Bleeding coolant circuit of auxiliary heater: VW Golf Sportsvan

Step-by-step bleeding coolant circuit of auxiliary heater for the VW Golf Sportsvan: 8 steps. What to remove, in what order, and what to check after.

After the auxiliary heater or circulation pump V55 has been out on the VW model with the platform code listed below, only a little coolant is lost, so the circuit needs a targeted bleed rather than a full drain and refill. The pump is filled with coolant first so it cannot run dry, the expansion tank brought to the upper mark, and V55 run through the final control diagnosis in guided fault finding to push air out of the heater heat exchanger loop. The engine then runs with the heater on HI, the auxiliary heater works at full load, and the engine is held at high idle before the level is rechecked. Getting V55 primed before it turns is the step that matters.

8 steps

🧭 Before you start

Prime circulation pump V55 with coolant and fill the expansion tank to the upper mark. Run V55 through the final control diagnosis, then start the engine with heating on HI and the auxiliary heater at full load for at least 2 minutes. Hold the engine at 2000 to 2500 rpm for at least 2 minutes, switch everything off and top up the coolant.

Fits: VW Golf Sportsvan (AM1, 2014–2020)

Opens: coolant

Don't miss

Fill V55 with coolant before running it so it never runs dry.
Use the final control diagnosis to bleed the heat exchanger loop.
With Climatronic, set both driver and passenger knobs to HI.
Recheck and top up the expansion tank once the engine is off.

Written for this job from the workshop steps below · TorqFix editorial.

📋 Procedure

To prevent running dry, fill circulation pump V55 with coolant. [Note: As only a small quantity of coolant escapes from the coolant circuit during removal and installation of the auxiliary heater or circulation pump V55 (described earlier), and only a small quantity of air remains in the coolant circuit during installation (auxiliary heater and circulation pump V55 are already filled with coolant during installation), the system only needs to be bled as described below.]
Fill coolant expansion tank with coolant as far as upper mark.
Activate circulation pump V55 via final control diagnosis function in "“Guided Fault Finding”" mode. This will bleed coolant circuit from heat exchanger in heater and air conditioning unit to circulation pump V55 additionally.
Start engine and choose the highest available setting for temperature ("“HI”") on operating and display unit for heater and air conditioning system. On vehicles equipped with Climatronic, turn rotary knobs to "“HI”" position (for driver and front passenger sides).
Run auxiliary heater at full load for at least 2 minutes (circulation pump V55 is actuated).
Run engine at high idling speed (approx. 2000 to 2500 rpm) for at least 2 minutes.
Switch off engine and auxiliary heater.
Check coolant level in coolant expansion tank and top up coolant if necessary 19Cooling system/coolant; Draining and filling cooling system.

Other VW procedures

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Workshop data on this page last updated 20 Sep 2026.