1981 CJ7 Heater Core Question

Asking for some opinions. I have the original heater core, but when I acquired the Jeep it had been in a tent outdoors for 12 years without moving or being started.
  1. Should I even bother with the original heater core, or is it toast since it's been non operative for so long?
  2. Any suggestions on heater core manufacturers? Omix and Crown get mixed reviews, the majority of them not good.
Thanks!
 
Does it work?
Do a flush of the cooling system...
Refill with fresh coolant

See if it works as advertised.

Just because it is old doesn't mean it needs to be replaced.
 
I replaced mine years ago. Then when I did my motor swap, I jostled the tubes for the hoses and cracked it somewhere. Had to get another one. Went two years with it bypassed. Finally swapped it last winter. I got one from Advance and it works great. Can’t remember the brand, but was not Omix. It was the only one they offered. About $50.
 
I replaced mine years ago. Then when I did my motor swap, I jostled the tubes for the hoses and cracked it somewhere. Had to get another one. Went two years with it bypassed. Finally swapped it last winter. I got one from Advance and it works great. Can’t remember the brand, but was not Omix. It was the only one they offered. About $50.
Probably the Carquest Branded one, Which would likely have been manufactured by either Crown Automotive, or one of the Transamerica Brands at the time (Omix ADA..)
 
Probably the Carquest Branded one, Which would likely have been manufactured by either Crown Automotive, or one of the Transamerica Brands at the time (Omix ADA..)
I am not sure which brand it was, but it was carquest, and I know it was not crown or omix as I would have told them to keep their money.

I do know it is working and I have a good defroster again.
 
It wouldn't have said Omix or Crown on it anywhere, but it likely would have come from one of those manufacturers none the less, or from a Chinese manufacturer working under license from Transamerica Auto, there just aren't a lot of manufacturers making parts for Jeep CJs.
 
Does it work?
Do a flush of the cooling system...
Refill with fresh coolant

See if it works as advertised.

Just because it is old doesn't mean it needs to be replaced.
No idea if it works, the Jeep is in pieces at the moment, but I like the suggestion and it's worth testing once I get to that stage of the restoration.
 
It wouldn't have said Omix or Crown on it anywhere, but it likely would have come from one of those manufacturers none the less, or from a Chinese manufacturer working under license from Transamerica Auto, there just aren't a lot of manufacturers making parts for Jeep CJs.
Thanks for that bit of info.
 
I replaced mine years ago. Then when I did my motor swap, I jostled the tubes for the hoses and cracked it somewhere. Had to get another one. Went two years with it bypassed. Finally swapped it last winter. I got one from Advance and it works great. Can’t remember the brand, but was not Omix. It was the only one they offered. About $50.
Appreciate the feedback.
 
Asking for some opinions. I have the original heater core, but when I acquired the Jeep it had been in a tent outdoors for 12 years without moving or being started.
  1. Should I even bother with the original heater core, or is it toast since it's been non operative for so long?
  2. Any suggestions on heater core manufacturers? Omix and Crown get mixed reviews, the majority of them not good.
Thanks!
I'm with R3

If there's any way to salvage the original, you'll be much better off than having to resort to one of the poor quality repop options that remain
 
I'll third that opinion. If you can keep the original hang onto it. Also, something I didn't know until I found antifreeze in my floorboard, Jeep in their infinite wisdom made the CJ heater cores inlet and outlet port sizes different than the ports for the water jacket. So if you don't buy the correct hoses with different sized ends you'll get a leak either where they tie into the water jacket or right at the heater core.
 
I just rebuilt mine two years ago and still have a lot of the foam that you need to reseal everything. I just used an off the shelf heater core from Napa or Advance. I also did the K5 fan motor upgrade.
Go ahead and do yourself a favor and get new cables from MTS as well.

There's a sticky on Jeep Forum on the rebuild, it's pretty straight forward.

f097f559-43a9-4b40-b436-497c8f8da745-jpeg.343893


This was my method for enlarging the hole for the blazer motor
2612ac53-f8e2-4deb-b36b-9c32b723062f-jpeg.344657
 
I just rebuilt mine two years ago and still have a lot of the foam that you need to reseal everything. I just used an off the shelf heater core from Napa or Advance. I also did the K5 fan motor upgrade.
Go ahead and do yourself a favor and get new cables from MTS as well.

There's a sticky on Jeep Forum on the rebuild, it's pretty straight forward.

f097f559-43a9-4b40-b436-497c8f8da745-jpeg.343893


This was my method for enlarging the hole for the blazer motor
2612ac53-f8e2-4deb-b36b-9c32b723062f-jpeg.344657
Sorry for the long delay here, but thank you for the tips. Do you have a link for MTS? Thanks again.
 
I just rebuilt mine two years ago and still have a lot of the foam that you need to reseal everything. I just used an off the shelf heater core from Napa or Advance. I also did the K5 fan motor upgrade.
Go ahead and do yourself a favor and get new cables from MTS as well.

There's a sticky on Jeep Forum on the rebuild, it's pretty straight forward.

f097f559-43a9-4b40-b436-497c8f8da745-jpeg.343893


This was my method for enlarging the hole for the blazer motor
2612ac53-f8e2-4deb-b36b-9c32b723062f-jpeg.344657
@orange150 can the handles on those cables be changed? Thanks!
 
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