Want to install an Engine Block Heater yourself? This guide may help.

[mldoc]

Received mine earlier this week. It seems as if the split-loom has now been replaced with some sort of lower profile silver material. l plan on installing it at the first oil change, as I unfortunately have nowhere to plug it in on a regular basis currently.

[jkanderson7]

Used the guide and photos to install my EBH and although I had to be a contortionist, I managed to install from under the car with feet facing front - had to elevate the car a bit to slide under but I did it. After installing, was wondering if it would be more efficient to plug the power line into the element first, then insert into the block - it was kinda dicey plugging it in by feel, after finding the actual element insertion was such a breeze.

Don't know about fuel savings yet, but it sure is nice to have warm air right away - that sold my wife on this purchase/installation right away!

[efusco]

Originally Posted by jkanderson7

After installing, was wondering if it would be more efficient to plug the power line into the element first, then insert into the block

Won't work, there's not enough room to get the core into the space with the plug attached.
Congrats on getting it installed...you'll appreciate the benefits right away.

[John CCP]

Would it do any harm to use an EBH at home and block the grill for faster engine warm up when there's no outlet available?

[efusco]

Originally Posted by John CCP

Would it do any harm to use an EBH at home and block the grill for faster engine warm up when there's no outlet available?

no harm at all (if you stay within the outside air temp range recommended in the grill block thread)...it's what many of us do.

[Rxmxsh]

This thread is great! However, I don't have ramps and for me, I'd rather install from the top if possible. Can someone direct me to DIY thread for a top install?

[nbj6879]

Can someone take a pic of the EBH after it has been installed. I used a mirror and light and I still can not find where it goes. Does it go into a slot?

Thanks
Nick

04' Prius

PS Never mind found one in another thread.

[altruistguy]

Hello folks,

Thanks primarily to Green Hokie's excellent "install from below" instructions, I am now the proud owner of a self-installed (and functioning!) Engine Block Heater!

And boy, that thing about Fire_Engineer's "DNA Distribution Tour" really is true. My right hand had no fewer than five blood-producing scrapes on it.

One cool thing about doing this myself is that the money I saved by installing it myself (i.e., anywhere from $90 to $300, based on the experiences of others as indicated in various threads) was enough to pay for the entirety of:

The block heater itself ($49 from MetroTpn.com)
Low Profile Ramps ($39.94 from Amazon)
A Pair of Chocks ($9.94 from Amazon) and
A Digital Heavy Duty Timer - for use inside my garage ($18.40 from Amazon)

Because my Amazon purchase was over $25, the three things I got there shipped for free too.

Incidentally, my plan to avoid forgetting to unplug is to run a loop of the (heavy duty) extension cord through the driver's side door handle -- thus I will not be able to get in the car without being reminded to first unplug the block heater.

I'm really excited about trying the EBH tomorrow morning! It was about 12F this morning -- and I'm looking forward both to a slightly more comfortable (i.e., warmer) trip and somewhat better gas mileage during the first few five to ten minutes of each trip.

Eric E. Haas

[Slartibartfast]

Originally Posted by Rxmxsh

This thread is great! However, I don't have ramps and for me, I'd rather install from the top if possible. Can someone direct me to DIY thread for a top install?

Hobbit has one on his site here.

Prius heat-efficiency mods

The first page covers the take-apart. You need to do everything there first (except take the hood off). The link at the bottom takes you to the second page where you install it.

Some personal tips. First, when it says you need to wrap your whole body over the engine compartment to reach down, you really do. I'm 6'6" and thought I could reach low enough to get the coil in just with my arms. I couldn't. Second, it really does help to get a feel for everything before doing it for reals. If you've never messed around with the car before, this will take you far longer than the 30-60 minutes advertised. Also, listen to all the nitpicky stuff that people here have told you. I wasn't sure, but did it anyway. It helped immensely, like this.

Before you go outside, the first thing you want to do is open the box and repeatedly plug and unplug the heater cord from the core. They stick, especially the new ones, and you need to get a feel for how they fit and try to soften the rubber a bit. You'll need to apply quite a bit of lateral force at just the right angle to get that secured.

Once you get everything off, also mentioned on most of the threads, is to reach down into the space with your fingers and find the hole in the block. You don't just want to find that, but you want to feel for where the spring latch will catch on the block. You also want to put the core down there, and try to get it partially in without latching it before putting the thermal grease on. Once you feel how deep and at what angle your arm needs to be, it's a lot easier to find the core's home when it is covered in grease and about to slip out of your fingers. If I remember right, the hole is on the driver's side of the block, and the latch is about 135 degrees toward the firewall, so that's the approximate angle you want to face the latch when you put it in. You also need to make a note to turn the cord the same angle.

If I had it to do again, I might spring for the ramps, but I learned a lot about the basic setup of the car this way, and how to clean the cowl, replace the wiper arms and motor, and some other things if I had to.

Best of luck.

[Rxmxsh]

Originally Posted by Slartibartfast

Hobbit has one on his site here.

Prius heat-efficiency mods

The first page covers the take-apart. You need to do everything there first (except take the hood off). The link at the bottom takes you to the second page where you install it.

Some personal tips. First, when it says you need to wrap your whole body over the engine compartment to reach down, you really do. I'm 6'6" and thought I could reach low enough to get the coil in just with my arms. I couldn't. Second, it really does help to get a feel for everything before doing it for reals. If you've never messed around with the car before, this will take you far longer than the 30-60 minutes advertised. Also, listen to all the nitpicky stuff that people here have told you. I wasn't sure, but did it anyway. It helped immensely, like this.

Before you go outside, the first thing you want to do is open the box and repeatedly plug and unplug the heater cord from the core. They stick, especially the new ones, and you need to get a feel for how they fit and try to soften the rubber a bit. You'll need to apply quite a bit of lateral force at just the right angle to get that secured.

Once you get everything off, also mentioned on most of the threads, is to reach down into the space with your fingers and find the hole in the block. You don't just want to find that, but you want to feel for where the spring latch will catch on the block. You also want to put the core down there, and try to get it partially in without latching it before putting the thermal grease on. Once you feel how deep and at what angle your arm needs to be, it's a lot easier to find the core's home when it is covered in grease and about to slip out of your fingers. If I remember right, the hole is on the driver's side of the block, and the latch is about 135 degrees toward the firewall, so that's the approximate angle you want to face the latch when you put it in. You also need to make a note to turn the cord the same angle.

If I had it to do again, I might spring for the ramps, but I learned a lot about the basic setup of the car this way, and how to clean the cowl, replace the wiper arms and motor, and some other things if I had to.

Best of luck.

Thanks. I ended up using Hobbit's guide, and went from the top. I tried from the bottom first, but could NOT find the stupid hold. The whole thing took 1.25 hours, going in from the top.