I'm in need of a heater core for my '91 SE...can't locate one at ANY auto parts stores? Is this item ONLY sold through Nissan??? If so..anyone have an idea how much they're raping for them??

 

I picked one up from the dealer a couple months ago for about $130.
it hurts, but a part like this I would ONLY recommend getting from the dealer.

If you haven't seen what it takes to replace the heater core, trust me- you only want to do this job ONCE.

 

Haha! I pity the foo that has to change theirs. Been there, done that.

 

Was all of that needed to be removed to replace core? i thought just the top part of dash??!!??

 

most of it was, yes.
you don't need to remove the seats and carpet to get to it, but removing the seats makes it MUCH easier to work in the car, and the carpet is likely covered in antifreeze- so it's a good idea to remove and clean it anyway.

 

Well i can say that when my buddy and i were attempting to change the heater core on my daughter's car yesterday, we got to a similar point, however we did NOT remove the seats or remove the carpet, we left all that intact and i dont' think it would have been necessary to remove them. We also did not remove the plastic trim kick panels on the left or the right.

We did have to remove the console and everything else that is removed in the picture. However we did not remove the huge round bar that goes from the left side of the car just under the steering wheel to the right side of the car. Other than that, we got to the same point at the pic above except we could not get the heater box out so we gave up and put everything back.

I will never do a job like that again and will pay to have it replaced by a shop.

But to answer your question of how you thought you only needed to remove the top part of the dash, well to remove the top part of the dash (the entire main section), you do need to pretty much remove everything else to be able to get to that point.

 

WTF did Nissan do...build the car around the heater core??!!?? To the dealer it goes! Thanks for all the replies.

 

Yes, they did.


Bobotech, before you can get the heater box out of the car, you have to remove the support bar running under the dash.. I took the seats out because it was easier to work on the dash if I could just sit on the floor and work. it takes less than 10 minutes to remove the seats.

The carpet *should* be removed and shampooed to get rid of the antifreeze in it-- which there will be if the heater core ever leaks in your car.

 

True about removing the carpet to shampoo the antifreeze, however in my daughters case, it wasn't a leaky core that we thought had a problem but rather a plugged up core.

Heck anyway, it is my daughter's car, its not like I drive in it, LOL.

 

Man, I hate to say this, but I replaced my heater core 3 years ago and if you took that much stuff out just to get to it you really did a lot more work than you needed to. The hardest thing is getting the dash and ducting out out. I am 6 foot tall, and weight 200 pounds, it was nothing harder than pulling the center console, the dash parts (meaning consoles, instruments, glove box, ac ducts, etc.), the passenger seat out, and laying on my back for a while to get unrestricted access to the heater core. BTW, compressed air does wonders for blowing air out of the heater core, before you remove it from the car, and helps eliminate the worry of spilled coolant all over the carpet. Anyone in my area that needs to have this done and doesn't want to tackle it or take it to a shop can give me a message and I will be more than happy to help out for minimal cash and beer. FYI I am about to do it again, only because I had some other problems that led to the failure of the current one. Just don;t think you are going to get it done this way without some busted knuckels and cussing.

 

Matt's pictue represents more than you need, but it's not far off. I've done two so far.

 

twice


10chars


edit: damn, didnt read the entire thread.


anywho, IIRC I didn't remove that bar in Arrons car when we did his, certianly did not take the dash off. Looks much easier if you do but it isnt necessary. Big PITA eitherway. Not as bad as the gastank IMHO lol.