heater core woes - Page 2

coupe · 11-20-2006, 07:56 AM

streetstang88...it is a real pain in the ass. I did mine last month. You can find some good step-by-step instructions on the web, but some people have different ways of getting to it than others. If you can afford it, have a Ford dealership do it so it's done right.

The only things that really need to come out are the 1) center console (to let you pull dash back) 2) the steering column has to drop (to get to the one bolt holding the bottom of the dash up) and 3) the speaker grilles and defrost plastic covers (to acces the bolts that hold the rest of the dash up. Looking back on it, the cluster probably can stay in.

I only had my complete dash pulled back by about 8-10 inches...a little biased toward the pass. side. I did not evacuate my A/C which made the prying up of the heater-box cover a real bear, many people just cut it and silicone it back. There's an A/C evaporator in the same box as the heater core; it's attached to the A/C lines at the firewall. If you actually don't have A/C charged, I recommend disconnecting it at the accumulator (black tank attached to firewall) so you can pull that HVAC box further back from the firewall and access the core/box cover.

Again, if you can swing it, take it to a dealership. Oh, and make sure to get an actual FORD heater-core. The Autozone/parts-store cores are half the price but...they're not as good.

JimS · 11-22-2006, 10:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by streetstang88

the heater core in my 89 5.0 left me a gift in my floor board ........ is it worth trying at home ive never replaced one in a mustang ive got it bypassed
but its kinda cold .....thankful for any tips

Assuming you have A/C it's a big job, but if you don't, it's an easy job.

I'm guessing you have A/C.

streetstang88 · 11-25-2006, 08:16 PM

its has ac .... might just be a warm weather car j/k... i hear you on the cheap heater cores learned that the hard way once before...
i will be in touch w/ford dealer

11-20-2006, 07:56 AM	#11
coupe Super Moderator Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 6,313	streetstang88...it is a real pain in the ass. I did mine last month. You can find some good step-by-step instructions on the web, but some people have different ways of getting to it than others. If you can afford it, have a Ford dealership do it so it's done right. The only things that really need to come out are the 1) center console (to let you pull dash back) 2) the steering column has to drop (to get to the one bolt holding the bottom of the dash up) and 3) the speaker grilles and defrost plastic covers (to acces the bolts that hold the rest of the dash up. Looking back on it, the cluster probably can stay in. I only had my complete dash pulled back by about 8-10 inches...a little biased toward the pass. side. I did not evacuate my A/C which made the prying up of the heater-box cover a real bear, many people just cut it and silicone it back. There's an A/C evaporator in the same box as the heater core; it's attached to the A/C lines at the firewall. If you actually don't have A/C charged, I recommend disconnecting it at the accumulator (black tank attached to firewall) so you can pull that HVAC box further back from the firewall and access the core/box cover. Again, if you can swing it, take it to a dealership. Oh, and make sure to get an actual FORD heater-core. The Autozone/parts-store cores are half the price but...they're not as good. __________________ " If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough. " - Albert Einstein

11-25-2006, 08:16 PM	#13
streetstang88 Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: confusion Posts: 184	its has ac .... might just be a warm weather car j/k... i hear you on the cheap heater cores learned that the hard way once before... i will be in touch w/ford dealer __________________ '89 LX 5.0 Hatchback (light blue metallic) t-5 ,traction lock ,high volume fuel pump underdrive pulleys, chip NEEDS MORE COWBELL