heater core compatability

[narfire]

Wondering if a later (79-82) heater core would fit/work in a 72?
Looking at the heater pipes at the firewall, I see they are plugged with rust coloured muck. Just thinking the core would be the same.
I have access to a couple of later cores around here and could use them.
Thanks
Chris

[manoa matt]

Yep, it will fit, they are all the same.

[ventura ace]

Yep, it will fit, they are all the same.

Possibly not, Matt. I ran into a problem with this once. There are 2 different thicknesses, and I don't know which year the change was (or maybe it was a spider vs coupe thing). Anyway, I bought a used heater core from someone in the Fiat community a few years back, and it was too thick to fit into my heater box. Mine is a '70. The seller told me that the core came from a mid - 70's car. I'll try to remember to post a link to my photobucket site tonight to flag the difference. You could probably make the thinner (early) core fit in the later box, using spacers to keep it from banging around. However, the thicker (later) core will not fit in the early heater box.

Alvon

[manoa matt]

Ahh yes, I remember that thread now. Sorry about that Chris.

[narfire]

Thanks guys. When I pull the core from the 72, I'll see what its like compared to the 79 or 81 I have. The box on the 81 is in good shape I think.

[ventura ace]

Here is a link to a previous discussion on this topic, with a picture showing 2 different thicknesses of heater cores (about 3/8" difference in thickness).

http://fiatspider.com/f08/viewtopic.php ... ore#p35828


A