I was wondering if anyone else here has had to replace they're Heatercore???

Mine just started leaking into the passenger floorboard!
I called DODGE,they say the Entire dash has to come out 5hrs labor,out the door $680

Has anyone done this repair themselve's???

I'm never Hip on anyone working on my Vehicles!
In my past expierience once you pull a dash from a vehicle it is NEVER right again!
Always have rattles,gauge probs etc......

This truck is an 02 QuadCab with 4.7LTR
71K on her!

Love this truck,would hate to sell her!!!

I've never had a heatercore go bad on a 3 1/2 year old vehicle B/4!!
20 year old 1 yes,this thing is to new for probs like this!!!


Anyways,Has anyone else had this prob,what is the fix??
Do you really need to pull the entire dash???
Should I just Bypass it and sell the truck???

Really Sux cause I Just put new 20's,flowmasters and graphics on her!!

Thanks in advance for your comments!!
I've been reading this board for quite awhile,and it's Great for info!!

 

Download the manual here and see if you can tackle it over the weekend. I can't imagine the heater core to be expensive, just the labor to get to the heater core.

If you do decide to do it, take your time, jot down directions and take pics if necessary with a digital camera to assist you in reversing the steps once you get everything apart.

I also remember another member having to replace the heater core and she decided to do it herself with the help of a few friends, but she was overseas and nobody would touch the repair, so she really had no choice but to do it herself. Not sure what the outcome was, but I hope it was positive.

Good luck.

 

I would like to make a suggestion here. It seems abnormal for a heater core to start leaking at such a young age. But now having said that, I wonder what the condition of your antifreeze is. It might be a good idea to find out if it has possibly turned acidic, as this is something that could have contributed to or even been the cause of the leaking core. You might consider getting some PH strips like they use for checking pools and dip the strip into a clean sample of your used coolant. If it is in fact acidic, the system should be flushed and treated with a baking soda solution prior to installing the new core. It would be a real pain in the a$$ if you got all this work done to your satisfaction then to have the radiator do the same thing. Just my humble suggestion

 

I dont see how a total of $680 comes about for 5 hours of labor. I mean even if the labor rate was $100 an hour, which first of all is ridiculous, theres no way the heater core can cost $150. If you take your time you will be able to do it right without having a million rattles. I did a 2nd gen ram 1500 in less than an hour and half and the dash was laying on the bench seat, I still left a lot of the wiring loom connected on the drivers side to save time. It was actually one of the easiest I've had to do where the dash had to actually come completly out. I say go for it yourself.

 

Hey everyone,thanks for the comments thus far!!

Yesterday,i had to temporarily Bypass the heater core and top off the sys with water out on the road!


GONE FISHIN,never heard of that B/4!!

It is true though,I have Neglected the Cooling system on the truck!!
It has Never been serviced yet!

I stay ontop of everything else,the cooling is an after thought!
You would think the radiator would leak 1st!!

I have some Test strips for an Aquarium,would those work???

As stated above I had to add water to the system,so would they still work???


I went to Autozone yesterday to Look @ a Heater Core for the truck!
Talk about CHEEZY,if the factory 1 is designed like that,they need to fix it!!
Right where the Aluminum lines connect to the core,the fitting is just "Crimped"on!!!
I Have a factory 1 on hold @ the Stealer!!
Going to look @ it today to see if it's made the same way!!
If so,I can almost bet that it's leaking from the Cheezy "Crimped"fittings!

And YES BMXOX
I called Dodge,used my buisness name,for the Discount and thats what they Quoted me to do the Job!!
$680

If anyones going to pull my dash it will be me!!
I've asked around several private shops I work for,all of them have told me they wont touch a job like that!!
No_one will but the Stealers!!!

Almost the same as my Specialty...Steering Columns!

Again,thanks for the reply's and Keep them commin!!

I can use all the help I can get!!

 

Yes the strips are good if they read a range of 5-8. When antifreeze gets old, it turns "sour" just like grapes. If you use the 5 year stuff, change it at 4-5 years, with a standard flush. Better to be proactive with this than stuck out in heavy traffic with a blown radiator.

 

I have the same truck 02 QC with 4.7L I have about 56000 and I am getting ready to change out my thermostat and heater core and yes you do have to take apart the dash and the heater core up here in alaska is only 78 bucks so down in the states you should be able to get it for less than that. but i will let you know how the job went I am prolly going to do it on the weekend

 

Is your Core Leaking????

 

I beleive thats what they quoted you I just dont see how they get to that price with only 5 hours of labor thats all I was saying. It does seem very premature for the core to be going, some cars they dont go at all and some cars just have a habit of them going. I will say that 80% of the heater core jobs Ive done at work have been on dodge/chrysler vehicles. A lot of stratus's and caravans, but only one ram.

 

Did you get around to your HeaterCore this weekend???

I bought mine,but have NOT installed it yet!

If so,how did it go???