Having the heater core in place or the loop in place is moot. Same thing. You
still have hot coolant going through them. The difference is when the fan is
turned on at the rear core. it will disapate some heat that would otherwise
return to the engine. If my core was going to be out a while, and I still had to
contend with cold weather, I would just plug it off on both sides. That way all
the heat would be directed to the front of the van...Radiator and front heater.
Will help keep it toasty.

John Rodgers
"88GL Driver

Tony DeMille wrote:

> i have one last question about the temporary fix of my rear (under bench)
> heater leak.
>
> (history) i had many responses to my last email and they were all very
> helpful. many reassured me that the leak was common and that the "o" ring
> was probably to blame. several ideas were posed for fixing the leak. among
> them was the removing the unit and either plugging the hoses or connecting
> them with a "U" type connection. i did end up removing the heater as a unit
> (until i get the moola to buy a new one) leaving the two hoses that come in
> from the engine compartment hanging. i then used the "U" type connection
> suggestion with some new heater hose and some wormdrive clamps. this seems
> to work great. no leaks. no soaking of the carpet. no risk of toxic fume
> overload.
>
> (question) the thing that bothers me is that right after i got done with
> this fix, i recieved an email from ken lewis telling me not to make any type
> of "U" connector fix as it will only send warm coolant back to the cool side
> of the engine.
>
> what is the right thing to do here?!
>
> i need a qualified, correct answer on this one before it's too late.
>
> thank you as always for you input
>
> tony
> '90GL