Retrofitting heater/defroster

[1795]

Dan,

I do have a glove box and plan on removing it. I do expect that it will be a pain, but I have worked in tight places before and have long fingers (can palm a basketball in either hand and I am only 5" 10"). I imagine that there will be a lot of @@@@ & #### along the way.

Thanks for the suggestion with the windshield, hopefully I will not have to loosen it.

Jim

[Mark IV]

Originally Posted by 1795

. A little too cold for me to be messing around with things.

Candy Arse. It is over 10 degrees F! Go forth and drill!!!!

Of course we do have a heated building............

[1795]

Now if you are offering your heated facilities........I will gladly bring my candy arse your way....

[Mark IV]

Welcome to use it. I can give you a door lock code......of course you need to drive the ERA 50 miles in sub freezing temps, but hey, no problem.....I don't have to do it!

[DonC]

I would suggest you pull the windshield rather than tipping it forward for clearance to the defroster vents.
Pulling the windshield is relatively simple and the only difficult part is the 2 screws that hold the center support in. Take those out first.
Don't remove the side supports so you don't have to worry about getting the correct angle re-established. Just pull the 4 screws in each side and lift the frame out from between the supports. You might want to have an extra set of hands to lift the unit out since it's fairly heavy and will tend to fall backwards once the 4th screw is removed from each side. If you have windshield wipers remove the arms before you start.
When you're ready to reinstall the unit put a rag over the depression for the center support until you get two of the screws started on both sides of the windshield then pull the rag out. The rag will help prevent scratches to the dash from the center support as you're realigning the frame in the side supports.
DonC

[cscobra]

What DonC said is correct--I have removed my windshield from the stanchions and remounted it with no problems.

Overall, I wish I hadn't opted for the heater. I completed my car a year ago, and the heater has already sprung a leak (last November). I've not had time to deal with it yet, but at least it doesn't leak when the water supply is shut off. Doubt ERA can do anything about it since the kit was shipped to me in 2009, so I haven't bothered them about it.

I haven't decided yet whether or not to just eliminate the thing. At least the car is snug with the top (fits well) and side curtains in place.

[1795]

Well, the project has commenced. I took photos, but cannot upload them into an album so that I can post them here. I have then unit in place, but still need to add the heater hoses form the engine, attaché the wiring once I find where the lime green wire is , attach the defroster hoses to the unit. What a pain in the @@@ I had to remove the lower support screw extension, as it is way too long, I believe that someone else had mentioned that in their post. I removed the mounting screws for the dashboard and fought to support that and move it to gain access at the same time Luckily my partner Brenda was there to give a helping hand This is not a job for anyone who lacks flexibility or has put ona few extra pounds There is very little room to work with and you spend the majority of your time on your back underneath the dash. Once I can upload the photos you will be able to see the spider web of wires that I had to re-arrange to make room for the unit. I still have to straighten out the speedometer, it rotated slightly as there is little to no room between it and the heater unit I need to obtain a larger hex key to remove the plug in the manifold and may attach the heater hoses today, but then again I may wait until tomorrow when it is warmer .

A little frustrated, sore and tired right now.

So, basically I removed the air cleaner, wrapped the carb in Saran wrap to avoid any dust or particles getting in the motor and then placed the template on the firewall. Used a prick punch to mark the spots and then used a small drill to drill pilot holes. Removed the template and checked from under the dash to make sure that there was nothing in the way and then re-drilled the holes to the correct size. I looked for a stubby drill for the 3/8" holes but could not find one, would have been easier. Then I , cut the zip ties from the wiring to loosen things up took a close look and knew that I was going to be in trouble, removed the screws form the dash and that was when all of the swearing started! You have to move the dash a significant amount to get that heater unit underneath it. A lot of moving wires here and there, forgot to mention that you have to remove the two vertical supports underneath the dash, and spending hours on your back in tight places looking where the sun don't shine! Will get back to it tomorrow. Hopefully all the gauges will still work when I am done. Had ot move a lot of wiring around, and I still need to find where wire #20 is (light green).

Jim

[DanEC]

I figured it would be a chore to get it in place with the dash still hooked up in the car. Of course completely pulling the dash is somewhat of a chore too, so it's kind of like pick your poison. Sounds like you are on the downhill stretch now - just some assembly still required. Good luck and hope everything is working fine when you are done.

[fjrgary]

kinda late for you now but n.y. gave me a laundry list of things i had to do to get a n.y. vin no. for a registration. defrosters, back-up lights, flashers, etc, etc. this was after i had registered the car for two years already. went to plan B and registered in another more cobra friendly state. every thing was done via e-mail, no inspections no hassle. just have to have a mailing address in the state. also saves me from n.y. front plate law. by the way have you ever been to florida????

[1795]

So far so good. Will be finishing up everything shortly and taking it out for a test. Made it through my first NY inspection OK. Hopefully I do not have other issues.

I have been to Florida, but not in many years.

Jim

[1795]

It works!!! No leaks and I have heat. I will have pictures when I can get them loaded. It was a pain, but will be worth it in the long run.

Jim

[DanEC]

Good deal - Congratulations. Now you have heat with summer coming on - hopefully.

[1795]

Luckily there is that valve on top of the manifold to turn off the flow of antifreeze

Thanks to everyone for the advice and support!

[Kobura]

This is great thread. It should encourage all of us to take on projects on our cars knowing that we can rely on the expertise and experiences of supportive Club Cobra members. The obvious camaraderie and intelligent repartee provided as support to 1795 was wonderful to follow. This is evidence of how this site can be a unique and valuable benefit to all of us.

[1795]

Hopefully this attempt at photos works!


http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394886358

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394886401

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394886320

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394886108

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394886271

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394886058

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394885888

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394886014

More photos to follow if this works.

[1795]

More photos of the completed project.

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394903369

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394903414

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394903504

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394903566

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394903679

http://i328.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1394903727

All back together again and working firne.

Thanks.

Jim

[DanEC]

Looks like it was a job. All of that snow is depressing me though.

Dan

[1795]

You and me both I cannot wait for it to go away. Had a 50 degree day yesterday, but we had received 20 inches of snow the day before and everything was a muddy mess. Did not want to get the car filthy.

It was the kind of job you only want to do once. My head is still healing form all the scrapes from being on the floor underneath the dash.

[kevins2]

Looks like you're all set. Having finished my car the first week in January, I've used the heater a number of times. With the heater and heated seats, it is comfortable down to the low 40's if you're dressed properly. Not sure about the heater by itself - it definitely puts out heat but dissipates very quickly. So, helps a little but not much...

Hey Dan, I remember you said you were envious because I finished my car before you. Well, now I'm envious because you can drive yours! It's a beautiful day here with the temp close to 60 but the roads are still salty... need some heavy rain to wash that crap away.

[1795]

Kevin,

When the weather breaks we will have to get together some time. I will have to google West Chester PA to see how far away you are. I am in the southern tier of NY below Rochester.

Jim