I managed to get to the heater core quickly, but am having problems removing it. The new one came with pipes attached, and I'm hoping the pipes aren't the problem, and that by removing the core seperately from the pipes, I'll save alot of time and effort.

However, after getting the front pipe dislodged, I'm having problems removing specifically the pipe that's closest to the front of the car(firewall). It won't budge, and it seems there isn't much wiggle room in the compartment that the heater core actually sits in.

Any tips/tricks or advice on how I should procede?