In the middle of a heater rebuild.......

[02hobiedave]

I need to find the hard rubber grommets that go inside the heater box for the flaps and other moving parts. Anyone found a source that I can order from. Was there an after market braket for the heater valve to hold it in place. All of my plastic fell apart upon taking the valve off. I Had the core pressure tested and no leaks then acid dipped so it's good to go for a couple more years. TIA

Dave

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[JackBennett]

The grommets I used were off the shelf at Ace Hardware. like .39 per piece. I think that is refrenced in the heater box rebuild FAQ. As for the brackets, I just cut a small piece of heavy sheetmetal to size, drilled holes for the mounting, painted it flat black, drilled it into the box and sealed it on with JB Weld. Worked great for me. Don't know of a kit or other fix. Strip caulk works excellently for sealing the box to the firewall, again I think that is in the FAQ. Good luck, I found mine to be easier than everyone said it would be.

[rijco]

Your box looks much cleaner and in better shape than the three boxes I have cracked open. The grommets can be had at most hardware stores if you don't mind soft rubber ones. I think the original grommets were more of a medium hard density, but it might not matter.

There is a repair kit for the heater valve flange - one of the '02 shops sells it but I can't remember which one. I think Blunt on this site can get you the large rubber grommets where the hoses pass through. Some of the bowdin cables that attach to the control panels are still available from BMW, but some are not.

The is an FAQ on this board that's very helpful also.

[bluedevils]

I used some Derlin bushings for the flaps from Home Depot's plumping section, faucet replacement stuff, don't remember exactly what they were. I had to enlarge the original holes a little but flaps work like they were made in the 21st century, smooth, an make nice noises when they close, similar to MB doors.. It is all in the details..

[02hobiedave]

I used some Derlin bushings for the flaps from Home Depot's plumping section, faucet replacement stuff, don't remember exactly what they were. I had to enlarge the original holes a little but flaps work like they were made in the 21st century, smooth, an make nice noises when they close, similar to MB doors.. It is all in the details..

Thats what I was looking for. I will look in the plumbing section of HD and see if I can find something. Thanks. I have used the FAQ heater rebuild to get this far and it has been a wealth of information.

[gwb72tii]

i've restored 2 heater boxes and as far as the support bracket for the heater valve goes, i fab'd one for my son's car out of sheetmetal and epoxied it to the box. works fine.

on my tii, i didn't bother to fab one at all. frankly the heater hoses hold the valve in place securely enough that the valve works normally without being hard mounted to the heater box. this will also allow the heater valve to be replaced easier.

[nbcbird]

For the record, any cracks in the plastic box can be easily repaired with ABS cement (as used for gluing fittings for ABS plumbing pipe).--Jim