94 Econoline HD heater line questions

Galaxie427 · 10-12-2008, 02:54 PM

Hi all, first post here.

We just bought a 94 Club Wagon XLT (12 passenger). Can't tell if it's a 250 or 350, or if it really matters anyway. VIN says E31P, for what it's worth. Anyway, among other things, it's got an antifreeze leak on the driver's side about at the back of the door. Looks like coolant lines for maybe a rear heater core? Anyway, do you guys know:

1) how much work this is gonna be for me (lots of rust)
2) what do I call these things (rear coolant lines?)
3) Are they pricey?

Can't say I'm too excited about the work ahead. I just got out from under an axle swap on my 86 F250 getting ready for plow season. I still have rust in my hair and eyes. Ugh.

Thanks in advance (or in adVANce?).......I'm sure I'll have a lot of questions in the near future! BTW, we replaced our 05 Excursion with this van. Gas might be similar, but payments are WAY different!

Pete S.

theoldwizard · 10-12-2008, 06:36 PM

Well, the lines for the rear heater on my E150 rotted out after about 7 or 8 years. The parts are pricey (couple of hundred if I recall correctly) and worst of all, you have to drop the gas tank (at least on an E150).

If you are going to do it yourself, the connections from the hoses to the "pipes" use a quick connect that requires a special tool to disassemble. Some auto parts stores loan these out for free. There is also an "insert" (?) that must be replaced at the connection point to guarantee a leak free job. This is a dealer only part and does not come with the pipes. You might be able to splice it back together with heater hose and clamps, but you'll probably have to cut the ends off of those new pipes !

Don't delay. If they are leaking now, your only days away from a full "blow out" !

goon · 10-12-2008, 10:16 PM

I just did a van three weeks ago it was a 94 and ford said they are no longer get them. So a removed some off the lines. Remove the dog house and where the rubber lines connect to the steel lines I cut the connectors of so there is just rubber then got a barbed connector from the hardware stor (4 of them, and 16 hose clamps) about 16 feet of heater hose cannot rember the size. then took about four feet off the steel lines, on both lines, the reason i did not remove the lines is because it runs with the a/c lines to the rear witch if i tried to remove they would have leaked. then i ran both lines down the frame protecting them and connected them the same way at the rear. I used 2 hose clamps with every join. it was doing this or bypassing the rear heater core.

Galaxie427 · 10-13-2008, 09:47 AM

Where is the rear heater core? I like the rubber heater hose idea (a LOT!!), but I think i need to go all the way to the rear heater core. I've got a lot of rust to deal with. BTW, teh dealer wants $1350 for parts and labor, and a local shop says he guess-timates $500 parts and labor, but he has no idea how far he'd need to go to fix all the leaks. Sounds expensive!!

theoldwizard · 10-13-2008, 12:08 PM

If it is like my E150, the heater is in the left (driver side) rear corner. There are ducts that send the warm air up to the second rom seats.

$500 sounds about right. You really can't run hoses all the way the way back without adding a lot of support straps. You still have to go over/around the gas tank.

goon · 10-13-2008, 05:49 PM

the rear heater core should be at the back, you should see the lines right behind the drivers rear tire. remeber if it has rear a/c those lines are there too, but the coolant lines should go into rubber.

Galaxie427 · 10-14-2008, 04:40 AM

Well, good news (I guess!). Now that I had a chance to really check things out, I found the lines had already rotted out further down the line, and the two were looped together with a piece of rubber hose. I took the engine cover off, and found where these lines started; turns out, they're rubber hoses clamped to some lines bolted to the engine. I took one clamp off, cut the other rubber hose, and looped them together under the cover (until I have time/money to do something more like the right thing.......). While cutting the hose, I wiggled the line going under the van and it poured out about a half a gallon of coolant. It would appear that I caught this problem right in the nick of time! The van looks very nice, with almost no rust at all on the body. But the frame is really scaly and all the components underneath are pretty rotten.

Thanks for all the help!!

theoldwizard · 10-14-2008, 05:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Galaxie427

...But the frame is really scaly ...

Don't worry about the frame. They used plenty of metal in it back in those days !

The things that require close inspection are the brake lines. Even the "hard" lines along the frame rail and the rear axle. Don't forget there are 3 flexible brake line, L and R front and the one from the frame to the rear axle.

Make certain to get the front ball joints checked, or is it old enough to have the twin I-beam front axle ?

Splurge and get new shocks. You'll be amazed at how much better it will ride.

Galaxie427 · 10-14-2008, 11:24 AM

The shocks look like they're brand new. I've got receipts for tie-rod ends from a few years back, and everything seems tight. We'll see, maybe next year I can go through all the maintenance and see what it needs. The previous owner did so much work to it (and kept wonderful records), it was a screamin' deal for $1200.

Thanks again for all the help!!

Pete