From the sound of all this, if the wife's ever goes bad, she had just better get used to driving in long-handles and cover-alls.

Before I would go to all that trouble, I would install one of those under-the-seat heater-boxes like J.C.Whitney and the like sell for vehicles that didn't come with heaters; I'm serious, having to evacuate the A/C and gut the insides for a silly heater-core replacement is ridiculous and says little for Chrysler's engineering department.

It takes maybe twenty minutes to completely remove/install the heater-core in either my 1985 Ford or 1978 Chevy; there is no need to even get close to any of the A/C components, and either can be accomplished without draining the radiator, if you are quick and have a couple loops of wire threaded into the hood bracing to suspend the hoses from while you work.



I never imagined it could be such a chore as all this.

 

my core been broken since the begining of summer but hav to do it soon to cuz it getting cold here in the morns so thanks for doing 1st lol i got good heads up in what is to come lol
maybe ill take pics when i do mine

 

Here is a nice under-the-dash unit, complete with defrost-ducts :

http://www.jcwhitney.com/DANHARD-UND...8020_10108.jcw


This one could probably be mounted above the dash and concealed in a nice cabinet, as well as being mounted below :

http://www.jcwhitney.com/FLEX-A-LITE...8020_10108.jcw



Another nice one :

http://www.jcwhitney.com/Heaters/GP_...8020_10108.jcw



These are just a few of the many units available, any one of them probably pushing more hot air than the factory system.

Besides a new heater-core, they have a SEPERATE new blower-motor/fan, and a seperate new switch.

I fully intend to go this route, if and whenever the core goes bad in any of my Dodge fleet.


I have no idea just what I would be getting into on the Son's truck, as it is a non-A/C cab, with a hidden, behind-the-dash, after-market A/C system that is completely independent of the heater system, even having a seperate blower, all tucked in somewhere inside the dash; this system does share the non-A/C heater-control-panel, with some weird leaf-spring switches that turn on and off the A/C functions, and the fan-speed switch "switches" to whichever system has been selected, turning on one blower or the other; there is a whole herd of relays connected to this mess.

No one has yet been able to tell me just what brand this unit might be, so that I can contact them and get an instruction manual and parts listing, should I ever need to replace any of this.

 

Not an egg - the white of an egg. BTW it works.

Bob

 

Good tip for emergencies...I wonder how many vehicles are out there with eggs in thier cooling systems. Maybe toss in some bacon too!

 

My grandfather used both pepper and eggs in his radiator when he was around. He had a 78 gmc and I saw him dump both in over the years. ( he also used to defrost his windshield with a pot of hot water off the stove ) Never once broke.

 

The A/C does need to be dumped, no way around it.

 

Jeez, it really isn't that bad. Maybe 6 hours work total. You'll put way more time than that into transplanting some other system. And it's not like the darn things spring a leak on a regular basis, this is a once in 10-15 year kind of job. Most folks won't do it twice on the same truck.

 

I've owned 6 1st gen body style trucks anywhere from a 1975 to a 1993 and only had to do 1 heater core. It was a non-a/c in a 1/2 ton gasser and it took 4 hours in the pouring rain. (didn't have time to wait for better weather. It was already October ) That was the first time. Next time (if ther is one) will probly be faster.

I wouldn't let Mama freeze. If Mama ain't happy...... I know what's good for me.

 

Yup, I agree. Thanks for the AC info as well. I'll just have a local shop evac that stuff, if there's any left. This is gonna be fun! If I have the patience, pictures will be taken.The Toyota was about a 3 hour job, only to find out the core was fine....air bubble in the system.

 

Yea.. I did mine a few years ago... I didn't even think about how long it was gonna take, I just bit the bullet and dove in... takin' stuff apart.... It really wasn't that bad... after it was done!

 

Required:
Patience,
One Afternoon,
Box of Band Aids.

I replaced mine a few years ago and I probably spent most of the day on it. I have all of my own AC equipment so after I was finished I simply recharged it.

I took my time and removed the dash and got to the heater. It was a bigger pain getting the insulated cover off the motor and to get to the bottom bolts on the box that are under the blower motor.

It is a good idea to take digital pictures of it as you remove it and take it apart because there always seems to be 2 ways that part fits back it there and the wrong way was always your first choice.

When you have the box out and split it open pay attention to the Blend Doors that are inside the box that redirect the air out the outlets, there are foam rubber seals that seal the doors to the housing that you might need to make replacements for.

Also after I got the core installed and before I put it back into the truck I put a pressure test on the core to make sure it was not leaking from a poor solder joint.

When the heater was out of the truck I took this time to clean out the maze of ducts by carefully stuffing a rag wet with Windex through them, inside one side and pulling it through until they were clean, and then I cleared them out with compressed air.

If you happen to park where there are a lot of trees, now would be the time to cut an opening into the air box so you can be able to access the front of the evaporator when it is time to clean it out.

Also drain and reverse flush your cooling system and start with fresh clean coolant.

Now would be the perfect time to install a coolant filter.

When you reinstall the H-Valve to the evaporator make sure to use NEW Crush Gaskets and O-rings.

When you are finished, get under the truck and make sure the evaporator drain tube is not pinched or blocked.

Jim

 

Well, i got through it ! Heat that doesn't smell like coolant is great! My wife noticed right away. She is sensitive to any odd smells, so that's a huge improvement. Maybe she'll come out and help get firewood with me now...
I replaced the radiator, hoses, coolant and belt while I was at it. That all took the better part of 2 days (alot of that time was wrestling with the radiator shroud)Once I got it in the right spot, it was a piece of cake. Now I know.

Also found a spot to engage a 3/8 ratchet in the belt tensioner...that tip should be somewhere in the stickies for a newbie such as myself. I just found it by assuming(hoping) an engineer had designed some sort of way to disengage that thing without taking a BFH to it.

Now to figure out what that tick is. I read on a few threads that people report a tick coming from the lift pump actuator that follows the cam. Any aftermarket pumps out there that are electric or improved design?

 

Just run some biodiesel, as soon as I did, the tick went away completely. Also I didn't get the tick until I added my oversize dual filter setup. This is with the piston LP.

But bio did the trick for me.