1994 Chevy S10 Blazer

My 1994 S10 Blazer 4.3L with A/C, has a bad heater core. It needs replaced but we're looking for the "how to-s" to accomplish this. Our Chilton's makes it appear that we just about have to "rip open" the entire passenger side of the vehicle from the fender back thru the instrument panel and then some. SURELY there's an easier way! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. We're hoping to replace this heater core this weekend, so time is of the essence at this point. Thanks

And by the way, Thanks to everyone that has posted information regarding the "infamous" S10 EGR valve symptoms and replacement. We've got that one handled! Now if we can just get the heater core issue covered before cold weather hits!??

Sorry guys, but you are going to have to remove the dash to access the heatercore.

OH DARN! I was so afraid that was going to be answer. But thanks anyway. We appreciate the confirmation of our "fears". :frown: Guess we've got our work cut out for us this weekend, huh!?

By the way GMMerlin, does that also mean that we HAVE to discharge the A/C? Or can we get just a little lucky and not have to do that??

Heatercore removal does not call for ac discharge. Have patience and take your time. Good Luck.

:bigthumb: PCV, thanks for that little bit of information. At least that will make things a bit cheaper! Wasn't looking forward to paying to have the A/C recharged AGAIN! :smile:

Ok, got pretty much all the screws/bolts/nuts and all instrument panel stuff off but how on earth do we get the parking brake release handle off!!??:confused: My husband and I have tried everything we can think of short of just BREAKING it and we really don't want to do that. HELP is of great importance right now. It's getting dark and we wanted to have the dash etc all off by tonight so we can actually get to the heater core tomorrow morning first thing. Thanks for any suggestions you might have.

The handle is built onto the cable assembly.
On the brake ratchet end of the cable, the cable attaches to the ratchet release. Just pull the release lever back far enought to slip the cable out.
On the handle end, there were 2 ways these were attached screw or tension release.
Look under the handle, if there is a screw, remove it and the cable assembly is now loose from the dash.
If it is the tension release, you will have to get to the back side of the dash where the cable goes through and squeeze the tabs togather.

AH HA! Thank you so much! My husband is headed out the door right now to try your suggestion. I'll let you know how much swearing goes on.. :wink:

:bigthumb: HA! GMMERLIN you ARE a wizard! Took him less than 2 minutes to get that handle out. Thank you, thank you, thank you! We just weren't seeing any way to get it out. Now maybe we can finish up removing the dash so we can get that heater core replaced TODAY! But stay tuned, if we run into more problems, I'm sure I'll be posting more help requests.

tingham

I'll try to check back every so often today! Good luck!

:bloated: Well the heater core is out, new one purchased and in place. Now ALL we have to do is remember where all those wires connect to in the dash! Mark them? Why whatever for? :confused: That would make putting everything back together way too easy. It'll probably take us the rest of the day to finish this up. Anyway, THANKS to both of you for your help with this. Hopefully, we'll never have to replace another one!

OH, there is one more item. Where is the fuel filter on that 1994 S10 Blazer? We've got a new one for it, but haven't been able to locate it. And again, THANKS a BUNCH!

Fuel filter should be on the inside of the drivers side frame rail.

Yep, you are so right again! That's exactly where it is! And again Merlin, thank you so much for your help with the heater core! I don't think we'd be done yet without your guidance. The only problem we seem to have now is that the 4LO indicator light on the dash (automatic) won't come on. Suspect we either burned out a light bulb or discumbumberated the connection when reconnecting the switch. It shifts to 4LO without a problem, just no light. So since we've been at it for about 10 hours between last night and today, we're going to leave that for tomorrow.

We bought this 94 Blazer for $200 about 4 weeks ago and so far have put about $300 in it, not counting our time/effort. That includes changing the fluids/filters; tuneup and new shocks all the way around. There isn't much else wrong with it as far as we can tell. The engine is strong and doesn't burn oil at all. OH BUT we did find that the oil dipstick tube isn't down in the oil pan. That means we can't check the oil, so next we'll be trying to fix that little issue. It appears that it has NEVER been lined up correctly!

About 140K miles on it. We do still need to put new rubber on all 4-s and alignment, but other than that, I think we got a really good deal. Interior is emaculate and just a little surface rust on end gate and front doors. Exterior is black and the doors are somewhat faded, but I suspect I'll be building up my biceps tomorrow with rubbing compound and buffer to fix that dullness. At any rate, I think we got a pretty good deal based on price research I've done since we bought it. We're pretty proud of our miraculous "find". It is the Tahoe package and very nice inside. We may sell it some day, but right now, we both enjoy just driving it!

But alas, I digress. Just wanted to tell you thanks again. I'm sure we'll catch you again online as we're always doing something to our vehicles! :bigthumb:

PS I'll email you a picture of it once we get it polished up, if you'd like.

I need help with installing my heater core. I took the dash apart except for the wires near the steering wheel and the parking brake. I don't know where the heater core is. Do I need to take off the wheel well on pass. side?

you dont have to remove the wheel well.
The heater core is in the black box between the dash and the firewall.
If you look in the engine compartment where the heater hoses attach to the core, that will give you a good reference where it is.

Shawn,
You don't have to remove the passenger side fender. You do have to have pretty good clearance behind the dash on the passenger side. Once you get in where you can "function" behind the dash, you'll see a black plastic housing unit. It sits directly below the glove box. It has about 6 bolts around the edges of the housing. Once you get that opened up, you have a bracket around each end of the heater core. That has 4 more screws to remove. After that you should be able to just lift the core out. CAREFULLY cuz if it's leaking badly, it'll drip everywhere! Suggest that you use a clean cloth to wipe down as much of the housing and vent system as you can.

If you can't get behind the dash well enough to pull that housing, you may have to pull the parking brake handle off so that you can pull the dash out further. The brake handle is attached to a lever with a spring and hook attachment. You have to pull the lever towards the handle and disconnect the hook. We actually had to take our dash completely out to have enough room to work. Needless to say, that's why the "shop" wants $300-$400 to replace that $20 part! Good Luck! Hope this helps!

Twila :banghead:

ok i see the black box. can i get to it just from outside or do i need to get from inside also???? an air conditioning tube is going into the box as well.

ok ill try it. thanks.

I need help too...I'm 2 1/2 hours into the project and have the dash apart and just lowered the steering column...the dash doesn't seem to be getting any looser,,,I have to go get a small torx to remove speaker covers and hopefully after I get the screws out underneath the covers thatll loosen things up some more...Ive only cursed 3 or 4 times so far...not bad for me on stuff like this.

Read this article first. A couple shortcuts and they work, I've followed this procedure a couple times.
http://www.sytyarchives.com/howto/viewarticle.php?article_name=heater_core.php&dir=climate_controls