BradleyC

Today I found a pool of coolant under my weathertech mat on the passenger side. First I thought it was water, but it had an oily feeling to it but no smell. It was once I decided to pull the carpet that I discovered an orange/pink pool of coolant sitting there starring me in the face.

So next I pulled the glove box and got eyes on the heater core. I turned the JK on, blasted the heat, and started to observe..... Maybe two minutes in to the startup (and I should note that hot air is still blowing from the vents) a steady drip of coolant started to fall from the top tube of the core.. FANTASTIC!

So, sounds like I need to replace my heater core. With that, I have some questions..

1) There is also a drip come from the right side of the passenger floorboard. I'm assuming this is where the heater core hoses attach to the firewall? Will the drip be resolved by the new heater core alone, or should I pick up other parts that will likely need to be replaced?

2) Have there been any tricks discovered to remove the heater core without entirely taking out the dash? This seems like such a poor design choice, surely someone has come up with a better way than a total dash removal, right?! Please...? Someone...PLEASE..

3) What other parts should I replace/upgrade while I'm in there? I've heard to clean all of the air vent tubes, but is there anything else I should work on/upgrade?

resharp001

Ugh. No help here, but subscribed to see responses. This. Does. Not. Sound. Fun!

captainstabbin

I saw somewhere that you can access the heater core by cutting one piece of metal on the passenger side. I just don't remember where I saw it.

BradleyC

Yeah, after looking around down there there seemed like it had to be a possibility. Interested in hearing more if anyone has any details about this.


For the time being I think I will just bypass the core. It's summer here in the NW and the temp has been above 60° most days. I should be fine without heat until I build up the courage to tackle this. If one has a link to a good heater core bypass procedure that would be very helpful right now. Thanks!

Rednroll

Are you certain it's the heater core that's leaking? It might be worth trying to pull that top hose off from the engine bay side and inspect if the hose is leaking and just replace the hose.

Definitely watching this thread to see what others suggest, because I've been dealing with a heater problem and am trying everything possible to avoid replacing the heater core which I'm currently leaning towards is likely the problem.

BradleyC

Yeah I'm fairly certain. I witnessed a drip coming from the top pipe on the heater core. I believe at this location the pipe is welded to the core, so a leak here would hint at a crack...unless someone with more knowledge can explain otherwise.

Going to look in to getting a mopar heater core, and possibly a mopar ac condenser. Might as well take care of both while I'm in there.

captainstabbin

Found it. https://www.jk-forum.com/forums/stoc...0-mins-336039/

RubiKean

The job is really not bad. The entire dash unit is basically 2 pieces once you get the center section off. I would recommend pulling your seats and center console, although it can be done with them in place. Pull your steering wheel, I dropped the entire column. If you do pull the column, secure your steering wheel as to not damage the clock spring. It's a $500 unit! Take lots of pictures of all of the harnesses and plugs you remove and label ziploc bags for your screw and hardware. If your seats, center console, and steering column is out, you will move quickly through the dash uninstall.
Unplug the harnesses from your tipm, and pull them into the cabin on the passenger side. Remove your ground wires on the drivers and passengers footwell. Make notes to ensure these get reinstalled! You will have some super funky electrical gremlins if you forget! I think the metal part of the dash is held on with 10mm nuts and bolts. There are 4 nuts around the brake booster in the engine compartment. Do not remove any part of the harness or the hvac ducts from the metal part of the dash. It all comes out as one unit. You will need to remove the airbags as you need to unplug the harness from them. I used a bent framing nail to get the drivers airbag out.
The plastic comes off with a million 7mm screws (iirc).
With a buddy, the job will only take you a few hours. Go slow, take care when pulling and you will keep all the paint on your vehicle. I didn't document my process, but I do have a few pics I'll try to post if you'd like. Mines a 2008, but should be similar, I believe. Honestly, if you're even a little mechanically inclined, or have a buddy who is... it's not a bad job. Plus, you finally get to clean the dust out of the little nooks and crannies!

Rednroll

After watching this guys video doing it and seeing all those parts scattered around the yard, I decided I definitely would like to avoid that replacement at all costs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hx_29yFy3xU&t=518s Mine's not currently leaking but it may be partially clogged. I'm currently trying to invent something to give this heater core a power douche cleaning. So far 2 reverse/forward flushes and soaking it with CLR hasn't fixed it yet. So far my invention consists of a water fall pump, a hot water tank heating element, and a wall outlet thermostat control. Basically, every night when I get home, I'm going to use some kind of cleaner, heat it up, and let the cleaner continuously circulate through the heater core each evening.

BradleyC

So I started to tear down the center console, dash and battery tray/cool air intake today..then decided that I could make the core extraction via dash frame trimming a reality. So after some trimming with an oscillating tool and a ratchet strap to increase the clearance for the core to slide out it, it's finally out! I cut the hoses similar to the "30 minute core replacement" thread linked earlier, and will run tests tomorrow to make sure there are no leaks. I will also need to burp the system and refill the coolant that I drained from the core before cutting it out.

I'm planning on posting all of the photos I took during my work. I think I will start a new thread or post this to my site in hopes that this becomes something that will help others who want to do this repair without removing the dash. It takes some trust to get in there and cut things up, but it seems just as solid and before, and made this install so much easier.

More to come after I wrap this up. Tomorrow also holds an exhaust manifold replacement. Woohoo