Is replacing the heater core on a Toyota Camry a job for professional mechanics only? Where can I get some repair videos on the removal of the heater core? Is $800 reasonable for a garage to do it?
I’ve never done this, and don’t look forward to ever having to do it. But I expect most anybody with good diy skills, along with plenty of patience, the shop manual description of the procedure, and plenty of time, and no worries about getting a stiff neck could do it. Did you try Googling “Camry heater core replacement”? There may be some u-tube vdos out there.
$800? Depends on how many billing hours to do the job. But it seems maybe a tad high. $600-$700 is what I’d have guessed. Let me put it this way. If $800 was between me and a working heater core, I’d live with a cold car. But remember I live in San Jose California.
I don’t know about the Camry, but on the Corolla, someone held up a heater core and they built a car around it, so it is very costly to get replaced. The AC has to be put on a recovery machine to discharge it to get to the heater core, so yes, it does have to be done in a shop by a licensed professional.
are you absolutely sure you need a new heater core, what are the symptoms?
@keith…I love the line: " but on the Corolla, someone held up a heater core and they built a car around it." I have changed a few heaters cores and luckily they were accessed from under the hood with a few bolts on the firewall. I did have one heater core in a Jeep Cherokee that I just disconnected (connected both heater hoses together) when I read the remove and replace instructions. I was living in Arizona at the time so it was no big deal.