How do I replace the heater core w/no a/c
Asked by Bradley Mar 10, 2007 at 08:17 PM about the 1978 Ford F-150
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
I have a stock 1978 Ford F150 p/u. I looked under the hood and the firewall and I see where the two hoses are clamped onto the firewall. I went into the truck and there's a hard plastic type of cover running from the far right side of the truck to about the middle of the interior, under the bottom under the dash. Its visible from the passenger seat. I think this houses maybe the heater core, I'm not sure. I tried to remove the glove box w/o success. I moved the carboard interior of the glove box aside a little but this didn't help. Pls. help me to figure out how to get the old one out and new one in. Cold and wet in Seattle and I'm afraid to use my heater as it drips on the passenger floor board. Pls. Help!
Thank You,
Brad
6 Answers
Hello Bradley-- Go to the following site for help to replace the heater core on your 1978 Ford F150-- http://autozone.com/servlet/UiBroker?ForwardPage=/az/cds/en_us/0900823d/80/0c/e9/5f/0900823d800ce95f.jsp. Good luck from Bovan.
Brad, It is a pain but can be done in about three hours. You have to remove the bolts and nuts that hold the box under the hood. They are under the dash and you do have to remove the glove box. Just take your time and be patient. If it is a 351 or 400m the box is a nightmare to get past the corner of the head, but again it can be done.You may have to remove the valve cover. If its a 302,cake. Be careful not to crack the box getting it out. Hope this helps. Also borrow a garage if you don't have one, outside is not a good place to make this repair.
I took the heater core out of mine 20 yrs ago and could not get it out from under the dash but removed the blower and cover, then had to disconnect the a/c line.
my pick up truck is a 1977 150 with a 351 eng. and does not have A.C so is it easier to re move the heater core. I noticed my leaks water and I would like to have this water leak fixed/ tony
If you do not have A/C you will need to drill out the rivets holding the cover on the blower motor and heater core housing, its kind of a pain in the ass, and is A LOT easier if you take the dash off as it exposes all of the housing and all of the rivets
Guru9ZWDL6 answered 3 years ago
Andrew hit the nail on the head. I've removed mine 3 times over 15 years ago. First, avoid lift time warranties. If you love your truck you'll be changing this out for the rest of your lift time. I bought my last 1 from Ford with the 30 day warranty and just like the factory original it lasted about 15 years. Remove the glove box, remove the 2 corner screws underneath the dash to access the plastic box retaining this magic little radiator that keeps you warm. Have fun.
