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97 Ext explorer with a blend door problem?

rut

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Hello, I have a 1997 ford explorer with a 4.0 ohv.

I think I might have a blend door problem but no sure.

My symptoms are I only have hot when the control in set to anything other than ac/max. Once set to ac max all I have is cold air. There is no adjusting the temp. I have tried the blend door fix and I have not had any success with it.

When I look under the hood. I see the four inlet heater valve. When in a/c max the diaphragm in suck into the plunger, when the control is in any other position the diaphragm is fully extended out.

Is there anything else that might have caused this or can the blend door still be the problem.

Rut
 



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when I first got my 97 explorer I thought it had a blend door problem. When you adjust the temp, is there a tick -tick -tick sound coming from behind the glove box? My problem ended up being a blend door actuator. It cost me 80 buck canadian for the part from the dealer, Cheaper and easier then if the blend door is was broken.
 






Ok, guys same senerio... I have only hot air on all positions, unless I have the max AC on. Blower blows on all numbers, 1,2,3,4 and can move from defrost, mix, floor, all area's blow but only hot air. I DO NOT hear any clicking from the actuator box or anything like that, I can also put my finger on the white actuator box, there is a little key/knob that I quess is opening and closing the door and feel it move as I adjust the climate control to hot or cold, I feel it move both ways.. so to me the door seems to be opening and closing?
Is this the vent door problem are do I have something else that I need to check..? before I bust all this apart?
By the way, 1997 explorer, 4.0 sohc, 128K miles and manual controls for AC,
"3 knobs to control air flow and temp"?

Any help would be appreciated,
Thanks
CCA
 






Ditto problem as CCA....has anyone made a how-to forum on fixing blend doors? Maybe with pictures?
 






i would say your blend door is broke the door its self we put them in at work all the time ford sell you the whole box which you have to remove the dash to install but i know a short cut do it from outside take out the evap box and do it you will need some pry bars and some luck but it canbe done e mail me if you need some detail
 












i emailed you some info let me know if you attempt it
 






Hi, I'm having the same trouble with my '97 Explorer Sport. Lucky for me, it's cold this time of year. Would you mind sending that info my way?

thanks,

Aaron
 






you can do them from the outside if it is a v 8 the the upper intake has to be taken off the 6 cylinders you dont have to take the air filter box and the hose next take the cruise servo off leave cable attached just lay on engine drive side next take out the washe jug the hose has a clip that is attached to the heater box take it loose unplug the blower resistor and fan take the heater hose loose at the core if it is a sohc engine take the dipstick tube loose and the heater hose bracket loose next take the evaporator box loose their are 4 nuts in it 3 are on the outside they are 11 mm their is one inside at the pass side kick panel about where you right foot is when you set in the seat their is also a black and white hose their 2 unplug it set the temp seting to middle way not hot or cold take down the glove box their are 2 tabs on the side squeeez them in take off the blend door motor some bolt down with 8mm bolts others pop off with a small pry bar next go back outside and gently lift the evap case up and push 2 the engine do not get ruff with it i dont evacuate the a c but it would help if you do do not get ruff with it the ac lines are still hooked up some times their is a bolt that catches on the evaporator case i take it out thru the inner fender well its a 8mm bolt once the evap case is moved you will see the blend door using a pry bar get under it and pry it out the bottom first be careful there is a heater core back there once loose it will take some working to get it out but it can be done now get your new case from ford and tear it apart to get the blend door outget all teh broke pieces out from the broken blend door spray some glass cleaner in the case for lube slide the door back in and work it back in put the top in first and the the bottom after it in put the door to the middle position and reinstall your blend door motor this is the way we do them i have done at least 150 of them never broke anything yet just be careful it take 45 to 1 hour to do this v8 is a little longer just take you time and rember it can be done thanks mike let me know if that will work do not attempt this if you think you cannot handle it i rate it a 6 in difficulty 10 is the highest
__________________________________________________
 






yes i would like more info....thank you.
 


















tks Scucci, I will be doing the tear down this weekend..
 






tks Scucci, I will be doing the tear down this weekend..

Hi everyone!

I have a 1997 XP with SOHC engine and the same problem (can't adjust the temperature of the heater and have cool air only when set to A/C max), so I decided to fix it by looking at the detailed pictures from the given web link. I have easily removed the glovebox and reached the problem part, but the biggest problem is: How can I reach the hole so that I can fix it with the pin? You can only touch it with your fingers, but I'm afraid you can't remove the part containing this hole without fully removing the dashboard which is huge effort and would be expensive if you let the Ford mechanics do that I guess.

Has anyone any idea if/how it is possible to fix it via attaching a pin without removing the dash?

Thanx in advance,

Eran
 






V8EPMAN
I have tried your method of blend door repalcement combined with the procedure shown in the link to proacshops.com on a 97 Ranger. I got it all apart with no problems but I can not get the replacement door back in. I have even cut the corner of the door as suggested in the other link. How rough do you have to get with it? Any help from any body would be appreciated.
Thanks - Gypsie
 






Yes, this is exactly the point I reached before! And I'm afraid the proper way has to take out all the dashboard etc in order to reach that spot...


V8EPMAN
I have tried your method of blend door repalcement combined with the procedure shown in the link to proacshops.com on a 97 Ranger. I got it all apart with no problems but I can not get the replacement door back in. I have even cut the corner of the door as suggested in the other link. How rough do you have to get with it? Any help from any body would be appreciated.
Thanks - Gypsie
 






I finally got the new door in thru the evaporator (fire wall). I had to take a fair amount off of the bottom corner opposite the lower pivot and also took about 1/8" off of the top pivot and beveled it to make standing it up easier. Not wanting to take off too much at one time, there was lots of trial and file. I started the bottom pivot first. Just be sure it is where it needs to be and not between the heater core and "wall". It wasn't a hard job, just frustrating and time consuming doing it for the first time. I basically did the proacshop meathod.
 






i got the same problem. i got ac but no heat. i have ordered a new blend door i will be waiting its arrival to start this task. i gotta get the heat back
 






97 Explorer Blend Door replacement, my version

Ok, I read and read all the possible fixes for the blend door without taking out the heater box. I decided to do the full job and pull the dash, air plenum (eng compartment) and heater box.

Aside from the Haynes manual stating that you need to remove the rear wheels first (just kidding), my son and I were into it together. He's 22 and pretty good with mechanical things. I guess he's paid attention when he and I have worked together before.

The kit I got was from Napa that is made by Dorman. It comes with a template to cut open the top of the heater box, blend door, a plate with a bearing surface for the new door and a replacment heater/defrost/vent door that I didn't use.

While all this was out, I replaced the plugs since the air filter box and twin tank unit was out of the way. Number 3 plug could not be changed since someone before me rounded off the nut portion of the plug. (I chose not to mess with it for if I broke the porcelain, I'd still be there.) I also put in a new heater core since I don't want to go back into this anytime soon.

If I were not going to keep the vehicle (just want heat to get through the winter), I would do the following to save time and aggravation:

Pull the air plenum from the engine compartment and secure the door in the heat position and button it back up. You have to discharge the AC, but it's better than cutting, hogging or blasting through the case to make a "repair".

Thanks for reading, and of course, just my 50 cents worth of advice.

This has paved the way for me to replace the eveporator on my 2000 Dodge Intrepid next spring.

Dave
Wallingford, CT :usa:

Happy Thanksgiving to all!!
 



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