2002 F-150 Heater Core Issue?

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Blah - 19 Nov 2006 03:15 GMT

I have a 2002 Ford F-150 with approx 72,000 miles on it. The other day I
heard a "sloshing" noise coming from the passenger side front. I initially
ignored it thinking it would "Go Away". Unfortunately, it is not "Gone
Away". So I began investigating today and discovered that the carpet on the
passenger side was wet but my floor mats and seats were not. So this ruled
out leaving the window open during the recent rain.

So this leads to the questions:

1) Can this be the Heater Core? I currently do not smell a "sweet" smell or
any smell of anti-freeze at the current time.
2) Is the heater Core located on the passenger side?
3) How do I fix it? I would like to do this myself.

Also researching on line a found a TSB # 01-15-6 on
www.ford-trucks.com/tsb/fulltext/show_article.php?tsb=01-15-6 could this be
the issue?

Thanks for your support in advance.
Gary

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putt@webtv.net - 19 Nov 2006 14:05 GMT

>I have a 2002 Ford F-150 with approx
> 72,000 miles on it. The other day I
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
> discovered that the carpet on the
> passenger side was wet....

It's a leaker....The core is in the plenum located behind the glove box.
Replacing is a chore but not difficult. Look for a good-sized plastic
box with small hex-head screws. That is the cores' cover. There are two
hoses fitted to the core in the engine compartment. Attach a copper
ground wire to the new core and run it to a frame point. I've even
check that ground for zero resistance with a VOM. (There is an earlier
post from a man with a nightmare heater core problem) Keep the cooling
system maintained properly. Buy a new core from a parts store, not from
a Ford dealer. Check the heater hoses while you are at it.....good time
to replace them!

Dave S(Texas)

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Whitelightning - 19 Nov 2006 15:06 GMT

Everybody always jumps to the worst case senerio. How about something as
simple as the drain for the AC exaporator is plugged up and as such the
condenstaion is leaking into the cab instead or out on the ground.

Whitelightning

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Blah - 19 Nov 2006 17:53 GMT

Where would this be located? How easy/difficult would it be to unblock it?
TIA,
Gary

> Everybody always jumps to the worst case senerio. How about something as
> simple as the drain for the AC exaporator is plugged up and as such the
> condenstaion is leaking into the cab instead or out on the ground.
>
> Whitelightning

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Mikey S. - 22 Nov 2006 14:07 GMT

Easy enough to distinguish if it's a heater core leak or not..touch the wet
rug and lick your finger and decide if it's antifreeze or water, and then
use that as the first step in finding the problem...if it's not antifreeze
then it's not the heater core.

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Mike S.

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