broken heater core question

[webby]

Hi guys, I'm new and this is my first post.

I am in Australia I have a 2000 festiva 1.5, recently it was dripping fluid in the carport so my wife rang the nrma (our roadside assistance organization in oz) and the guy that came out to look at it said that it had a cracked heater core.

So I've done the temporary fix of disconnecting the to hoses and sealing the end up, the next stage is to get a new core (they don't seem too expensive - first google search and i found a supplier here that has them for about 150 bucks) my question is... Do i have to take out the whole dash to get to it ? and if so just how the hell do i go about doing that lol.

when I asked the mechanic that diagnosed it about getting a shop to fix it he puckered his lips and make that mechanic sucking noise that always comes before bad news and said it was a mammoth job, so I guess that the big cost is the labour involved in just getting to the bloody thing. I just cant afford to pay someone to fix it right now but really want it fixed, just how big a job is it for me to attempt myself.

thanks in advance.

kevin

[bravekozak]

This has been discussed before. Please use the search engine to find the appropriate threads. The Festiva dash is a lot easier to remove than a lot of other vehicles. It will take an experienced Festiva guy about three hours. Inexperienced, about seven hours. But, the results will be very gratifying. Just remember about that hidden screw when you go to take apart the blower housing. Good luck.