Hello All,

I have a 1999 XC with 91,000 miles on the odometer. I have never replaced the heater core or the a/c evaporator. It appears now that both are leaking (lucky me!). My question to everyone is, in your collective experience, how long do these two parts last before they fail?

A follow up question. What is the cost to replace these items?

Thanks to all who reply.

Hugh

Hello to all who responded!

Thanks for your replies and making me aware that if I do have leak, it may not necessarily be the a/c evaporator. My independent garage will typically inject freon with an ultraviolet dye and then look for leaks to confirm: if there is a leak and where it is coming from. Since I've never replaced the a/c evaporator on this car and it has over 91,000 on the odometer, I thought that was the most likely cause for the a/c not blowing as cold as it should. I'll let you all know what the final diagnosis is. If the a/c evaporator is ng, I plan on having the heater core replaced at the same time. It's never been replaced and during the winter, I get faint whiffs of anti-freeze coming into the car cabin. I don't see any leaks of coolant under the hood and I've checked the rug in the front where the driver and passenger's feet rest and both areas are dry.

Thanks, Hugh

The heater core is a 2-3 hour DIY with no mechanical skill required, except for catching coolant before it gets to the carpet :)

The evaporator is a diffferent story. The dealer charges 10 hours of labor! So, make sure it is indeed the evaporator that is leaking. Add a can of yellow dye and check every part of the system. The dryer/accumulator/expandion tank can crack or get porus from road salt, the hoses can take a beating.
Checking the evap for a leak requires taking the kick panel out on the passenger side, removing the fan relay and looking through the hole with a flash light.

My 1998 evap is still OK after 152K.

Klaus
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I still miss my 164

Do you know for sure it is the evaporator? I thought mine was bad but it turned out to be the lower hose that was leaking that goes under the radiator.This was on a '99 S-70.It had corroded through.

evaporator jobs is expensive, here in sweden the evaporator will cost you 300 - 350 usd. the job will cost you 1500 - 2000 usd.
they have to lift of the entire dashboar to get to the evaporator.
check at the pictures at this link and you will get an idea.
http://www.pettson.info/bilder/evaporatorbyte%20V70/evaporator.html
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V70 2,5T -98

Claes,

Thanks!

Hugh

the dryer is a weak point on these cars, recently replaced mine. be sure to do a proper seek for leaks before u replace the evaporator. my local dealer tol me that the evaporator is a week point on 850 up to 96.
somthing is different on v70 97 - because they don`t seem to crack as easy.
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V70 2,5T -98