Has anyone ever removed the lines from the heater core and ran hose instead? I am thinking of welding inlet pipes on the heater core and then running hose instead. Thoughts?

 

Seems like a lot of trouble to avoid O rings..., but should work. In a D2 the coolant is always circulating thru the heater core, there is no on/off coolant valve like in a D1.

 

I'm pretty sure only the 3.9L has a valve for the coolant. I know my 96 D1 pumped coolant through the heater core all of the time. I always wondered about adding one to bypass it... even if it was manual. Not a good idea on a D2 with the stock coolant plumbing though.

 

I got the new o-rings and the heater core is still leaking at the fittings. I just figured this would be easier. I have a neighbor that does refrigeration and appliance work and has everything to weld the fittings on.