Heater core lifespan?

[The motor guy]

I've had my 07 dodge since day one everything maintained when it should be. It's seems like after 8 years or so the hvac begins to leak freon. Kind of sad imo. Anyways, it was the evaporator core inside the dash that was leaking. My buddy said I was an idiot for not changing the heater core while they had the dash out. 17 years and I still have the original heater core and it sill blows hot.

Now with that being said, I've always had the opinion that heater cores leak because nobody ever changes the coolant. I preferred to keep the oem one in there vs some aftermarket one that probably would fail after a few years. Opinions?

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Aftermarket heater cores seem to be garbage lately. I'd be afraid of changing a non-leaking OEM heater core and ending up having to do the job a year or two later. If you need to replace the factory one, so be it. But I wouldn't throw away good (but old) factory parts in today's world of garbage replacement parts.

 

[The motor guy]

Aftermarket heater cores seem to be garbage lately. I'd be afraid of changing a non-leaking OEM heater core and ending up having to do the job a year or two later. If you need to replace the factory one, so be it. But I wouldn't throw away good (but old) factory parts in today's world of garbage replacement parts.

Aftermarket parts are usually different in some way to not violate patents

 

[Chris142]

It's rare for a heater to last 150k or more. When we have a dash out for a repair it gets a heater.

 

[JHZR2]

I have 40yo cars with original heater cores. Good maintenance goes a long way. Evaporators see different pressure conditions, and worse, condensation combined with all kinds of dust and dirt. That makes acids and results in corrosion. Different for the heater core…

 

[TheBeaz]

that heater cores leak because nobody ever changes the coolant

I think that's the key. That Mopar 5 year HOAT orange coolant would turn to hell if you didn't change it.

 

[The motor guy]

It's rare for a heater to last 150k or more. When we have a dash out for a repair it gets a heater.

Do you think the shop gave me a heater core free of charge?

 

[Lubener]

Do you think the shop gave me a heater core free of charge?

No, they wouldn't stay in business doing that. The old OEM core might even outlast an aftermarket replacement.

Poor maintenance of the cooling system, overly taught (too short) heater hoses straining the nozzles or poor electrical grounding contributing to electrolysis are the reasons for core failure.

 

[Snagglefoot]

I have over 250,000 miles and 16 years on my heater core and radiator on my GM, using Dexcool, changed out every 5 years. Change your coolant. For me, that means draining the rad, filling it with distilled water, driving it to mix, draining the rad, and filling it with 100% concentrated coolant. That gets me to about 70/30 coolant/water. Lowest temp this winter was -33 F. ( no trip the Edmonton this winter). Getting complacent and not changing coolant in an older vehicle is not good.

 

[FT92]

my 99 accord has the same heater core 25 years now OEM.

 

[Chris142]

Do you think the shop gave me a heater core free of charge?

Most likely they added it into the price. Or they didn't replace it so you have to pay again when it goes bad

 

[CharBaby]

Do you think the shop gave me a heater core free of charge?

The only way you can know^^^ is to call them and ask them.

I've never replaced any of my own heater cores(PTL) as I do perform regular cooling system maintenance along with other maintenance items on my vehicles and I've had daily drivers that have been in their teens to 20 yrs old and several hundred thousand miles.

I have however helped others replace their heater cores which were neglected items. I mean, less than 10 yrs old and no maintenance. Sure, you can get a part that has seen good maintenance and still fail early however it is rare at least in my case.

 

[atikovi]

Aftermarket parts are usually different in some way to not violate patents

HUH? Any patent on heater cores expired 100 years ago.

 

[Donald]

I dropped some change down the defrost duct. A shop could use that to pay for a new heater core if the dash every had to come out.

 

[kschachn]

I have 40yo cars with original heater cores. Good maintenance goes a long way. Evaporators see different pressure conditions, and worse, condensation combined with all kinds of dust and dirt. That makes acids and results in corrosion. Different for the heater core…

Agreed. I have never changed a heater core as far as I can recall, but I’ve changed a lot of evaporators. Even the ancient vehicles in my sig all have their original heater cores.

However, I do keep up with coolant changes and the inside of the cooling systems as far as I can see are an excellent condition. This probably helps with corrosion from the inside out.

 

[KrisZ]

That’s why I change the coolant way sooner than what is recommended. Heater cores require a lot of disassembly and I’d rather not deal with that.

 

[WobblyElvis]

I've never changed a heater core. My oldest car at present is a 99 Dodge Caravan. I drain the rad and replace the lost coolant every 4 years.

 

[demarpaint]

I hope I don't jinx myself but I have the original heater core and radiator in my 88 E-150. I do maintain the cooling system, which probably helped.

 

[eljefino]

I've driven some junk and never changed a heater core.

My 82 Cadillac Cimarron needed it at 17 years but I put bars-leak in and that fixed it. Same with my 91 F150 in present day. 66 Biscayne needed one badly but I bypassed it seeing how it was a summer car.

Daily driven 18-y/o Saturn S-series, 99 Camry, 25-year old 95 F150, 18-year old Dodge Dakotas, etc never needed them.

My dad's Ford Fairmont needed one for at least five years but him being a true Scotsman didn't want to pay for it. It's apparently an involved job on Fox-bodies.

 

[Reggaemon]

Had to replace a Ford heater core that started leaking after four years. That is the only one I've ever had to replace, all the others lasted their lifetime for me.