Heater Core...

stingray250

stingray250

True Classic
I had the car idling sitting in the driveway last night working on the wiring for my gauge cluster when all of a sudden the heater core decided to spring a leak.

I've read the threads on taking a 124 core and cramming it in the stock heater box.

I really don't want to have to modify the box or the flap control arm to accommodate the 124 core. Anyone have a "good" used core they might want to part with? Midwest is out...

I ended up leaving the core with a local rad repair shop, he air pressure tested it in an old kiddie pool and it looked like an aquarium bubbler!:eek::eek::eek:

He's gonna fish around in his pile of old cores for a suitable donor core and then possibly swap the tanks if he can't source a new one. Probably not gonna be cheap. He claims that the fins, not the tubes are some sort of steel and are very hard to seal? I told him to give me a quote first as the last guy wanted 400.00 bucks to fab one up!

Anyway, anyone got a core, offer up!
 
Yup...

I was contemplating using the 124 core and making a spacer for the point where the box splits. The spacer is easy peasy, extended clips would be no problem also. Maybe I make a kit and sell a few? The X1/9 core is 50mm thick, the 124 core is 65mm thick, so only like a half inch difference. The spacer would make for a no box cutting or cable lever mod. Hmmmm he says.

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You know me, toooooo easy. I decided I'd like to do it the hard way. It was a fight, looks like I came out the winner though. I ended up making some extended clips and an aluminum air box spacer, the rest is history. Clips are made from stainless hose clamps. Last picture is with spacer in place. All duct work lined up, all cables and flaps/valve operate normally. No box cutting required.

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Nice job stingray. :D I think the kit you mentioned above would sell if you feel like expending the effort to make more.
 
Ya, looks great. I was picturing it being a taller extension than it really is. Now I can see that it would fit without interfering with getting the box back in (as I wondered earlier).

That extension piece might be a good candidate for a 3D printer?
 
That is an excellent bit of work. Great problem solving and very well done.

I need to consider this for my older X, thank you for breaking the new ground and a great alternate to redoing some of the rest of the box which would necessitate complete removal.

Does this part go on top of the heater core, then the heater core, the bottom cover and then your extended spring clips? So the stack is: top attached to the body of the X, the spacer you made, the heater core, the fan and its ring, the lower cover with trimmed risers and then clipped together with extended clips?

A printed ABS part would likely do just fine, some of the other materials used for 3D printing, likely less so. Do you have any dimensions of what you did to make that snazzy, what looks to be aluminum, part? I would be happy to create a STL file anyone could send to a printing service.

Thanks!
 
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So, The spacer in question is installed on the lower box half in and around the shroud for the fan. It's a tight fit mind you. The core is installed normally in the upper case half first.

So, Install upper box, then the core, then the spacer, then the lower box, then the clips...

I just happened on this piece of thin aluminum rummaging thru my local hardware store. Not sure what it was initially designed for but it had the bends I required and they had like 10 of em. I boxed it and used an aluminum brazing rod with map gas to secure the cuts. I had to radius the connection side of the spacer to clear the pipe flanges.

The 124 core was trimmed out with 7/16" self adhesive foam before installing it in the case. Made a bit tighter fit.

The offset lipped spacer rides on the core and also the lower box just like the original.

A 3d printer would make short work of this... But it would need to be really thin to slide in between the fan shroud and case, hence the thin aluminum. If I thought I could source a clip that was the extended length required I pump a few out... The clip was more of a pain than anything else... Found a few clip on Alibaba, but min order was like 1000! Don't think there are that many X's still around!

I should of taken more pictures but I was already 4 hours into a core that should of taken 1/2 and hour. Wasn't sure it was even gonna work till I was finished.
 
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Nice job, I did mine on my back in the footwell, so it was a bit--rough. But I figured I was the only one to live with it...
 
stingray250 said:
So, The spacer in question is installed on the lower box half in and around the shroud for the fan. It's a tight fit mind you The core is installed normally in the upper case half first.

So, Install upper box, then the core, then the spacer, then the lower box, then the clips...

I just happened on this piece of thin aluminum rummaging thru my local hardware store. Not sure what it was initially designed for but it had the bends I required and they had like 10 of em. I boxed it and used an aluminum brazing rod with map gas to secure the cuts. I had to radius the connection side of the spacer to clear the pipe flanges.

The 124 core was trimmed out with 7/16" self adhesive foam before installing it in the case. Made a bit tighter fit.

The offset lipped spacer rides on the core and also the lower box just like the original.

A 3d printer would make short work of this... But it would need to be really thin to slide in between the fan shroud and case, hence the thin aluminum. If I thought I could source a clip that was the extended length required I pump a few out... The clip was more of a pain than anything else... Found a few clip on Alibaba, but min order was like 1000! Don't think there are that many X's still around!

I should of taken more pictures but I was already 4 hours into a core that should of taken 1/2 and hour. Wasn't sure it was even gonna work till I was finished.
Click to expand...

Because the difference between me and a box of rocks is negligible, the aluminum part you made goes between the bottom case piece which houses the fan and the upper case which houses the heater core. Does the fan shroud, piece number 12 in the image below, go in below your aluminum piece?

I think it does, just looking for confirmation.

The part could be made to mimic the top of the lower case at the top half of the part and the bottom of the upper case on its bottom half. This way the thickness would matter less as it isn’t trying to be between the heater core and the inside of the upper case. It would just be a case to case spacer. It could have internal ribs if needed to reach up and support the heater core.

I think your spring clip solution is pretty brilliant, they will never rust and there is little enough pressure that the SS will never relieve itself. Nice job and lovely parts.

My non AC car needs its case taken out and cleaned before I can drive it this year so perhaps I will look into making the spacer as a prototype.

Thanks!
 
stingray250 said:
Found a few clip on Alibaba, but min order was like 1000!
Click to expand...
Try looking on "AliExpress" for the same clips you saw on "Alibaba". It is the sister site to Alibaba, but intended for small retail sales. Many of the same sellers are on both. The clips may be listed on AliExpress in singles or small quantities.


kmead said:
The part could be made to mimic the top of the lower case at the top half of the part and the bottom of the upper case on its bottom half. It would just be a case to case spacer
Click to expand...
That was what I envisioned it to be. It shouldn't be too hard to copy the shapes, especially with a 3D program of some type. Maybe even scan in the original pieces then merge them.
 
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