Heater Core Replacement Procedure?
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Junior User
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 54
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From: Farmington, Iowa
Heater Core Replacement Procedure?
I have a 1989 Ford F-150 2 Wheel Drive Inline 6. I have replaced the thermostat and flushed the radiator. I am still not getting any heat. One of my freinds said that the heater core on these model of fords like to get clogged up. I was wondering if there was a way to unclog it and if not what steps to take to put a new one in. If there is a website that explains it in detail let me know. I dont even know the first thing to do in removeing one or what one looks like PLEASE HELP!
Posting Guru
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 1,781
Likes: 1
From: Central NY
The heater core is nothing more than a mini radiator. Sometimes they fill with air and you'll get no heat. Sometimes the blend door gets stuck or disconnected when on cold and you'll get no heat. The temperature is controlled by the blend door btw.
To see if its clogged, the easy way it to let the engine warm up and if both heater hoses are warm then its probably not clogged.
To flush the core turn the engine off, set the temp control to hot, disconnect both heater hoses at the firewall and move them aside. Pull up a garden hose and press it up against one of the firewall fittings and turn on the water. Water/Anitfreeze should come out of the other fitting. Let it run for a few and then reverse the flow, flushing in both directions.
If you still don't have heat then I suggest looking at the blend door or its control cable. Stuff has a tendency to fall into the defrost vents down to the door and jam it up or the Sheath on the control cable comes loose and can't really move the door anymore. I think you can access it by removing the glovebox, I'm not sure on an '89.
Cheers,
Popa Tim
To see if its clogged, the easy way it to let the engine warm up and if both heater hoses are warm then its probably not clogged.
To flush the core turn the engine off, set the temp control to hot, disconnect both heater hoses at the firewall and move them aside. Pull up a garden hose and press it up against one of the firewall fittings and turn on the water. Water/Anitfreeze should come out of the other fitting. Let it run for a few and then reverse the flow, flushing in both directions.
If you still don't have heat then I suggest looking at the blend door or its control cable. Stuff has a tendency to fall into the defrost vents down to the door and jam it up or the Sheath on the control cable comes loose and can't really move the door anymore. I think you can access it by removing the glovebox, I'm not sure on an '89.
Cheers,
Popa Tim
Posting Guru
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 2,420
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From: Langhorne, PA
You should hear a distinct thump from near the passengers leg area, while switching from heat to cold. If not, search "blend door" here at the site and you should find the other posts about it.
