I tell you, the gods of heater control valves are looking down upon me today.
My original HCV leaked so I bought a reproduction. It didn't fit properly, was poor quality, and leaked in less than a year.
I bought a NAPA replacement diaphragm and attempted to repair my old one, thinking I'd send it out to a rebuild service if it failed.
A bench check of my repair efforts showed it was unsuccessful, so I took the original, the repro, and my heater core to the local radiator shop for him to do full-up testing to find out the extent of the problems.
I talked to the shop today: he REPAIRED my old valve, said the repro had no value, and verified the core had no leaks. Total cost: $40.
This is much cheaper (at least half price) than sending it out to a valve repair service. You might consider checking your local radiator shop if your valve leaks. I did this on impulse and am glad I did.
Bill
