Heater delete

[Iluv69s]

Hey guys, great site and pics !!!    Ive been looking at all the pics and have not found a good pic of what I was looking for. Maybe I should be asking in another thread..??    What type of fastener did they use to attach the heater delete plates?   Thanks in advance !   max

[Sixteen Grand Sedan #56]

The firewall plates are held on with a 5/16 head screw. If you look at a 67 or 68 assembly manual you will find a sheet showing the heater delete. This also lists the part numbers for the pieces as well as the screws, #9419303. Then by looking at other pages you will discover that the same part number screw is also used on the resistor on the top inside box of the heater assembly. That is a common item you should be able to find. However, my experience is that not all these screws are identical.

Good luck and I appreciate your attention to detail.

[Iluv69s]

Thanks Robert,

that is what I was looking for. As far as detail, I am trying where it is practical and feasable.
Although I am trying to use some parts that Ive had around for some years now for the build...as my budget is not unlimited.
But, Im sure I can source some of the correct screws.

Thanks, Max

[Jon Mello]

Max,

Below are some pictures of original heater delete plates as mounted on the firewall.








The screws would look like these cowl plenum duct screws. (photos by Paul Lasiter).





Heartbeat City sells screws that they say are correct for heater delete plates.

[Jon Mello]

Here are some photos of original GM heater delete plates for the firewall. These were for sale on ebay a few months back. I forgot to note the seller.

[Jon Mello]

Here is what Heartbeat City is selling for heater delete screws for the firewall plates.

[Jon Mello]

Here's are more heater delete pieces, courtesy of Robert Lodewyk.

A front and rear view of the block off plate used inside of a '67 or '68 Camaro.
This mounted above the radio in place of the heater controls.





A front and rear view of the block off plate used inside of a '69 Camaro.
This mounted to the right of the tach or gas gauge in place of the heater controls.





A view of the "W" that is typically found stamped into the large firewall plate.

[Iluv69s]

Hey Jon,

Thanks a bunch for the pics...good stuff !!! leads to a few more questions.

 So next question is what did they do on the hetaer delete cars for the firewall pad?? 
Did they have a pad that had no cutout for the heater core access?
Were heater delete plates seamsealed to make weathertight?? looks like remains of some kind of sealer on that one plate..??

thanks again !!

[69Z28-RS]

I would guess that MOST of the Camaros/Z28s converted for TransAm and IMSA GT racing came originally with heaters, and probably had them removed and a 'homemade plates' made to cover the hole; cutting a piece of metal out would be faster for most racers than finding and ordering the 'delete' plate?   I had two friends who raced '69 Z28's SCCA and in those series, and one of them was ordered (with factory 4-wheel disk brakes) and the other was bought off the lot, driven straight to the shop for conversion, and used the service duty 4-wheel disk brake rear (~$700 OTC jobber price at that time).

[Sixteen Grand Sedan #56]

My understanding is that starting with 1969 Federal law required a windshield defroster. Thus the heater delete option was eliminated. This would also explain why that sheet is NOT in the assembly manual. However, they did still produce the dash and firewall pieces as a service item.

Yes, the firewall pad would still have that area covered.

While I'm certain that some knowledgeable racers certainly did order 68 and earlier cars with the delete option, most probably did not.

However, my experience is that most heater delete plates have come out of regular cars in the state of Hawaii.

The plug used to eliminate the heater hoses from the engine had the 3/8 square hole, the same as used on the passenger cylinder Head of a 68 up small block. These tend to be hard to find new as most replacemends are the hexagon version. When I did mine some 20+ years ago I found the correct new plugs in an electric motor sales/repare shop. New electric motors have these plugs screwed in where the wiring conduit is run. The only difference is these are galvanized coated as I doubt the originals ever were.

Robert

[Jon Mello]

Max, to add to what Robert said... yes there was sealer between the firewall plate and the firewall. Use the 3M strip caulk (or dum-dum as some people like to call it) for sealing things up.

Camaros (and other cars) built and sold in the Philippines also had heater deletes in them when new, even the '69s. Federal law required a defroster beginning Jan 1, 1968 so I believe it was possible to get a heater delete Camaro in the Continental United States prior to that date. Yes, the pad would not have had the cut-out area since there was no heater core.

I would agree that most (but not all) road racing Camaros probably had a heater in them originally, but not for long.