Somebody asked on a previous digest how to get the heater out of an 80 something Spider. The last one I changed, I had to raise the dash to gain clearance. 4 bolts hold the dash to tabs up underneath around the windshield. I removed them and then suspended the dash from the top of the windshield. Besides removing the obvious stuff, there are 4 studs coming down from the cowell that the heater attaches to. A good contortionist can access them with a 1/4" drive socket set, long extension and universal. Take the two nuts off the passenger side and loosen but leave the two on the driver's side. The heater is slotted and will slide over those nuts. If you do take them off, put them back on before installing the heater. The rubber gasket that seals the heater to the cowell is probably stuck and will take a little persuasion to get loose. And, yes, you will probably make a mess so take the carpet out. I don't believe there is enough clearance with the carpet in anyhow. While you have the heater box out, drill a small drain hole in the very bottom, under the motor. One of the main reasons for heater motor failure is water leaks in and has no way to get out. Better to get a little water on the carpet than to have to change a blower motor. Skip Patnode '67 Duetto Norfolk, Va. -- to be removed from alfa, see http://www.digest.net/bin/digest-subs.cgi or email "unsubscribe alfa" to [email protected]
