I Think My Heater Core Is Bust, below Glove Compartment Is Oily. Price for Replacement?

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  endotherm on 31/10/2014 - 23:14

  +2

  Sounds like a heater core to me. Usually pretty expensive, your whole dashboard has to come out. If you are "lucky" it is just a small leak, otherwise it will have smelled heavily of coolant and musty inside the car. You could try a radiator stop leak which should plug up any small holes and stop the coolant loss. They work pretty well, essentially lining the inside of the heater/radiator cores and pipes with liquid glass and other stuff to stop leaks. It activates under the heat of the engine coolant and "glazes" the water jackets like a glaze on pottery. Just make sure you leave the heater on hot when you fix it, the engine coolant needs to circulate through the heater core too. When the leaks have stopped for a while, flush out the cooling system and get the brown gunk out, and you can top it up with clean water and new green antifreeze, which also stops corrosion of engine components and valves etc. Worth a try for $20 or so. I recently sprang a leak in a welsh plug in the side of my engine, about a 2mm hole, and I used this. Took a few minutes as I ran the engine with the coolant spilling out onto the road, but I kept topping up the radiator with water and the hole got smaller and smaller until it closed up completely before my eyes. I was impressed. It held for 6 months and I finally got around to changing the plug, but I have no doubt it would have held for much longer.

  • 

    revo on 01/11/2014 - 00:56

    Hey Thanks for that.
    So basically what I need to do is.
    Run the engine heater until it's hot.
    Turn off, open radiator cap. Pour stop leak sealant into it.
    Turn on and leave it running for 10 to 20 mins.
    Turn off.

    Is that right?

    Also do I just pour it straight into the radiator with the current coolant still inside?

    • 

      endotherm on 01/11/2014 - 03:08

      +1

      That's pretty much it. Just follow the directions on the bottle, it might be slightly different. Careful when removing the radiator cap from a hot engine, it may be under pressure and spit boiling water in your face. Just shake it up and chuck it straight in the radiator on top of the existing contents; generally if you are using this type of product the water level will already be low to accommodate the extra fluid. I'd leave it in there a bit longer and just drive around normally for a few days to build up the glaze thickness, but don't overdo it or forget to empty it. It will depend of course on what sealant you use and how many km you drive etc., be guided by the instructions on the bottle. I think if you leave it in there "for ever" it can build up too thick and block small holes and galleries that require coolant to flow through. Also you will not have the proper ratio of coolant.

      To empty it out after the required time, drain the system from the lowest point. Some radiators may have a drain plug built in the bottom or low on one side. If not, remove the radiator hose from the radiator (just one end). Stick a hosepipe in the top and flush with plenty of clean water until it runs clean. Reattach the hose and with the heater open to hot again, remove the top hose. Run the engine and flush water through the engine and heater core by filling the radiator, it takes water in from the bottom and returns hot water at the top of the engine. Again flush until it runs clean.

      Once you are happy that it is reasonably clean, reattach and tighten the hoses. Add the necessary quantity of antifreeze, usually it is a concentrate which you dilute with water to fill the system. Don't skimp on this step, the antifreeze also acts as an anti-boil agent and lubricates internal parts and the metal of the engine which prevents corrosion. It is typically a form of alcohol dyed fluorescent green. You may also have a "bleed" screw on the engine cooling system at the highest point, this is so you can release any trapped air inside the engine block while you are filling it up. If you have one of these you may need to inspect it; it has a small hole running through it to allow air/water out when it is loosened, but the stop-leak can actually block it! Just run a small drill bit between your fingers through the hole (or a needle or a wire etc), until it is clear. The reason for bleeding the air from the engine is that steam can form in the air pockets and create hot spots inside the engine which can cause damage. That's the theory anyway, in practice I think they work their way through the system and out naturally. Make sure your radiator is topped up fully, and a little extra in the overflow bottle up to the mark. Hopefully that is your repair done and it will last a long time. Less than $50 in fluids and some work, potentially saving you hundreds if not thousands of dollars.

      • 

        revo on 01/11/2014 - 10:48

        Super helpful endotherm! Appreciate your time and effort! Will give it a shot in the coming days hopefully.

• 

  [Deactivated] on 02/11/2014 - 01:00

  +1

  Find a mechanic you trust and get him to give you a quote.

  I thought mine was going to cost a bomb. Turns out you dont need to take the entire dash off to replace the heater core of a ford focus. Heater core was about $330 and labour was about 200.

  I personally would not use stop leak as

  1) looking for the stop leak flecks is one of the first few things experienced car buyers look for. Heatercore may be relatively innocent enough but in most cases it may be a sign for prior head gasket damage.

