I have been searching this morning for some info about replacing the heater core in a 01 Regular Cab 2.5L. I found a few but there are some mixed comments.

Does Steering Column need to be removed, does the entire dash have to be removed? Just looking for some tips, I may knock it out this week.

Wayne

 

How-to here: https://www.ranger-forums.com/genera...ge-w-ac-24801/

No, steering column doesn't need to be removed, but it does need to be lowered to get dash pulled back enough to access screws and bolts

 

Would just like to say thank you, got the heater core swapped out this past weekend!!

Took right at 3-3.5hrs from start to finish!

Wayne

 

Thanks for updating the post

Good work, not an easy job.

Just FYI, when I change coolant I back flush my heater core.
I know which heater hose is IN and which is OUT on all my vehicles, IN is the warmer one when heater is ON, I put white tape on IN.

After draining coolant I put garden hose on OUT hose and point IN hose down at the ground, then back flush it
It just cleans out any debris that may have gone IN but can't get OUT because tubes are too small, these blockages can prevent coolant from protecting that area so it starts to corroded and then leak.

Doesn't take long on any vehicle, regular flush is fine, but back flush is better

 

That's a good idea! I had flushed the coolant system out about s month ago when the core was bypassed. Hope that was enough to prevent future damage.

Wayne