Heater core. What a PITA

[farside847]

My last project was to replace my heater core. It had corroded, and while working on my engine
I barely touched the hose thing, and it bent and started to leak. I got a new core at a local shop
for like $30 and took out my trusty manual to do the repair. I read the thing and thought, nah,
that cant be right. Can it? Do you really have to remove the wheel well? And the hinge to fender
bolts? Yep. What a PITA. As usual, I went a little camera happy while I was at it....

I started by taking out a few bolts on the wheel well, I didnt really need to take it all the way
out to reach the heater housing. Once I got the bolts off the firewall side it would have pushed
down enough, but I figured while I was at it I could seal the whole thing with rust stuff.



Look at the pile of rust that dropped when I undid the 3 bolts to the clip!



Getting the heater case off the firewall requires the hood hindge to be slid back a few
inches. This was fun. I propped up the hood with some 2x4 and unbolted the hindge, slid it out
of the way and quickly took out the heater unit so I could put the hindge bolts back in finger
tight. I didnt want a good wind to come up and close the hood on my head or something else important.

Now on to my next issue. The stupid little bracket that holds the core in place did not fit the
new unit. The after market core is a little thicker. It was a real bugger to get on, and then in
stuck out at an odd angle.



After a few head scratches I decided to loop a cable tie through the hole and arround the pipe to
secure the front of the unit. Then in the back I was able to screw it in place. I know its plastic,
but it didnt melt and actually looks pretty good.



Here is my wheel well when I took it out.



Then I cleaned it up real good, scrapped off all the surface rust and painted it with some good 'ol
rust paint. Made sure to hit those rust spots real good.



All done! What I thought was going to be a 30 min project ended up taking me almost all morning.



Now I need to clean up my other wheel well so they match.

[pjmoreland]

Nice job!

[tomatocity]

Nice job. Did the rust scale come from under the battery tray? If so, that might be your next Remove, Clean, Paint, Install project. From what I have heard and read the lower front of the passenger fender will rust from the inside because of the battery acid. A baking soda solution bath can tell the tale.

[farside847]

Originally Posted by tomatocity

Nice job. Did the rust scale come from under the battery tray? If so, that might be your next Remove, Clean, Paint, Install project. From what I have heard and read the lower front of the passenger fender will rust from the inside because of the battery acid. A baking soda solution bath can tell the tale.

You are right sir. I took a peak at the bat tray and its toast. I think I will just replace it one of these days... Too far gone.

[71RestoRod]

They say the first part of the vehicle to go down the assembly line is the heater core.... they build the rest of the car around it.

[70 shorty]

If you think the truck is bad, (it's damn easy) try doing one on my Z28. I've done my trucks core, and I loved the fact that I stood INSIDE the engine compartment. You
V8 guys may not be able to do that, one more reason for 6 in a row!

[tomatocity]

I just sold a 95 Z28 but I do have a one owner 93 S10 and yes I have replaced the heater core. To do it simply you need to remove the radio and loosen the passenger side of the dash along with a multitude of other things. I am not sure if I would replace the next one.

Originally Posted by 70 shorty

If you think the truck is bad, (it's damn easy) try doing one on my Z28. I've done my trucks core, and I loved the fact that I stood INSIDE the engine compartment. You
V8 guys may not be able to do that, one more reason for 6 in a row!

[shifty]

That's really the only place with any real rust on my truck that i've found - battery tray. I need to replace mine. If I could find one for around $25 that's prepped with something to keep it from rusting, I'd do it in a heartbeat.

[mrein3]

While working my way through college I spent almost two years working at a car repair garage. I had one guy come in and put 4 new tires on a 76ish Impala for around $200. (Late 1980's dollars).

A few weeks later he comes in saying he smells anti-freeze. We quoted another $200+ parts and labor to put in a new heater core. HE JUNKED THE CAR!

Now as a struggling college student that didn't make sense to me but what are you going to do? Spend $200 for a heater core in a $200 car?

