Has anyone replaced their heater core yet??? if so please post a link or a how-to for me cuz i gotta replace mines soon and i didnt see a thread pertaining to it. Thanx

 

Instructions are easy.

Anthing (and when I say anything I mean everything) bolted in front of the heater core has to be removed. Replace core and install is the reverse of removal.

 

ok im not mechanically inclined so im goin to need a lil bit more info than that lol...i dont even know where the damn thing is located let alone know wuts bolted and all that lol

 

Here ya go..

http://blehmco.com/pics/car/interior...re/1_teardown/

Have fun..

 

 

see those 2 tubes sticking out?
the aftermarket heater cores do not come with them.
only get a brand new OE one.

 

You may want to leave this to someone that is mechanically inclined. Not that its extremely difficult just that there are a lot of nuts and bolts and its time consuming. You will also cut yourself numerous times.

I did mine a while back and IIRC managed to squeeze the core out without removing the center console or support beam. Its still a pain in the a$$.


If you do it, make sure it doesnt leak before you reassemble.

 

Does anyone know if the pipes on the side of the core can be removed without removing quite as much of the internals of the car? I have broken the end off one of mine, and just need to replace the pipe.

 

C'mon dude, look at the pics, does it look like you can access the tubes without removing all the things shown?

 

Well I have replaced the aircon evaporator without removing anywhere near as much as shown in the pics, and since the pipes are on that side of the core, I thought it might be possible.

 

they don't sell those pipes sepreately. they are only sold with the OE core last I looked. If you are planning on using used ones then I think you the fool.

 

Does evaporator = heater core? I'm confused here.

BTW the cost of the replacement heater core is negible to the amount of labor it takes to replace one.

I've also replaced one without taking all of the stuff out also. But you have to pull, pry, push the thing out. Not exactly textbook so I don't recommend it.

 

This is why i always recommend matts heater core pics, you might as well unbolt/remove all the things in his pics, in the end it will just make the h/c replacement easier.

 

No, I would buy a new core but instead of spending $$ getting someone to install it (I don't have 2+ days spare to do it myself) which would cost many times the value of the core, I thought I may be able to access just the pipes without doing so much dismantling, and therefore do it myself. I guess it was just wishful thinking, but I thought there might be a chance.

 

Obviously theres is a big chance for success - if you have no need to bow down in front of the confuze: the structures are not untouchable Temple Pillars, just cut your way in, improvise putting all bits (more securely than stock) in place. Then the panels on. Clean fast easy way on old cars on the verge being in bale - but of course a nono at dealership.

Youll regret if u wont try smtg new.

Few months ago we gutted whole working A/C system with all bits intact from a junk car and installed the system into another. No need to pay for refill etc. Fast and easy to cut the donor firewall big enough hole to get all out. Then a little bit smaller hole was made into the receiver vehicle firewall. Now the A/C evaporator went in, the bigger firewall piece was screwed on and sealed. In the end, very neat result ... and the A/C working still today.

 

Aaron has a real good pic of what you have to go through to get to it. I thought I saved it on my computer....but cant find it! Looks really like tedious work, and a good memory. My .02

 

Don't let this pic scare ya.

 

Done yet?

 

no. i'm putting it in for him in a few weeks. My parts car had a good heatercore on it, so we're gonna use that. Granted a used heater core is not the best idea the world has ever seen... but he's kindof in the same boat i am.

 

Uh, ain't no way I'd risk putting an used heater core in. I'd rather save up and bypass it for the time being.

 

A used heater core? all that work just to install a used heater core?

 

well, he already has it bypassed... but as a DD... having heat is a hell of a lot better than having no heat. so since it'll be a while of 'saving' to afford a new heater core.. we were talking about putting that one in just for the time being. i would advise him to get a new one once he had the cash.. but right now, he just wants heat.

 

so he's going to risk having to do it twice? Or better yet, you're going to risk having to do it twice?

 

as long as he understands the risks and implications, if he wants to go ahead and put the used one in, then that's his decision. I'm not doing it for free.. and being unemployed, i really can't complain about having a source of income. yea it is a PITA task.. but it's not like it's physically painful or hazardous to my health, so i don't mind doing the job twice.. no different than doing it once apiece on 2 different cars..

i've had to redo tasks on my car before, due to needing my car to roll but not having the funds to get everything right the first time around.. and while a pain in the butt, i had to do it (ie, 5spd swap in february but using the old fubar'd clutch, then pulling trans 3 months later to put in a new clutch)

 

Bringing this one back to life

I have now removed dashboard and console to change my old heater, but it's stuck in there.

