superbeast

Alright, so I figured out my heater core was shot, so basically upon advice from a few buddies they said to simply bypass the heater core, connect the two heater hoses and that way it will be a complete circuit going right back to the radiatior etc.
Some guy at autozone also said it will be fine, just figured post on here and see if anyone else has done that and if it will work for a temporary fix until I have time to replace the heater core.
What do you guys think

dr_bowtie

yep thats how you do it if the heater core is leaking....it a temp fix

obieone 1

When you replace the heater core, consider OEM rather than aftermarket. While much more expensive, the OEM core's coolant pipes are welded to the core body, whereas the aftermarket pipes are only crimped in place. OEM core also weighs more than aftermarket, indicating better materials used in construction. Replacing the core is not easy...you don't want to have to do it twice. Good luck with your project.

rikard

Replacing the heater core is very easy on a 92-96, it took me and my grandson less than an hour on my 94.
Merry Christmas
rikard

smokeshow81

I agree with this advice and will also offer for you to replace the restrictor in the line that feeds the core. It will lower the pressure going into the core as it feeds directly off the pump which will be flowing more at higher RPMS. less pressure on the internals of the core will promote longevity.

superbeast

Thank you for all the input everyone, I did just bypass the heater core for now. I plan on replacing it once i return from florida in march. For right now I just need to to work until january 10th. Once I get back then I'll actually have time and a bit of money to put into it thankfully. I will have to look into the OEM core instead.

dannydowns

just did mine took about 25 mins to do it got it at autozone just as nice as the copper oem one paid 23.99

RocketScott

I replaced mine with one from autozone and it's time to replace it again (I can smell the coolant in the cab). The original FoMoCo one made it to 74k. The autozone made it from there to 260k+. Autozone has a lifetime warranty too so it's a free fix other than the hour it will probably take to get it out and go swap it.

RocketScott

Just an update on heater cores. Turns out the first one I put in was from Advance Auto Parts in '96, 72k on the clock.

Went to Auto Zone and bought a replacement because there are no Advance stores in Washington. It's garbage. It doesn't fit because it's too tall. Even if it was the right height it probably wouldn't work because it was built more like a paralelogram than a rectangle. Bad cell phone pice but you can see it's not square:

Nitehawkjr

On a 87 you have two different cores a standard output and a high output they probably gave you the wrong one for your truck.

Here are the part# from AutoZone

94522- high output
94582- With A/C With standard output heater
94521-Without A/C With standard output heater