 |
Lots of good information here. I just used this info along with the Ford letter (search the web for 98-ford-taurus-water-pump-browncoolant.pdf) to take care of the heating problem in my 97 Taurus. The letter gives procedures for flushing the cooling system and instructs to replace the water pump, along with adding the bypass hose to those without one. It doesn't say to change the heater core, but I did.
So a short run down of what fixed the problem. Was getting no heat last year and decided to change the water pump and thermostat. This only partially fixed the problem, but the car wasn't overheating or running poorly, so I left it for Summer time. Summer came and went, as did Fall, so now it's cold in the Midwest. So, I'm at it again. I disconnected the hoses to the heater core and flushed them individually. I flushed the core forward and backward and got a lot of junk out. This was actually clogged. drained and replaced the remaining coolant. This only gave a little warmth if the fan was on low. After reading the letter mentioned above, I verified that the bypass was already installed. I replaced the water pump again (last one was a lifetime warranty part so no cash out of pocket for this one). I also replaced the thermostat again (failsafe type so it won't let the engine overheat if if goes bad). Flushed the cooling system completely. Replaced the heater core.
Now, many postings here and on other sites say it is a really big job to replace the core and that the A/C needs to be discharged and recharged. On the 96-99 Taurus and Sable, Ford put an access panel in the ductwork. It is slanted and is held in by a few screws. It is right behind the blend door actuator (white box). Take care in removing the items in front of this panel because they can be brittle. Once you have the access panel out, remove the rectangular panels at each end of the dash to reveal 4 large bolts. Remove the bolts, then look at the top of the dash. The defrost vent has a snap in cover on it. Remove that cover to reveal 3 more bolts, then remove the bolts. This will allow the whole dash to slide out 5 to 6 inches without any further disassembly. This will give you enough clearance to remove the core. Push the core from the engine compartment side, then grab it from inside the car and pull it out. Assembly is the reverse. Be sure to apply the foam tape that comes with the new core just as it is on the old. Connect the hoses and fill the system with fresh coolant. Mine was blowing nice and toasty in 5-6 minutes.
Hope this helps. I had to learn by trial and error. If I knew this going into this task, it would have saved me 5-6 hours of work. |
email Scott
reply to message
search forums
