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Heater core leak?


paker

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2010 3.5 91k miles

I can smell antifreeze in the cabin, not all the time but when car is started. My suspicion is the heater core has a very small leak. I searched internet and found this for 2008 Edge:

QUOTE

It's one of the easiest cores to replace that I have encountered. Disconnect heater hoses at firewall. Probably doesn't matter about hose placement, but I always mark them just in case. To remove the fiber cover under dash, take a flat blade screwdriver and pry out the center pin of the expansion clips that hold it in place. There are four 5/16 head screws that hold the bottom/drain tray cover. Core will pull through the firewall and then down. You may have to silicone/glue or replace the foam seal strips on the new core. Before you install the core, check the distance between the inlet and outlet tubes to ensure they match the openings in the firewall. This saves time. It helps if you have someone on the outside to guide you when stabbing the tubes through the firewall. Replace bottom cover. You may have to hold one of the tubes when reinstalling the first hose to the core. Replace any lost coolant and check for leaks prior to reinstalling the fiber cover. If the cover seal is in good condition, any leak should drain through the firewall, otherwise it may leak inside cab. .

END QUOTE

Honestly, I don't quite understand this write-up. If anyone has done this repair, please advise. Thank you.
 

Edited by paker
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I believe zazzy has a writeup (kind of) regarding this work on his MKX.  It will take at least 8 hours of time to do this, since the dash has to be pulled.  Advisable to replace heater core and evaporator core as a unit, using Motorcraft parts, for a lasting repair.

 

Are you sure the procedure you quoted above was for a Ford Edge and not a Ford Ranger?

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1 hour ago, WWWPerfA_ZN0W said:

I believe zazzy has a writeup (kind of) regarding this work on his MKX.  It will take at least 8 hours of time to do this, since the dash has to be pulled.  Advisable to replace heater core and evaporator core as a unit, using Motorcraft parts, for a lasting repair.

 

Are you sure the procedure you quoted above was for a Ford Edge and not a Ford Ranger?

I just talked to the owner of this Edge. The first time he smelled antifreeze in the cabin was when the red light came on the dash and steam coming off the engine bay. All this happened because the passenger side fan stopped working. I bet the car was low on antifreeze to begin with. I need to check if the antifreeze smell is consistent before taking on this job. I just bought a manual on ebay. Thank you for the link. I hope the member, zazzy, is still around.

 

By the way,  do heater core and evaporator have to come out as one unit? I have a vacuum pump and can handle car AC, but would like to avoid if I can.

 

Yeah, the person who did the write-up must have been mixed up between Edge and another vehicle like F150. At F150 forum we all figured out how to directly access the heater core by cutting through plastic trim.

Edited by paker
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