Anyone ever change their A/C evaporator?

racecougar

racecougar

Registered User
While I have the dash out of my 90 XR7, I'm replacing the heater core and A/C evaporator. I've removed the entire assembly (the big black box) from the car, and removed the heater core, along with any bolt on parts (fan, fresh air vent, etc). I can't get the two halves of the box to seperate. I'm assuming that the two pieces are made with a tongue and groove setup, and have glue between them. Is that the case?

Have any of you ever had your's apart? How? Also, does anyone know the difference between the 89-93 box and the 94-97 one, if there is a difference?



Thanks,
Rod
 
racecougar said:
I can't get the two halves of the box to seperate. I'm assuming that the two pieces are made with a tongue and groove setup, and have glue between them. Is that the case?
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You have to pry the case apart. I used a flat tip screwdriver and a hammer. Then when you go to put it back together, epoxy/clamp it once you have everything in place. If you forget something, like to glue on the foam pieces, you'll have to go through it all again. As for mine, since I pulled the halves apart once the epoxy had started to set, I drilled small holes around the edge and secured it with short screws.
 
Rod, it's time to add Auto Climate control from a newer car now while everything is apart. I know if I have to remove the dash from my 89 I will do this. Even if it requires a new harness. It's an option I would really like on my SC.
 
Actually, the new evaporator should come with a plastic piece. That plastic piece needs to be glued down on the box once you put the new evaporator in. The thing about that plastic piece is, it shows you where to cut your box open to remove the old evaporator. Your NOT supposed to pry the whole thing apart, but instead cut a hole in it, and glue the new piece over the hole.

Chris
 
Shockwave said:
Rod, it's time to add Auto Climate control from a newer car now while everything is apart. I know if I have to remove the dash from my 89 I will do this. Even if it requires a new harness. It's an option I would really like on my SC.
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Actually, I'm adding an entire dash from a 97, along with a 4.6L DOHC from a Mark 8, and a ton of other stuff.

I'm waiting for the evaporator to show up before I cut the box open. I have other things to work on right now, so it's not a big deal if I put this part off for a couple more days.

-Rod
 
chriseastendsc said:
The thing about that plastic piece is, it shows you where to cut your box open to remove the old evaporator. Your NOT supposed to pry the whole thing apart, but instead cut a hole in it, and glue the new piece over the hole.
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Oh great.. so now you tell me. :rolleyes:

Actually, my Azone evap came in a box with nothing other than a small spacer to keep the tubes from getting bent. No instructions, no nada. For that matter, I think the box had been opened already. Thats OK. I got to clean out the case really well and it made replacing the heater core easier too in that I didn't tear up the old sealing foam. Wonder why they built them that way to start with? Older style cases are held together with "C" clips. :confused:
 
TbirdSCFan said:
Wonder why they built them that way to start with? Older style cases are held together with "C" clips. :confused:
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Umm, the case that I'm dealing with here is from a 90, and it's definitely not held together with C-clips. I should get the evaporator in the mail today, then I'll cut the box and install it.

-Rod
 
None of the T-Birds 89-97 had boxes held together with C clips. I know, I pulled a ton of them out and did recalls replacing evaporator cores when working for Ford 1989-1999. Ouch, they sucked!

Chris

P.S. I wouldn't doubt your aftermarket evaporator didn't come with crap. Aftermarket companies don't care when it comes to that stuff. If you bought a Ford one, it would come with the plastic piece, and instructions on what to do. Worth the few extra bucks in my opinion.
 
Update:

I finally got around to working on this, I was a little sidetracked with other projects involving this car. I was able to split the box into two halves, just the same way that the factory put it together. TbirdSCfan, what adhesive did you use to put it back together?

HVAC%20box%20in%20half.jpg



-Rod
 
I used plain old 2 part epoxy and clamped the halves with whatever I could find to hold it together. Then after discovering I left some of the foam off, I pulled it apart again. Since the epoxy was 1/2 way set, rather than reapply it, I drilled small holes around the edge and secured it with small sheet metal screws. I actually think the screws worked out better due to the way the case is held to the firewall. Nothing supports the front side until the dash is back in place.
 
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