To make a long story short, back then GM did start with the heater core and built most of their stuff around it.

[farside847]

Scary, I would have just disabled the heater core (looped the hose) before junkingit.

[tomatocity]

far..., its Minnesota, Land of 10,000 Frozen Lakes

Originally Posted by farside847

Scary, I would have just disabled the heater core (looped the hose) before junkingit.

[mrein3]

Originally Posted by tomatocity

far..., its Minnesota, Land of 10,000 Frozen Lakes

Correct. We actually need a heater up here approximately 5 months out of the year.

No heater = no see out the windshield.

[ed455]

Our trucks have one of the easier heater cores to replace. Some cars have to have very nearly the entire dash removed.

Easiest one I ever saw was on a 72 Galaxie. Had a metal plate with six screws on top of the eterior of the heater box. The water ports stuck up through the plate. Remove the hoses and the 6 screw and pulled the heater right out. Whole job took me 20 minutes. I ain't much of a Ferd guy, but that was one place they had a better idea.

[bucket]

F&%d is not any better. I had a 80 Crown Victoria in college. heater core went and i could not afford to fix since you have to remove most of the dash to replace. i remember it being like 400-500 in 1991. i looped the heater hoses and drove it 3 more years. kept lots of blankets and gloves in the car LOL!

[ed455]

Originally Posted by bucket

F&%d is not any better. I had a 80 Crown Victoria in college. heater core went and i could not afford to fix since you have to remove most of the dash to replace. i remember it being like 400-500 in 1991. i looped the heater hoses and drove it 3 more years. kept lots of blankets and gloves in the car LOL!

To correct, I meant THAT PARTICULAR YEAR AND MODEL Ferd.

[Classic Heartbeat]

Those aftermarket heater cores that you get from most parts houses are the cheap non fitting "Made in Mexico" heater cores. I have complained to many parts stores profusely to try to get them to talk to the manufacturer, to get them to fix the tooling. Hasn't done any good yet!! This is why I sell the USA made ones. They are a little more expencive, but they fit and even are a little heavier. I would have pulled it out and took it back to the parts house that sold it to you. WES www.ClassicHeartbeat.com

[bucket]

Originally Posted by ed455

To correct, I meant THAT PARTICULAR YEAR AND MODEL Ferd.

sorry ed455, wasn't trying to correct..... i had not seen your post before i posted. maybe the LTD or "LaTeDa", as we called it, was particularly difficult. i have to admit that ferd was one of the best older cars i have ever owned. drove it 80K miles and only put a couple of sets of tires on it. i'm not sure i ever changed the oil

[mblackburnjr]

Why do you have to remove the inner fender? I have replaced a 67 and a 71, and didnt have much problem after loosening hood hinge.

[farside847]

Originally Posted by mblackburnjr

Why do you have to remove the inner fender? I have replaced a 67 and a 71, and didnt have much problem after loosening hood hinge.

You cant reach the bottom 3 bolts with it in place unfortunately.

[mblackburnjr]

the proof is in the pudding!

[Green Machine]

1/4 drive swivel sockets. Mans best freind. Works for me on those, never have had to remove and sheet metal. If your arms are long enough and skinny enough you may also get that one SOB in the corner from under through the fender.

[71swb4x4]

I did mine without removing the inner fender too.

[67chevemall]

What about doing it with just the inner fender coming out and not touching the hood??
I have been waiting a year now to go at this because of the time it took to aligne the hood. I wonder if there is a fab. idea out there for a quick access door?

[71swb4x4]

Originally Posted by 67chevemall

What about doing it with just the inner fender coming out and not touching the hood??
I have been waiting a year now to go at this because of the time it took to aligne the hood. I wonder if there is a fab. idea out there for a quick access door?

The hood hinge gets in the way of the heater motor. Usually you can loosen the hinge and get enough room to get the heater motor out.

[rage'nrat638]

try one with a/c