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How to Fix Heater Piping for Rear Heater Nipple on Nissan Pathfinder | Part 92414 | Redneck Fixes

I recently broke the nipple off of the heater hose assembly that connects to the heater core on my 2005 Nissan Pathfinder.  In researching a replacement for the assembly (part 92414) I found that it was going to be between $180 to $250 to fix it.  In a failed attempt to look for just the piece that has the nipple, which is labeled 92415 on the schematic below (courtesy of Courtesy Parts) I was just about to purchase the entire assembly.

Click to enlarge.

NIssan Pathfinder Heater Piping Assembly Schematic
Nissan Pathfinder Heater Piping Assembly Schematic

Then I got a call from my mechanic friend who was also trying to help me come up with a solution without having to buy the entire assembly.  He had a similar problem with a BMW that came into his shop and in speaking with a parts representative at O’Rielly Parts he was recommended Flow Mix Plastic Welder from VersaChem.  In trying it out on the BMW it worked great so we came up with a plan to fix my broken nipple.

I purchased a 5/8 to 3/4 heater hose connector.  We then sawed off the connector just behind one of the lips, leaving about 2mm of connector behind the lip.  This created a perfect fit into where the nipple used to connect by creating a perfect union between the two lips.  We placed Plastic Welder on the inside just behind the lip so that we had a seal from the inside and inserted the hose connector into the opening of the other connector.  We then took the remaining amount of Plastic Welder and created a seal around the outside of where the two lips join.  (It’s best to have on latex style gloves when doing this)  Make sure to create the seal all the way around the connector.

As you can see in the images below, the hose connector created a new nipple, which happens to stick out a bit further, and is stronger than the original nipple.

We let the epoxy set for about 90 minutes before connecting the hose to it.  It’s been 4 days and it’s working like a charm.  There is no evidence of leaking at the seal.

 

Flow Mix Plastic Welder by VersaChem
Flow Mix Plastic Welder by VersaChem
Broken Nipple - Before
Broken Nipple – Before
5/8 to 3/4 Hose Connector
5/8 to 3/4 Hose Connector

 

Fixed Nipple - After
Fixed Nipple – After

 

Good luck and if you have any questions please leave a comment below.

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