It only took about 14 hours of labor and many questionable choice words at higher-than-normal volumes, scratched & cut up hands & arms, and a sore body, but it's done. You're right - the box needs to come out to replace that valve.

Once I got the dash off & the hvac box disconnected, the rest was a breeze.

One thing though: The bold that needs removal which is located inside the Air Conditioning chamber (under the blower resistor) - what a PITA! As I was removing that bolt, I was thinking to myself "How the $&#@ am I going to get this back in here??" (I don't have an air-ratchet or air compressor = lots more work). I ended up drilling out a hole in the box big enough to slide my extra long socket & extension through. After I sent the socket through, I pointed it upward toward the opening, placed a small piece of t-shirt material on the head of the bolt & pushed the bolt into the socket (This holds the bolt in the socket so you can thread it in). Once that was done, after a little finageling, I was able to EASILY drive the bolt back into the hole.

Once this was complete, I stuck my shop vac hose down into that chamber to suck out the t-shirt piece and other pieces of plastic (from the resistor cover & other crumbling pieces that fell in).

I assumed having a hole in that box is not a good thing (since it circulates air past the evaporator (?)). I had some hi-temp silicone gasket maker handy and cut a piece of plastic strapping (usually used to suspend plumbing to your floor joists) and fastened it to the box with very short self-tapping screws. Once that was secured, I took a putty knife and spread a liberal amount of gasket maker all over it to seal up any holes that might be present.

I hope I didn't damage it too terribly, but I didn't feel like I had any other choice at the time.

 

Uh huh, but is it fixed and does it work now?

Good idea with the tee shirt, a gob of grease in the socket works too

 

Capt: Indeed it does, hot air at my feet now! yippy!

One thing I noticed (both before & after the job) is when I (as we say down south) "get on it" (aka, accelerate aggresively), I can hear what sounds like fluid rushing through pipes in the right side of the dash. The sound reminds me of standing underneath a wastewater pipe when someone flushes the toilet - the sound of liquid rushing through the plumbing.

Is what I'm hearing the coolant rushing through the heater core? If it is, is this normal? If it's not normal, does it mean my coolant may be low, causing air to get in?

Thanks for the tips, Capt - very helpful and I'm glad I took your advice about the HC - I NEVER want to do that, ever again!! (although, it probably wouldn't take me as long the next time!!! lol)

 

BTW, 14 hours isn't bad for the first time, but don't quit your day job

The noise is low coolant. These things can be a PITA to "burp" the air out. There are a few threads here on the forum about how to burp it. What I have found to work for me 100% of the time is:

Raise the front wheels off the ground a foot or so. Run the engine with the radiator cap removed until it reaches operating temp. Give the throttle a few quick jabs up to ~3K rpm and back to idle, (trying to move the air bubble). Bring it up to 2500rpm and top off the radiator. Jab it again a few times, but don't let it drop below 2500 rpm. Top it off again and install the cap, then allow it to idle. If you still have the noise, repeat the process. OEM caps are not the greatest, might be worth getting a new "Stant" radiator cap. If the cap is working as designed, eventually it will burp itself, but it can take a while

 

Standard cap or Lev-R Vent cap?

Thanks so much for that tip - I will definitely give that a try.


Also, I love your "signature".

 

Standard cap is fine. Post your results after burping.

 

In the meantime, I thought I would mention this: The valve that I replaced plugged into a lever. These are separate parts. To detach the valve from the lever, pull very hard. To install new valve, push in until you feel it snap together.

If you break the lever, it is also a dealer (or distributor) item, and I dont think it costs very much (under $10)

 

Capt:

I haven't had a chance to either pick up a rad cap, or burp the system but yesterday I gave it hell and did not hear the "flushing" sound in my heater core - did it burp itself?

 

The only way it will burp itself, is if the radiator cap is working properly and the reservoir has enough coolant to fill the radiator. Make sure the hose from the radiator to the reservoir is not kinked.