Stuck Replacing Heatercore

SHEPP

Registered User
working on the 92 sc and got stuck replacing the heatercore. i have the pass side dash loose but not sure if its enough for
what i need. i can see the core, but cant pull it out, dont
know if i missed something, or what? i have a haynes book (no help), read others experiences, and have read the chilton on the subject(long time ago) and decided to jump in head first this weekend since i had nothing else to do, and now im stuck!

never did see a how to for this, if someone has one id appreciate it, but until there is one here are a few questions i have:

does the unit, that the heatercore is in, really need to be loose from the firewall and dash? does the steering wheel need to be lowered or dropped to allow the dash to move further. the reason i ask is the pass side is loose, but just left of the gear stick it doesnt move. is there something under the hood that needed to be released to allow the core to be removed(hoses
are already removed), or is it normal for it want to stay in. i feel im close, but missing something here (probably why i delayed doing this for so long).

can someone get me on track here, and thanks in advance!
 
remove the screws under the trim panel on top of the passenger side of the dash

remove the bolts that hold the bracket behind the glove box on the passenger side(same on drivers side)

drop the bolts on the steering column

move the seats back

remove the center console and the bolts that attach the center of the dash to the trans tunnel

put shifter into 1st and apply e-brake

remove the bolts on top of the drivers side behind the trim panel(beside heater vent for windshield)

some other stuff:D and you're done


then remove heater core bolts and hoses from under hood, theres also a few screws near the base of the heater plenum on the inside, and remove the heater selector cable from the plenum if its non electronic

and some other stuff:D

you can leave the main harness on the drivers side hooked up sometimes and just peel the passenger side of the dash back, if not unbolt it from the engine compartment, uses a 10mm bolt in the center?
 
Heater core is a PITA. Which is why I replaced mine when I replaced the evaporator last summer.

There are 2 trim panels on the top of the dash. One on the top on the pass side, one over the vent and running over to the door on the driver side. They are held on with clip pins and pull straight out with gentle pressure. Best thing to use on these is a small pry bar. Some of them will probably break off at the base on you.. no sweat. Just glue them back on with some epoxy and before you reinstall the trim, put a dab of white grease on the tips of the clips to help if you ever need to do this again.

This will expose 4 of the many bolts holding the dash on.
There are 3 more on the driver side (2 on the door frame and 1 hidden above the fuse box). You'll need to remove all the plastic panels and the steel support panel on the driver side to get to the 3rd. There are 2 (or 3) bolts on the passenger side door panel and underneath the dash holding the dash to the frame. There are 2 nuts under the console where it meet up with the dash. Its best to remove the console for this. After you've take out all the screws you can find, the center console top cover (the black part) has 3 sets of clips which hold it onto the console base. You pry them up.
If this is an auto, to remove the shift knob, you put it in park, push in on the shift knob button all the way, and pull straight up. It takes some pull, but it will come off.

Then you can get to the lst of the nuts holding the dash on and get someone to help you move it forward. If you are going to completely remove teh dash, then you'll need to disconnect all of the feed through wires and the EEC.
 
IVE REMOVED THE DASH, BUT CANT GET THE CORE OUT FOR SOME REASON OR ANOTHER. I CAN CLEARLY SEE AND GRAB THE CORE WITH CHANNEL LOKS BUT CANT GET IT OUT.

I KNOW I DIDNT REMOVE THE THREE BOLTS UNDER THE HOOD, BUT DO THEY REALLY NEED TO BE REMOVED AT ALL. MY ONLY CONCERN IS, AM I MISSING SOMETHING ELSE THAT WOULD RELEASE THE CORE, OR IS IT JUST A SOB TO GET OUT, AND POSSIBLY THE SAME TO GET BACK IN. I DONT WONT TO BREAK SOMETHING AFTER ALL THIS WHILE TAKING IT OUT, OR WHILE PUTTING IT BACK IN.

THANKS IN ADVANCE !!!!!
 
If you have removed the hoses, try bending the pipes towards each other some. Then push in from the engine compartment. There are no other fasteners inside the case. BUT, there is foam rubber glued to all the sides which makes it seal tight. See if you can break the seal loose by pushing a long flat blade inside to separate the rubber from the plastic case. The 2 pipes sticking through the firewall go through about a 2" thick foam gasket. If you don't bend the pipes slightly, its nearly impossible to get them through that gasket. Keep this in mind when installing the new one also.

Needless to say, its a lot easier with the case off the car. But that means pulling the A/C apart which anyone with a working A/C wouldn't want to do.
 
remove the nuts from the firewall on the engine compartment side, drain the A/C (dont loosen the valve cores for the A/C with a tire valve tool and let it drain out slowly, that stuff is bad for the air, and dont smoke near it!!;) ). Also remove the lower plenum from the heater box and disconnect the A/C lines at the fire-wall. Take the entire heater box out and do it out of the car.
 
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