My 94 camaro blew a heater hose yesterday. The previous owner had already by-passed the heater core by looping the two rear hoses together. I also noticed that the factory hoses from the w/pump to heater core is all one piece. I haven't checked price yet from the gm dealership but I'm guessing pretty expensive or if still available. My question is would it be a problem to cap off the heater nipples right at the waterpump or do these need to have a continual flow? I would also have to eliminate the two hose that go to and from the t/body. I live in Hawaii so I'm hoping that I really don't need the t/b to be preheated, if that's what the coolant lines are for. Will capping off this coolant flow become a driveability problem? I will still keep the steam line that vents off to the pass side radiator tank. Thanks in advance.

 

why do you need to cap it off? also why is the heater core bypassed? you can use bulk heater hose from the water pump to the core, its like 2$/foot

 

The coolant going to the heater is also used to bypass the t'stat when it is closed. If this path is blocked the t'stat won't know the temp of the coolant till it is really hot. This causes the temp to go very high before the t'stat opens and then it drops down to normal very quickly. These sudden temp changes are not good for the engine.

 

BasicConcepts;630723]why do you need to cap it off? also why is the heater core bypassed? you can use bulk heater hose from the water pump to the core, its like 2$/foot
Not sure but I think he did this because the core leaked. I don't need a heater here in Hawaii anyway.

Thanks Pete, I didn't know the line acted as a bypass for the t-stat. I was thinking it was like the old sbc where capping of the heater fittings didn't create a problem. I ground off the factory allum. crimps on the hard lines and found the ends are just plain old nipples so using standard hose clamps and heater hoses from napa just like Basic suggested. I did find like a restrictor on the larger hose that reduced the ID to bout 5/16" and an arrow showing the direction it needs to be installed. Not sure why that is but I'll be connecting it back in like how the factory intended. Thanks again guys.