Central tunnel access

Due to a leaking hose to the heater I may need to remove the “furniture” covering the central tunnel to gain access to the steel pipes in the tunnel and the associated hose/clips. There is no doubt a wrong and right way to do  this.
I want the  simplest with least disturbance to the internals.
Clearly the seats have  to come out but what else? Does the instrument panel need to come out.
Any tips will be greatly appreciated.
TF135

 

i am sure i saw a thread where this was done, the centre console comes out as does the stereo and the surrond, and then the pipes came out of the hole where the gear lever was i think?

I will look for the thread

here it is


 

Thank you for finding that video.
Grief that looks a very tedious and in some respect arduous tav overall. 
I hope not to have to change the steel pipes and if there is some corrosion on the end of the pipes I would probably opt to treat it and apply some JB Weld repair to make a smooth surface.
For me the important bit in the video was the fact that the seats appeared to remain in place.
Based on a quick inspection a day or two ago I saw two screws (a pair with one each side of the tunnel) and little else holding the central tunnel in place. It must be held captive by other components such as the heater control panel and other parts.
Can anyone confirm how much of the rest of the car has to come out to get access to the rear hoses, and ideally how it is achieved please?
 

You have to remove the gear lever knob, gently prise out the plastic gear lever housing and gaiter. It is held in by clips and can be freed with gentle persuasion.
Then remove the heater knobs and the radio and the switches at the bottom which just unclip once you have freed the fascia or you can leave them in and remove the connectors to allow you to remove the fascia, again held in by clips. Once that is removed you can peer inside and see the heater valve.
I haven't taken the full centre consul out but as you say there are screws holding it to the tunnel. I am sure you wouldn't need to remove the seats. Maybe just peel the carpet away.

pic taken at time of sound deadening and you can clearly see the screw in the tunnel. I am sure there are others, maybe in the centre pocket and at the front.
 

It is not difficult just fiddly and some care and patience are required.
Good luck.

I wrote an article about changes the hoses and pipes associated with the interior heater
MGF Heater Hoses & Pipes Replacement - MG Car Fans

A lot of the interior has to come out to get the pipes in the centre console out, they must have been one of the first items to have been installed in the car on the assembly line.

That is a very helpful document thank you.
If I don’t have to remove the heater pipes but just need to renew the hoses into the engine bay do you think it possible to do that without renewing the pipes?
As initial posting I have a leak in the region of the joint between the hose from the engine to the short hose that passes through the “diaphragm” to the pipes in cabin.
It might be a hose issue or the fitting itself. The clips are original and look in reasonable condition (and it’s a low mileage car). 
Ideally I’d change all the relevant hoses but if I can avoid removing the interior I would obviously prefer that.

If the interior heater pipes are okay, then yes, you can just replace the hoses that connect to the heater pipe in the engine bay. You will probably find getting new hoses onto the pipes a difficult task due to access. Try using a bit of soapy water on the pipe ends to help facilitate sliding the hoses onto the pipes.

Access to the hose/pipe connection that is next to the fire cannot be accessed from the engine compartment, you have to take the pipes out of the car.  There is a picture called "Pipes & hoses during removal at the back of the body tunnel", that connection of the hoses to the pipe can only be accessed by removing the pipes, the connection is inside the engine compartment inside the central tunnel and you won't know the state of the pipes until you pull the pipes as seen in the picture.

Any chance you can “copy/paste” the image you refer to directly to these pages please? I don’t seem to be able to “open” the link or whatever it is.

Having just removed the underneath pipes that feed the radiator I’m very hopeful that the ends of the heater pipes will be in good condition.
I hope to expose but not remove the pipes and just fit new hose. If you are saying that is impossible without removing the heater pipes I need to think again.


OK just googled that image title and I see what you mean. I guess it might be a case of “have a look and make an assessment. With care it might be possible to cut the clips and part cut the hose to remove it. Fitting new hose might be more of a challenge. I really don’t want to move the pipes if I can help it.

Delbourt wrote:

Any chance you can “copy/paste” the image you refer to directly to these pages please? I don’t seem to be able to “open” the link or whatever it is.
 

 

The heater hoses entering the engine bay from the body tunnel

Yes that’s the problem area. It will be a while before I get around to this (there is life outside this disgraced vehicle). When I do there will be a big decision i.e. renew all hoses or just remake the joint and hope!
Alternatively renew some hoses but not the two connecting to the heater pipes.
The “realist” in me thinks that going as far as it will be required to go in order to renew the coupling probably means that heat has deteriorated the hoses in that region even though the car has only done around 20000 miles.

Anyone else had this problem?

Since I completed this project during the winter of 2022/23, I have noticed five other people (you know being the sixth) posting on this forum and mg-rover.org and facebook groups, about coolant leaks in the centre console (leaking at the heater valve), or coolant behind the seats, which were tracked down to coming from the pipes and hoses connected near the firewall.