Well with the cold weather moving in quick, I attempted to stop my blown heater core from leaking with various techniques to no avail. I was under the impression that the entire dash had to come out per my Haynes manual, so I was hell bound to rig it since the car is getting parked in a few weeks.

However, after some research on the .org, I found that the heater core is easily accessible by removing the lower dash panel. I know that many of you might already be aware of this, but I'm sure there's plenty of members like myself that are under the impression that that the entire dash has to be removed.

I got my new heater core from O'Reilly's auto parts, part number 399803. This is the same part number as Autozone. It retails for $32.99 at O'Reilly's, but only $27.99 at Autozone so I had them price match it.

Some say it is easier to remove the dash pad and passenger side speaker to access the top screw. I found this to be true.

Basically, I had the old heater core out in 30 minutes conservatively, and the new one in not long after that. Removal is as easy as dropping the lower dash panel, removing the three 7MM screws (two on the bottom, one on the top right), removing the dash pad and passenger side speaker, and finally removing the upper 7MM screw.

Disconnect the heater core hoses, maneuver the heater core cover out of the car, remove the 4 7mm screws holding the heater core assembly in the HVAC box, and pull the old heater core out.

Transfer the new heater core onto the core bracket, and gently fit the heater core back into the car, taking care not to damage it or bend the tubes. A helper is nice to tell you when the tubes are lined up with the holes in the fire wall.

Reinstall the HVAC box cover. Some people don't bother installing the top screw as they find it a pain, however I didn't feel it was too difficult so I took the extra 5 minutes and reinstalled it.

Reconnect your heater core hoses and top off the coolant.

 

grrr...

took me like 4 hours.. lol. but i went as the book told me. i shoulda looked at it more i see.

 

I was surprised how quickly mine went too. Lots of twisty upside down time on my back though!

 

See, most people said they took out the passenger seat to make it easier. Honestly I was able do it all by just kneeling down on the ground and sticking my head under the dash.

Before you say it's because I'm young, I've been doing work similar to this since I could walk, which has taken it's toll on my body in various ways, including my back. Most days I feel like a 70 year old man

 

Thank you Jr. I will be printing this thread and taking it with me this weekend. I need to replace mine, so this'll be a big help, I hope.

 

That was great info to know. Thank you.

 

No problem guys, I'm really kicking myself for not taking pictures.

Saint Ebony: When you do yours, it would be awesome if you could snap a few pics. Then we could have a proper write up.

Something I should add, I seem to recall reading something about later models having a 5th screw on the cover. I believe it was 85 plus, but I'm not positive. Either way it's still the same process, just one extra little bastard to get out.

Another thing, both a shallow well and deep well 7mm come in handy, and an intermediate sized 1/4" extension. A 1/4" drive nut driver is nice as well to access the back screws holding the heater core shroud in place.

 

Sorry mate, turns out the car needs a new starter as well; we couldn't move it to the shop and couldn't get anything done. :/

But we'll have it going soon enough I think and we'll go from there.

 

Was trying to look up the heater core for my 85 Camaro... recently, the heat has been lagging, complete with fogged windows, plus the interior reeks of coolant according to one of my buddies... when I went onto the O'reilly site, the heater core part number is actually listed as 399083 and manufactured by Murray... (this is the one you meant, correct..?)
Just a heads up of sorts, in case anyone had looked and didn't find it...Great post, up until reading this, I have only heard about removing the dash, pretty excited to not have to... I should be replacing the core tomorrow or Wednesday, in which I will attempt to take some picks for posting...

 

good writeup. if it had pictures i would sticky it.