So on my 02 blazer my mechanic quoted me about 550 bucks (8 hr job) to do my heater core.

Should I save up and pay up, or should I man up, get the haynes and do it myself....?

My skill level is, probably "Novice"....I do all my own break work, tune up work, alternators, water pump type stuff.....but nothing TOO in depth (afraid to screw up my girl )

What do you guys think? Within my capacity or just pay up?

 

Do u have another vehical to drive? The worst is having to rush to get it all back together cause you need it. Long as you have a good memory and patience its not to bad

 

Mine is a 1995 so I don't know how different the years are but honestly I was amazed that it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought. More of a pain in the butt and time consuming than difficult. Get a buddy to help you take out all the screws and lift the dash out. With my friend and I doing mine it took us 3 1/2 hours. I didn't have a choice - I wanted heat and had about $40 lol. They'll charge you for 8 hours of labor and only work on it for 3 or 4.

 

It can be done, but it is a pain in the a$$! I guess for $500, I would give it a go. You will swear that they built the damn truck around the heater core! I helped my buddy do his in a Jimmy like yours and he says he will never do it again. Not that it was super hard to do, but long and boring to disassemble it, then reassemble it. He has a nice shop with good tools too. LOL.
Good luck.

 

$550 is a heck of a deal to change out the heater core. I paid $700 mainly due to time constraints but still glad I didn't do it. As others have already said, PITA due to how long it takes and all the little screw, electrical connections, etc. If you can take your time and have another ride I'd go for it, but $550 is too good of a deal for me to pass up if mine ever craps out on me again.

 

Go for it man. It really isn't that hard. Just a lot of stuff to take apart and put back together. If you do the other work you say you do then your skill level is more than adequate. I'd sure do it for $500. And I'd even supply the part.

 

Thanks all, I think I'll grab my buddy and hit it once it warms up some. I don't have another vehicle to use, so Ill just have to plan it around my work schedule.

 

That sounds like a plan

 

Make sure you're getting a quality part to put in. I did the core on my '88, and what a pain in the butt that was. I drove around for a week with no dashboard. A year later, my almost-new R&S Strauss house brand core rotted through and I was once again being anointed with antifreez coming out the a/c ducts. That time I had my mechanic do it. (I was unemployed the first time, so it wasn't like I either had extra money, or anything else to do with my day. The second time I had an income and less free time, so it went to the shop.) It pays to get a decent one that you won't have to do it twice.

(It's funny how the manual put it. To remove the heater core, simply remove the four screws and lift off the cover. That simple, right? Then it says Oh by the way, you may have to remove the dashboard to get access to the upper screws, see page whatever. "May have to" my aunt Fanny, unless you want to use a hot knife and cut through the engine side of the firewall (which was how the mechanic did the second one, I don't know if you can do that on a 2nd gen Blazer but it's the easiest access on an '88) you'll definitely have to remove it, or at least unbolt it and swing it around out of your way.

(Could be worse, I remember years ago having to replace the core on an '82 Chevy full-size van, and not only did they have to take off the dashboard to get to the core, but they had to drop the steering column to get the dashboard off. Somebody please tell me, why in the hell do they design a part that's inevitably going to fail, and then put it in the most inaccessible place in the entire vehicle?)

 

You guys are really making me look forward to this job! lol

What about those sealent in a can stuff? Im told the aluminum stuff can work okay but will it damage other things....like my brand new radiator?