Heater core leak

[dex]

Green radiator fluid is coming out the evaporator in the firewall. Now that I know the heater core is leaking, is it fixable and less than the price of a new house? Also is the oil pan as difficult as it looks to remove for gasket replacement?

[jeffcoslacker]

Heater core is a very labor-intensive job. The part is cheap enough, if you want to disassemble the dash to get at it, you will save a lot of money. Not sure how much, never done one on a Lumina. Figure 3-6 hours for most cars, probably $225-$500 labor. I'd do it myself. Why do you think the pan is leaking? Did you try snugging the bolts first? They usually don't leak much. Most times it is something else leaking down, and travelling the seam where the pan meets the block, making it appear the pan is leaking. I dont think it would be hard to change, though.

[Kooterskkar]

The difficulty of removing the oil pan varies depending on the engine. Im not sure about the 4 cyls, but on the v6's you have to lift the engine to gain enough clearance to drop it down.

Ohh yeah, it also helps to have a haynes/ chiltons manual for the car. They can be useful sometimes.

[richtazz]

you will be lying on the floorboard for quite some time to replace a heater core, not a difficult job, just tedious. I suggest removing the passenger seat to give you a nice flat surface to lay on, instead of being half on the seat, half on the floor. The oil pan may require dropping the engine cradle, or lifting the engine, it all about clearance.