How do i change the block heater cord on a 2002 grand am gt. the end is severed right off, i was told a replacement is easily plugged into the block heater?

YOU MUST HAVE HAD A SHORT IN THE BLOCK HEATER OR THE 115 VOLTS TO THE HEATER MUST HAVE BEING SHORTING ON GROUND SOMEWHERE.

One end of the power cord you found has a common plug that gets plugged into an extension cord to normal house power. You need to trace the other end back to the engine. The block heater is installed in one of the freeze plug holes in the side of the block. If you find the end of the wire goes nowhere and don't see a heater installed, likely at some point the one that was there failed and was replaced with a normal freeze plug. You'd then need to install a new one (may be tricky if the water in the block is frozen though) Do not attempt to start a frozen engine as any water in the water pump can damage the pump impeller if you try to turn it. Your best bet at thawing it out is either to tow it somewhere that is warm or build a tent over it with a large tarp and use electric room heaters to warm it. (keep heaters away from tarp and make sure there are no fuel leaks) It takes several hours to warm it so be patient.
Good luck

The location of your block heater depends on which motor you have. If you have a 4.7L motor it is on the rear frost plug location on the right side of the engine (passenger side).


If you are installing a new one notice the direction the block heater points when it goes into the block (upwards).

If you have a 3.7L engine it looks like it is on the same side of the engine except that is is in the first frost plug location. Here is a picture of it.



Now if I understood your question wrong and you are just looking for the block hearts cord, open the hood and check inside the engine compartment or look agound your grill and front bumper area.

Good Luck

Often it is the end that plugs into the motor that fails as it is subjected to the most heat and vibration. If you can do a OHMs test it will tell you if the actual block heater is Ok. I would just try changing the whole block heater cord and then try to find a friend with a OHMs tester if it still does not work.. If you can follow the cord down with your fingers it is usually not difficult to unplug or re instate.

There is no specific spot for a block heater. A block heater can be in any location the block currently has a freeze plug in. You'll need to look over the block carefully - you will see several round "ports" on the block and one of them will have a wire coming out of it. A freeze plug looks kind of like a small dish in the block, whereas a block heater will look more like a flat plug with a wire. It could be on the side or back of your motor - rarely is there room for a block heater on the front of a motor. Look in the front grill or in the general area of the radiator and you should see one end of a male electric cord( like the end of a lamp cord you stick in the wall ) . Follow this wire to the engine and it will lead you to the location of the block heater. You will probably need an inspection mirror and a flashlight to find the other end ( in the block).
Hope this helps!

No. If you can get to it you can test it. If the cord can be disconnected. you can check it with an ohm meter. The heater can be check the same way. If you get continuity it is still working. All you have to do is set the meter on ohms (lowest setting) take the leads and touch them to the cord first.Leaving it plugged into the heater. If you get continuity then the unit is till working. if not then test them separate and see which is bad. If they both test good then check the ends of the cord for corrosion. clean and reinstall, check again they should work

Hello
If you have a frost plug type heater the cord does unplug from the unit.
if its a in line hose type heater chances are you wont be able to replace just the cord.
Most auto parts stores cary replacement parts
RD

have you checked the plugs and cords?

hello solangesolib ,

the altima's i have encountered , are extremely difficult to bleed the air out of the cooling system , sometimes we have to jack up the front of the car to (for lack of better terms) burp them , i have tryed flushing heater cores , replacing thermostats , to no avail , but the air pocket thing is a charicteristic of the beast . also , 1 other thing we see is the blend door actuator get out of sync with the hot / cold selector knob , the gear is down by the drivers right foot , in the open , easily verified , its like a slice of pie shaped gear , they do strip and / or get out of sync , then when you turn knob to hot it really isn't . between these two things, is all we have really seen be wrong . hope that fix ya .

I would repair the old one, but do it right.