95 Thunderbird heater core stopped up

[matt6288]

My 95 thunderbird (4.6) was in the shop for luke warm heat. The mechanic said that the water pump was not putting enough flow through the heated core becuase it is a passive system. He determined that the valve was opening and shutting properly to divert the water through the heater core. After replacing the water pump and flushing the system, there seemed to be more heat but in my opinion not the heat that I was expecting to have and eventually got cooler and cooler. Took it back to the mechanic and he flushed it again, he said that it would need a heater core ($600.00), I almost fell out of my seat!. Went to advanced auto and they said all I have to do is disconnect both hoses from under the hood and get an adapter of sorts to connect a water hose to the input flow of the heater core and turn on the hose and flush it out that way. THOUGHTS ANYBODY? Thanks, Matt

[97Bird]

It's worth a shot to try it. Changing a heater core is not a fun job. Check the Tech Help thread at the top of the threads for a posting that tells how to do it. It sounds like the system was already flushed a few times. If you have fresh antifreeze in it I would drain the system into clean containers (so you can reuse it) and then pour in a good quality heavy duty radiator flush (Prestone, for one) and water. Follow the instructions and flush again. Prestone makes a flush kit that includes a tee fitting that goes into the heater hose. You can disconnect the heater hoses after this and use a 5/8" garden hose with then end cut off so it slides over the heater core tube to flush just the core. I can't remember if there is a 5/8" and a 3/4" hose going to the core or if both are 5/8". I would flush the core in both directions so you may have to make up an adaptor if one end is 3/4". Good luck.