I have a unidentifiable leak under the dash. The car has been dry and not driven under wet conditions. I do not have a window wash resovoir and for that sake do not have windsheild washing capabilities (manual).

The leak is coming on the passenger side and dripping near the air box and under the heat duct. It seems oily at first but seems too thin. No signs of leaking under the hood or on the cowl.

Any ideas?

Does it taste like coolant? Could be heater core, wiper arm pivot seals, and my personal favorite the one that my car has windshield gasket leaks. The way you narrow it down is easy. Coolant means heater core leak. Run a garden hose through the cowl at the base of the wiper pivots to find out if they are leaking(do this before the next one). And finally run water all over the windshield gasket. Another possibilty is water coming in through the air intake for the heater, but that to happen the cowl area would have to be fairly well of debris. good luck

I think you right about the heater core leak. I removed the clips to the heater core cover and there was some moisture that came out. Who would you commision to work on this? Regular mechanic? or car restorer? This is my first 40 year old car, I had a 68 Firebird but at the time it was 12-15 years old.

Do you think I should have someone check out the connection or just go ahead and pick up the heater core and find an installer. I can rule out the windshield seal and the air ducts. The car has been dry outside of careful washing.

Thanks for your suggestions.

You don't need no stinking heater...................

Wait, winter's coming..........

nevermind...........

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Ed
64 Valiant 225 / 904 / 42:1 manual steering / 9" drum brakes

There are brand new heater cores on eBay all the time and it's actually pretty easy to change out - remove/plug the heater hoses at the firewall as well on the core itself, remove the 4 nuts holding the blower motor to the firewall, carefully remove the defroster vent tubes on the heater, pull the heater box assembly into the car, remove the cables from the control unit, and remove the numerous spring type clips holding the 21 halves of the heater box together. There may be a crew or two holding the core in place - can't remember. Reassembly is reverse of above. This is as best I remember without actually consulting the FSM.

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65 Dart station wagon slant 6 - now under construction
47 Dodge Custom 4 Door sedan
87 D100 Short Bed slant 6

Retired USAF 1966-1986
Retired US Postal Service 2004-2014

Not necessary to get a heater core off e-bay. Local part stores can get them. Just be forwarned, most heater cores have one of the tubes in the wrong position. The tubes should be 1 1/2 inches apart center to center. Not just at the end, but all the way down there length. It is a simple fix for a radiator shop to reposition the tube.

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Charrlie_S
65 Valiant 100 2dr post 170 turbo
66 Valiant Signet 170 nitrous
64 Valiant Signet
64 Valiant 4dr 170
64 Valiant 4dr 225

HI
I just replaced the heater core in my 66 Val and ran into a problem with the pipes. First I disconnected the heater hose under the hood and made a loop back to the water pump so I could drive it while I worked on it.
I got a heater core from local parts store made by MODINE and when I tried to force it in the air box the plastic cracked , the tube was too high. I got a second heater core from a company called 4-SEASONS , the tubes lined up but the sheetmetal frame around the core needed to be trimmed with a sheet metal cutter. It is in with no leaks and lots of heat output.
These cores were in the $50 range , my thought for you would be to spend a little more money if you can afford it to get a nicer fit.
When I pulled the box out the air inlet on the top had a foam gasket that had deterioated. I went to Home Depot and for $2 I bought a block of puddy used by electricians seal electric wires going thru an outside wall like an A/C, this puddy worked very nicely to seal the top of the air box.
Good Luck with your car.
Steve