Heater Core Write Up

[1990LTD]

VISTA-PRO Part # 398255 on rockauto, just looked it up.

[Piece-it pete]

Thanks guys! Boy that Vista Pro is quite a bit cheaper than the NOS one. I'm willing to spend more if nec, any comments?

I'll start a new thread on the speedo.

Pete

[sly]

I got an all-aluminum code from autozone... works like a champ.

[shorty]

took me about 4 hours replaced heater hoses and clamps core cost $25 from advance
only remove pass side and was able to wiggle out the core

[BerniniCaCO3]

doing a heater core on a 1989.
The heat is very poor. I'm assuming it's just a clogged heater core?
There are manual climate controls. I suppose once I can see the box, I can see if the cable is moving the blend door like it should?
The recirculation door behind the blower motor is open, right now, with the car off. Is that default for no vacuum?

Those doubts aside, just for the heater core now, can I leave the climate controls and radio and clock and speakers installed, and just pull the dash back a bit?
Or much easier to remove those things, also?

[87gtVIC]

Everything will move as a unit. Leave it as is.

[Toploader]

That is why God "invented" the Chilton Labor Guide.......for customer paid labor back in the day I sold the Chilton guide to 90% of dealers and shops.........Motors and Mitchell were a joke.........sadly the book we all knew as the Chilton Labor Guide is really no more.......company having sold the name and the guys who were so good at figuring out true labor times are either dead or long retired......I remember a real doosy....labor to put a clutch in a Pontiac Feiro(sp)........any shop that followed Motor or Mitchell to quote customer labor.......took a freaking bath

it's called flat rate, look it up sometime.
Technicians cut corners to make stuff go faster. So they can get paid for a job that supposed to take 4 hours into something closer to 2.5 hours.

[drhill]

Just did this in my 84 Colony Park...not too bad, took me a little less than a days work to do it slowly and make/route new heater hoses. I followed this thread with ALL of Sly's recommendations (including removing the gauge cluster) and it worked like a charm. For my wagon, removing any less screws felt like it would have put stress on other parts of the dash. Here's link to the other threads I needed to complete the repair:

For a pic of the headlight switch (release button is situated on the top of the switch behind the dash)

http://www.grandmarq.net/vb/showthre...Headlight-knob

For which hose is inlet and outlet (I put a 14mm 3/8 socket in the inlet hose just before the heater core to act as a restrictor)

http://www.grandmarq.net/vb/showthre...e-Inlet-Outlet

[TroubleMarq]

Check this out for those of us that like to see the steps of it being done http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntQFNqbLIpo doesn't look too bad gonna try it sunday

[WhtCastle]

Check this out for those of us that like to see the steps of it being done http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntQFNqbLIpo doesn't look too bad gonna try it sunday

I will chime in this is actually how I just replaced mine yesterday. Everything went fairly well, although it is questionable about things breaking sometimes. (Nothing did for me.) My biggest issue was getting it all back in and getting the top bolt on the housing lined up with the hole. I had slightly bent the bolt at some point and it took quite a while to figure out what the issue was. I have a bit more than back there than he does in the video but not terrible to figure out. I viewed this as better than the entire dash removal, but I suppose that's a decision for each person to make!

[sinistral]

ugh - help?

this has not been fun...

followed the directions, and plenum didn't seem to wanna budge. went ahead and removed the two nuts on the interior (photo) and then saw the note about the pry bar. but it seems like the whole thing is wedged in by the floor/heat plenum (photo) and since the dash is out and dropped a bit maybe?

any insight appreciated... i'm taking a "walk away from it before you torch it" break.

[sinistral]

i'm guessing this writeup was maybe a non-ATC car?

there's so much junk attached to this plenum including all the damn vacuum lines and solenoids... it is really wedged in there. i think pulling the dash out and down was a mistake, as it is putting weight now on the top further keeping this thing in place.



does anyone have a pic of what the plenum looks like when out? cuz mine appears to be 12 feet long with two dozen attachments... not sure how it is gonna come out of this car w/o removing the entire dash completely.

[sly]

you see the center rivet looking thing between the nuts... that's another bolt and the nut is on the engine side. You have to remove that too. Also the same on the top side.

[VicCrownVic]

you see the center rivet looking thing between the nuts... that's another bolt and the nut is on the engine side. You have to remove that too. Also the same on the top side.

So on the older cars (at least older than 91) there are 2 nuts to be removed on the engine bay side?

On my 91 there is only one nut on the engine bay side to remove, the one just to the (driver's) side of the heater hoses under the MAP sensor.

[sinistral]

you see the center rivet looking thing between the nuts... that's another bolt and the nut is on the engine side. You have to remove that too. Also the same on the top side.

is that the same one as this one from your pic?



and i removed this one, too:



are there more than 2 on the engine side?