Car: 1997 Honda Accord LE Salvaged - Daily Driver (Not worth more than a couple hundred) My car has been leaking coolant into the passenger floorboard. I see a broken hose and a hole in the wall where it should go out. The thing is the radiator was changed only a couple thousand miles (6-8k) ago because it overheated. I've googled and it seems like it's going to the heater core? How important is it? I don't use the heater, ever. What is it connecting to? In the mean time I've connected a tube so it leaks out of the car and I'm continually refilling the overflow tank.

 

I am hoping it is a drain tube. But why does it leak so much that every time I turn...I can hear it and see it dripping out? Help please.

 

You have the drain for the AC on that side also which has a rubber drain tube that exits the lower firewall. It would drain water. Your heater core is just for heat and has two hoses at the firewall inlet and outlet. If you removed them from the fire wall and used a connector you could bypass the heater core. You would have no heat at all.

 

First make sure you know what's leaking.

The heater core would leak anti-freeze; that has a distinctive smell & it's slimy.

The evaporator drain tube will leak water. Maybe dirty, but still plain water.

 

At first I thought it was water but it's developed a green stain which is the same as my coolant and it does smell a bit like coolant.
Even though I've connected it to the outside with a rubber tube..it's still leaking. Starting to think it's the heater core. I googled about the heater core and you'd have to remove the whole dash to get to it? Sounds like tons of work.

 

Yeah, that's a big job. That's why I wanted you to be sure you knew what's leaking.

 

It is a ton of work, but dont cheap out and get a new core and anything like hoses you can replace while you're under there.

 

if you do not use the heater as you stated, just bypass it,,
Kris mentioned it to you,, re rout the 2 hoses together that go into the heater core , disconnect both hoses at firewall that go into the core ,
get a pipe and install it between the 2 hoses, put some hose clamps and voila',, cheap fix
chk for leaks after the work is done

 

I don't like telling someone to eliminate the heater core but I have had my share of low dollar vehicles where you just make do. I had a fifteen dollar Dodge Dart and Twenty five dollar one back in the eighties. The fifteen dollar one had nothing to attach the gas tank straps to from body rust but I came up with a solution and it lasted a year. Work was only two miles from home.