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Partial Heater Box Removal

2K views 22 replies 10 participants last post by  LeeFred 
#1 ·
I haven't tried yet but is it possible to get too and remove all the clips that hold the 2 halves of the heater box together? I want to remove the front of the heater box only (not looking to remove the entire heater box) to put the seals on for the doors (I believe there are 2) that swing back and forth that control heat, defrost and air flow. The heater box was out and restored but the bonehead person that put the heater box back together and installed it did not put all of the seals in. I can see at least some seals are missing via the passenger side fresh air access and by the metal clanking when I move the controls back and forth.

65 Fastback no A/C, Automatic with center console
 
#2 · (Edited)
I don't believe you can remove just the front of the heater box. It projects up into the large round gasket that couples it to the cowl opening (see the attached image) by at least an inch. I was surprised how easy it was to remove and replace the whole unit once the coolant was drained low enough to allow the hoses to be disconnected on the engine side of the firewall. My car has factory air and center console, so yours should be even easier.
 

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#5 ·
I loosened the A/C fasteners so that the unit could just "wiggle" slightly and I did not touch the console. Take 5 minutes and remove the passenger seat. It makes the job a lot easier.
 
#4 ·
With apologies to Judith Viorst , this is a horrible, terrible, no-good very bad idea.

You will not be able to properly access the clips with the box installed. This means you will need to damage the box to get them off. Worse, it will be impossible to reinstall them.

Dunno why you would want to do this. It only takes about half an hour to remove the heater box. Then you can rebuild it properly.
 
#6 ·
No. Like 22GT say.....remove the whole box. IMHO, its better to put a new one in as a lot of times trying to remove the old gaskets,
you find rust and decay everywhere. I changed out the whole system .when I put the new engine in. All available from the major
parts guys (NPD!) and pretty reasonable too.
 
#7 ·
Thanks everyone. In hindsight, I was going down the wrong path. I wasn't sure how hard it would be to remove the heater box but it's obviously not as hard as I thought. It's the original heater box and I see some rust on the inside doors so your right, it's best to take the whole unit out, disassemble and decide whether to recondition or replace. Thanks for the tip to remove the seat. It's a real PITA working under the dash with the seat installed. I won't remove the console and see how it goes. Thanks for everyone's input. Very helpful!
 
#10 ·
I took out the heater box today. Removing the passenger seat was a great tip. It would have been a royal PITA had I left the passenger seat in. The cardboard glove box gave me some issues until I discovered you can fold the sides to remove through the glove box door. I left the center console in. Believe it or not I had the most trouble disconnecting the heater hoses from the water pump and block. Those puppies did not want to come off! I drained about 2 gallons of antifreeze from the radiator petcock and I plugged the ends of the heater hoses before feeding them through the firewall. I did not remove the clips on the heater box yet but from what I see there is only a little internal surface rust. As I suspected, there are no seals installed in the heater box. I'm going to remove the clips from the heater box and refurbish the unit as it should have been done. Thanks for all your help.

Mark
 
#11 ·
Mark -

Glad it went well with the removal. Like yours, mine had minor surface rust, but cleaned up perfectly. Biggest problem I faced was correcting a distorted flange where the "flapper" door linkage projects through the case on the parting line (between the top clips). I had a nearly 1/8" gap where the heat and stress had distorted the SMC case halves. I guess it's not uncommon. I solved the issue by bending a "U-shaped" clip that fits over the linkage and holds the halves together for a tight seal (see the attached image). A quick cleanup with scotchbrite pads and a couple coats of satin clearcoat and you'll be ready to go.
 

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#13 ·
I also have some wear on the case where the flapper linkage comes through the case. It couldn't hurt to do what you did by putting a clip over the linkage. Is the clip you used homemade or did you modify a clip that holds the 2 halves of the case together?
 
#12 · (Edited)
Yeah, I recently put a whole new box in my 66. It was pretty easy taking the old one out and installing the new box. It's a great time to inspect everything. While your at it, pull the heater fan motor and oil both bearings. The firewall side comes off very easy, nothing is going to fall out. I took the time to sand and paint the motor housing too.

As a general comment on things like this we tend to spend more time trying to find a short cut then if we just did the job right the first time.
 
#14 ·
Just a piece of .062 cold rolled strap bent to the width I needed. The hole has to be slightly oversize to get it to slide over the bends in the linkage. I used Vice-grip pliers to pinch the flange together until the new clip can be installed. Release the pliers and your ready to go. I did install them on the bottom as well.
 
#16 · (Edited)
Thank you all for your advice and of course the abundant posts on heater box rebuild/restoration. I removed the heater box and did a restoration the way it should have been done in the first place. The old adage of "If you want something done right, do it yourself." holds true. I'm happy with it.

Materials Used:

Lacquer Thinner for clean-up
Scott Drake Seal Kit
JB Weld to fix cracks in heater box
3M Super 77 Adhesive for large foam pieces
SCIGRIP #1829 Headliner Adhesive for foam in heat control box and small foam pieces
Rustoleum Rusty Metal Primer
Rustoleum Flat Black for internal metal parts (I know this is not concours but I can live with it.)
Rustoleum Semi-Gloss black for exterior metal parts
Rustoleum Satin Clear coat for heater box
Rustoleum Metallic Finish for control levers
Testors bright Aluminum for rivits

This isn't a commercial for Rustoleum but I had most of it on hand and have had good results in the past.

Mark
 

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#17 ·
I'm halfway through this same project with my 70 and I can absolutely say yours looks 100% better than mine.

Nice job.
 
#19 ·
Mark -
Great looking job! Looks like a new unit and should function like one as well. Make sure those new hoses are secured tightly before reinstalling, and use new hose clamps that you are not afraid to cinch down. The last thing you want is a slow drip under pressure. Don't ask me how I know!
 
#20 ·
Beautiful job on that heater box. In '81 I pulled the heater box in my 69 because it had never provided much heat. Jammed inside was a crumpled up paper coffee cup. On the cup was printed "Ford - quality is Job 1". Someone at the factory had put it into the heater box instead walking a few steps to a trash can. I mailed it to Ford with a note. Funny thing, I never got a reply.
 
#21 ·
Thanks all for your kind words. I took my time and did everything in stages over a couple of weekends, cleaning, painting, seals, assembly. The seals went in perfectly. The clips that hold the 2 heater box half's together to some effort but went on with no damage to the heater box. I look forward to driving this summer and not getting blasted with hot air! :wink:
 
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