6 years after I bought the car, I started blowing heater cores. The lower block is rebuilt but I did that 2 years ago and didn't have a problem. I have a Steeda aluminum radiator but although I have put in 4 of those, I haven't changed one in 3 years and have had them from day 1. We even put in t's to provide a simultaneous bypass so that if the pressure got too great, the water had 2 paths. Nothing else has blown and pressure tests are showing any issues. We even replaced the thermostat to no avail. If anyone has any ideas, I welcome them.
Blew out 4 heater cores and need help
- Thread starter rconaway
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so 4 radiators and 4 heater cores? yeesh
do you ever change the coolant?
has the coolant cap ever been replaced? the cap itself is what relieves pressure in the cooling system so i'd suspect that
do you ever change the coolant?
has the coolant cap ever been replaced? the cap itself is what relieves pressure in the cooling system so i'd suspect that
nyuk98gt
15 Year Member
rconaway:
Did you attach a grounding strap/wire to the (aluminum) heater core and then run that ground to the block? It will prevent galvanic corrosion. You are a wise man to keep the fluid fresh and clean!
It's time for your heater core luck to change, imo. That's a big job changing out the core. You have my sympathy.
Chris
Did you attach a grounding strap/wire to the (aluminum) heater core and then run that ground to the block? It will prevent galvanic corrosion. You are a wise man to keep the fluid fresh and clean!
It's time for your heater core luck to change, imo. That's a big job changing out the core. You have my sympathy.
Chris
Thank you for the idea. I never put a seperate grounding wire on there and didn't have a problem for 6 years. I can see that causing an issue over a longer period of time but 2 of these failed in 3-4 weeks. I'm not aware of the corrosion occuring that quickly. It is possible that removing the radiator has changed the ground potential but it should still take longer if corrosion was the issue. If I'm wrong on that, please let me know.
RandyStinchcomb
New Member
are you using the correct oem thermostats? what water pump? have you done the coolant mod? and last, do you have a water flow restrictor in the hose going to the heater core?
I checked with Az Dyno and they are all cracking at the same place. In addition, they told me they also put in a lower flow restrictor to see if that solved the problem. We decided this morning to get a new one, put it under 18lbs of pressure, and test it for a couple days before we put it on the car to see what happens. I'll have to see if I can get a picture of a cracked one. We are also going to put a slightly lower pressure cap on it. When they have it apart, I'll have them check to see if something could be rubbing against it. That's a good suggestion. Thank you.
nyuk98gt
15 Year Member
rconaway:
Sounds like you have a good plan. Considering the quickness of the failure, it must be a manufacturing defect. The failure is reproducible (unfortunately for you). You're right about the rate of galvanic attack, in our cooling systems it is a fairly slow process.
Please post back with an update. We're all going to face this problem sooner or later.
Chris
Sounds like you have a good plan. Considering the quickness of the failure, it must be a manufacturing defect. The failure is reproducible (unfortunately for you). You're right about the rate of galvanic attack, in our cooling systems it is a fairly slow process.
Please post back with an update. We're all going to face this problem sooner or later.
Chris
RandyStinchcomb
New Member
Buying the heater core from autozone is your first problem. I bought one from a local parts place for my 88, and when I went to hook up the hoses one of the solder joints broke, causing me to do the whole job again.
Do it once, do it right. Go to the ford dealer and buy the FORD PART! It is much heavier and higher quality than anything you can get at the parts store. We all know what a nightmare it is to replace the heater core (but you are probably down to a 6 hr change time by now). Seriously, I've held both and the difference is incredible. Get your money back for the parts store piece of junk and spend a little more on the ford part. I bought one for my 88 and that was about 8 years ago, and it's still doing fine.
Also, make sure you are connecting the heater core properly. The smaller pipe should be the water inlet. It should also have a restrictor of some kind (again, buy the ford part). That reduces pressure in the core. If you are connecting the hoses backwards, that could cause excess pressure in the core.
Do it once, do it right. Go to the ford dealer and buy the FORD PART! It is much heavier and higher quality than anything you can get at the parts store. We all know what a nightmare it is to replace the heater core (but you are probably down to a 6 hr change time by now). Seriously, I've held both and the difference is incredible. Get your money back for the parts store piece of junk and spend a little more on the ford part. I bought one for my 88 and that was about 8 years ago, and it's still doing fine.
Also, make sure you are connecting the heater core properly. The smaller pipe should be the water inlet. It should also have a restrictor of some kind (again, buy the ford part). That reduces pressure in the core. If you are connecting the hoses backwards, that could cause excess pressure in the core.
mustang50v8
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