Why is my heater so hot?

The heater in my 2018 TRD OR is much hotter than any car/truck I have ever driven. With the heater on full hot, I can not touch the air at the vents as it will burn my skin. If I shut down the vent on the dash, I can’t touch the plastic vent as it will burn my skin.

I’m not complaining as quick hot air is nice in this cold weather. I was wondering if the Toyota engine operates at a higher temp? I’m used to a 160 or 180 degree thermostat.

 

i've also had an incident where i drove to work (20ish minutes), and when i went to turn off my headlights, it was SCORCHING hot. at first, i thought there was some sort of short that made it heat up, but then i realized the driveside left vent was aimed directly at it. My only complaint is the airflow coming out for my feet seems extremely weak. In 3 of my previous cars, which were all honda civics, the airflow was almost like a windstorm. in this, i hardly feel anything down there.

 

After the truck warms up I usually set the temp between 70 - 72 Degrees.

 

Your right, I have noticed that too....low feet flow.

 

hmmm.....i set my heater at 78 and have a thermometer in the left, center vent.....temp goes up to ~140F......turn down temp to 75F and air flow temp drops to 120F......2016 Tacoma TRD Sport DCLB Tech/nav and tow

 

If you crank it to Hi the electric element is activated.

 

Maybe it’s because “inferno!”...

 

We’ll I’ll be darned. That’s it. I didn’t know there was an electric element. That explains it. Thanks.

 

Since we are on the topic... DO NOT buy the air vent fresheners with liquid inside! I had one burst in my truck. Luckily I saw it right away so it only got some freshener oil on the dash and not inside the vent thing. But yeah, don’t ever buy those for these trucks.

 

I have noticed this as well. Must have a massive heater core or something. Even when it is 10 degrees out I cant run the heater at max temp. I usually leave it at 75%ish.

 

That element only turns on if you crank it to high AND the engine is still cold AND it's cold outside.

So when the engine's warmed up it shouldn't be doing anything.

 

Learn something new every day. I had no idea that the Tacoma had an electric heating element in it.

 

I have had four Toyotas since 1985. Two cars. Two trucks. All of them have extremely warm heat and weak floor vents. Fiances matrix is exactly the same. I don't complain at all. Nice to cold start on a 30 degree day and have warm cabin air before i get to the end of my quarter mile road.

 

It burns your skin but doesnt melt the plastic?

 

I have noticed this truck has 2 AC settings, Hoth or the Sun.

 

My 18 takes forever to warm up. For the past month I've pulled into the parking lot at work and the temp gauge is still below the halfway point. My drive is only 12 minutes or so, but my truck sits in a 60 degree garage regardless of the outside temp. My 2nd gen never had that issue. I assume it's due to the larger oil pan on the 3rd gen.

 

Yes, like those dishes in my microwave.

 

My vents run hot as well, but I love the heat output. I definitely agree though that floor vents seem weaker than previous vehicles I’ve driven.

 

This thread is so 3rd gen.