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2000 Chevy Truck possible heater core or hose leak

Tiny
JIMBOB22
  • MEMBER
  • 2000 CHEVROLET TRUCK
  • 4 CYL
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 88,000 MILES
After driving 50+ miles I smell odor and see steam on windshield, but no sign of water inside or under hood.
How can I determine if it is a hose or the core?

I do not need heat and do not want to spend a lot for repair. Can I have repair shop "loop" the two heater hoses taking the heater core out of the system? Any other work around?
I do need air conditioning, will doing this impact the AC system?
Will doing this potentially damage anything else?
I only drive the S10 on short 20 mile trips about once a week and one or two trips a month of about 80 miles each.
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Tuesday, February 17th, 2009 AT 11:10 PM

3 Replies

Tiny
BLUELIGHTNIN6
  • MECHANIC
  • 16,542 POSTS
Suspect faulty heater core. It is blowing the coolant through the vents causing the film on the windshield.

All you have to do to bypass the heater core is disconnect both hoses under hood leading through firewall. Add another hose to connect the two hoses under hood and clamp them off. No harm done here. Only thing it does is disables heater usage. Your A/C will still work fine. A/C runs off of freon, not engine coolant.

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Tuesday, February 17th, 2009 AT 11:19 PM
Tiny
JIMBOB22
  • MEMBER
  • 2 POSTS
Thanks for your reply.
If I do nothing and just put up with the smell, will it potentially lead to a bigger problem? Will it eventually start putting out more water/coolant? Will doing nothing cause any damage to the engine? My guage does not show it to be overheating. I do not drive it that much.
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Tuesday, February 17th, 2009 AT 11:48 PM
Tiny
BLUELIGHTNIN6
  • MECHANIC
  • 16,542 POSTS
Eventually the heater core will completely fail and you will start finding the coolant pooling into your floorboard. This is when the engine starts overheating as well. Right now the coolant is just being lost a little at a time as vapors. Soon it will be leaking as liquid form which causes much more problems. I would suggest at least bypassing the core. It is a fairly easy task and a big money saver in the long run, especially when you don't need the heat.

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Tuesday, February 17th, 2009 AT 11:51 PM

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