I have removed:
- 2 nuts and 1 bolt holding the unit to the frame (1 on the top, and 1 bottom left and bottom right)
- 1 screw holding the cooling and heating unit together
- detached both hoses in engine room (pipes still out there)
- all ducts except the bottom one, seems stuck in there

Now it seems like its stuck in the cooling unit, the duct between those two, do I have to take out the cooling unit (and refill it with gas that is no longer legal or available here) or is there a trick to it or maybe a srew or 2 I haven't seen?

Tried to look in the service manual, but it dosen't really give much info on the heater

 

you have to loosen the bolt that holds the a/c line to its bracket so it can slide, that way you can pull the evaporator toward you a little bit, making it possible to slide the blower unit out from the side (and dump the leaves out) and then to slide the heater box off the left side. you have to remove the nuts and bolts holding all three pieces of the climate control unit to the firewall, not just the heater part.

 

Excuse my stupidity, but what is in the pipes running to the heater core?
I'm not a fan of releasing RC34 or whatever its called straight into my face (again), and I'm slowly working towards getting the core itself out for SonicII, can I actually pull the core out while there is still gas in the pipes, or do I need to get it removed first (which I cant, seing as the car is in 800 trillion pieces)

 

Thanks, I'll try it out later today

The pipes to the heater core is just cooling liquid/water, it's the lines to the cooling unit/A/C unit that has the RC34 gas in it.

 

So, hate to bump this, but

What exactly goes "bad" in a heater core? Is it just that it leaks? I have my project '93 completely stripped apart (dash and dash support, etc. out too) and about to drop my JDM VE in it. I noticed the original engine and radiator in it were full of brown sludge so I bought a new radiator for it and will be putting in all new coolant lines.

Now, there isn't any evidence that the heater core leaks, but I'm debating whether or not to replace it as it most likely looks like the radiator inside (i.e., full of brown sludge). Unless I'm reading wrong, Courtesy has it for $164, whereas RockAuto wants $261 for a Spectra part.

http://www.courtesyparts.com/27115-c...611_1648_1665&

 

it gets clogged wit that sluge and u have no heat well even if u have heat its not as much it used to have it plus a clogged heater is an obstacle in the cooling system...so u better off replacing it if u have stripped apart everything.....i would do that next time i have to pull my all dash out....even if its working well....

i wonder why this after market is so expensive but shipping is free tho

http://www.autopartsway.com/autopart...ma%20SE~242318

 

I guess I'll just go ahead and replace it, but ugh, I've already got $3k tied up in this car which is quite a bit considering I got the car for $200, and I still have to get some body work done on it and painted after I get it driving!

 

well thats gud that u r a true enthusiast like me and get *****ed from my dad or mom everyday for collecting these cars....my mom even have a bet with me if i can sell 1 maxima for more than a 1 grand and i always tell her its not about the money its about the CAR god damit haha...now i bought the TBIRD SC so its like eating a sandwich with Tabasco sauce now LOL...

 

Ive also got to replace my heater core before it gets cold again. Mine went out in December of last year. Right at the time I needed it most. I was driveing to Charlotte and my homies noticed a strong antifreeze smell, I didnt pay it any attention so I just turned the heat off. As it got darker, it also got colder, so I turn the heat on, and the windows fogged up so bad that even the defroster didnt work so we had to pull over and wipe the windows clean, but that antifreeze film on the window didnt help at all. Soon as I got home the next morning, took it to a mechanic who said the core was gone, I saw antifreeze all over the floor on the passenger side. Right now I have it by=passed cause its hot and I dont need it, But I will need it soon, so im saving up for one. By the way what tool do you use to remove those large star looking screws behind the dash??

 

I think thats a good price to pay to make your car look and run good. Soon ill either be rebuilding my engine or replaceing it with one thats got low miles. Ive got a Vg30e with 220,000 miles mostly highway miles. AnD I would not trade it.

 

sometimes they leak, sometimes they clog. mine happened to start leaking.

 

trade it for VE

 

Oh I hear ya there. I have a twin brother equally into cars, and I kid you not we have 9 cars at my mom's house. Most of those cars are "project" cars, which to her means "junk". Needless to say, she is absolutely positively pissed/hysterical about it.

She's used to it though. My dad was a big time car guy and actually widened the driveway (fits 6 cars), and built a nice concrete-bottom two car car-port in the backyard for some of his project cars. But I think after 40+ consistent years of this between us and our late father she's just sick of cars lol

 

I got it out, and it's neither clogged nor leaking. I flushed it a couple times with the garden hose and it ran nice and clear after about two times.

I'm half tempted to just stick it back in

 

well here's the question that should lead you to a decision one way or the other:

based on your experience getting it out so far... if you put it back in and it springs a leak next week, will you mind doing the work again?

 

Actually I saw a nice black one, for $2800 with only 125,000 miles and you can actually make payments on it. I was thinking about getting it. Its really clean and its automatic.