  2) Stop leak is known to get into the small spaces and clogs up the gaps (much like the cracks it fills). It may actually cause further problems down the line. The cooling system leads to much more expensive and harder to fix components like the radiator, water pump and the engine.

  3) Heater cores aren't that bad a repair. Not sure the value of your current car, but most people put stopleak in to drive a headgasket case that isn't worth the fix into the ground. I've heard some people give the advice of "stop leak till it dies", take the plates off and leave it by the side of the road.

  I don't think your car has lost that much value yet (not sure again), you should definitely check out whats going on.

  By the way. oily floor might mean a coolant hose leak or joint seal, which are much cheaper to fix.

  Rego inspection? You mean RWC?

  It is one thing I really hate about the RWC regulations. It is just one way for mechanics to make money and rip you off. The check list is very basic and subjective. In my experience, cheap RWC = strict RWC as mechanics make the money from getting people who want to sell their cars to do the repairs at the shop. They put it on the hoist and nit pick every single thing like suspension bushes, wheel bearings, wipers, anything.

  On the other end of the spectrum, I've heard of RWC yards where you pay a relatively large sum of money, you drive your car to a field where all the RWC wannabes are parked at (LOTS OF CARS). A guy with a the certification number comes along in the afternoon and looks over all the cars to make sure they don't fall apart within a hour of being driven. Cars get the certs.

  Its kind of a mechanics market because you need to tick the boxes in order to sell the car and only people who want to sell will look for a RWC anyway. Easy business.

  I really hate this about the industry, you can hear completely different things depending on what the mechanic feels like looking at. Any car >5 years will always have SOMETHING not up to scratch somewhere. Metals, plastics, rubber and glass stuck together moving at that speed over that distance? Easy to see why most new car warranties are only up to 5 years.

  • 

    revo on 04/11/2014 - 12:59

    Alright might take it for a quote cheers mate

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  steviee on 06/11/2014 - 13:26

  my 2 cents 2002 Citroen, how much is the car worth ? I wouldn't be spending $500 on replacing a heater core you could put that into your next car.
  good news it is summer, put the heater controls to cold, it will still leak the coolant left in the core but will stop, after summer sell the car

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  mcv75 on 14/08/2015 - 21:29

  Sorry to get necro with the thread…

  @lolbbq,are you able to share which mechanic was able to do your Focus without full removal of the dash. I'm in Brisbane and all the ones I've spoken to say it's all out and $800+ of labour. Happy to go anywhere in town to save 6 hours of labour.

  • 

    donbot on 17/08/2015 - 16:27

    Agreed - I had to get mine replaced a couple of years back. Got two independent quotes and both said they have to remove the dash to replace.

  • 

    [Deactivated] on 19/08/2015 - 14:45

    Trying to PM you, but not sure how to. Maybe PM me and I will get back to you.

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  EVL on 15/08/2015 - 08:08

  +2

  Since you're in NSW this is relevant to you rather than something pertaining to another state.

  The Pink Slip, now known as an “e-safety check”: This is an annual inspection for cars over 5 year old, or if your renewal notice says “inspection required.” This check must be done before your registration can be approved. This will look at your tyres, brakes, makes sure all your lights are working and check for leaks. A pink slip is not a roadworthy certificate however and if you are transferring from an interstate registration, selling your vehicle, or your registration has been expired for over 3 months you will still need to get a Blue slip.

  http://blog.carservice.com.au/New-South-Wales-inspection-Blu…

  And for maximum fees
  http://www.rms.nsw.gov.au/roads/registration/fees/registrati…

  Also best to avoid taking you car to a manufacturers workshop (usually attached to a dealership) for an inspection as they are generally the most likely to try and find every nit picky thing they can to make money on top of the inspection fee.

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  tonyjzx on 18/08/2015 - 05:05

  2002 Pug, you're looking at thousands… hell its thousands on a falcon or commode and they've done heaps of theses

  i suggest you get the mechanic to block up the heater inlet it doesnt send coolant to the dash… sure you wont get heat but summer is coming anyway… then trade the pile of shit in… the dealer shouldnt notice the lack of heater in summer… the car will otherwise run fine

  i personally could not live without a heater in winter

  • 

    revo on 18/08/2015 - 08:22

    Haha! I already sold off the car at the end of the year! It was too much of a headache (and money on a cheap car) dealing with it.

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  ITveteran on 25/07/2018 - 18:38

  Jeeze mate. You left the pain to the next owner. I wouldn't be comfortable with that.

  • 

    TheOneWhoKnocks on 25/07/2018 - 22:51

    Digging up old threads.

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  CantonasKungFuKick on 26/07/2018 - 09:02

  You can also just bypass the heater core, just means no heating in the car. That's a cheap quick fix.

  • 

    CantonasKungFuKick on 26/07/2018 - 09:03

    Oh just seen it's an old post 🙄