 T6 Trendline panel van which I'm converting. I have VCDS, so I can read and code no problem. Thanks in advance

 

[oldiebut goodie]

Don't forget that those heaters are for T5s not T6s. As to what you need to tie them in completely to a newer van I don't know, as I said I scrap the ecus and use the heaters for parts as it just isn't worth trying to fit one.

Have just noticed that you are a TSI so you would need a petrol heater anyway not this diesel one. (Like this one For Sale - TSI owners - Petrol Webasto Air Top 3900 Evo 3.9Kw heater )