Hey, sorry if this is the wrong section to post but I wasent sure. So there is a fog coming from my window side defrost vents and sometimes my middle cents. It smells like antifreeze and used to be every so often. But now it is every time I drive. I've been told that my heating core is going up.

Any one agree or disagree with this? Any information on this would be great

Thank you

 

Heater core done broke

 

X2. Time to rip your interior front end apart.

 

X3 on the heater core.

 

How long does it take to get in and replace the heater core? I have the same smell but no fog (yet). I thought it was just left over smell from when the radiator blew, but if its something I can fix without a full scrubdown of the engine bay I'll gladly start digging in!

 

Took me 12 hours across two days. Had never done one and there is a learning curve for sure. Tip there are 5-6 bolts in the engine compartment that hold the HVAC box in.

 

Bypass the core and live without heat.

 

Might just do that once I get to it. But heat sure does come in handy defrosting the windshield in the winter!

Thanks for the tip! I'm sure that'll save me from searching forever.

 

You can't get to it from the engine bay. You have to pull out the dash, then unbolt the box from the other side. The good news is that the entire process is well documented in DIY threads and videos. It's just long and tedious.

FYI, this is a $1200 to $1500 repair if you have it done in a shop. They'll charge you for at least 8 hours of labor.

 

Some dumb*** decided to build the entire vehicle around the heater core if that gives you any idea.

 

Yup a real PITA I had mine replaced at a shop and cost me $255 for labor but they did a good job and cleaned up the carpets as well as replaced "all" the fasteners.

 

Best response. Was laughing right in the middle of the office and nobody understood! I'll probably stay away from it until the heat actually stops working or it starts leaking bad, but I guess I'll start looking into all those DIY videos to get a good idea.

 

I thought that I recently saw a "how to" on this forum and the guy didn't pull the whole dash. He only pulled the lower panel as far as the interior goes.......

This was the early XJ dash style.

EDIT: NVM, after posting I thought to check the OP's year......

 

I did mine when I first got the truck, then two years later the one I put in popped. Being a mechanic and haveing done them before I can do it about 3 and a half hours. Rachet strap the dash to the roof rack and you don't have to pull it all out. And you can still leave a lot connected. Them take a lot of bolts and screws out. Change blower resistor while its out. So simple compared to laying upside down. And it's cheap.

 

I had the same problem. My mech was going to charge $600, not a bad price. He suggested trying something first.

Disconnect the heater hose, feel the heater core about half way with thick solution of water and stop leak and let it sit for a few weeks. Then reconnect the hose to the heater. Most of the time the leak is in the bottom of the core. I tried this and in my case it has worked for the past 3 months. The worse that could have happened is it not work and still have to rip the dash out. Make sure you only put the solution in the heater core, you don't want to stop anything else up.