How to: Blend door motor fix (2nd Gen)

Hello,

Once again the Serious Explorations site has proved to be very, very valuable in helping me fix a problem with my '97 Eddie Bauer AWD V8 5.0, this time, with the HVAC system. By posting this message, I'm hoping to help the next person that experiences the problem do an easy fix that I wouldn't have been able to do without getting info from a bunch of other posts on this site.

Here's a description of the problem I experienced: A few days before my wife and I were leaving to go to the beach in NC, my Explorer developed a constant, regular "clicking" noise that seemed to me to be coming from somewhere behind the glove box. The clicking would start whenever I turned the truck on and would only stop when I turned the truck off. It did not matter what temperature I had the electronic climate controls (EATC) set at, or what speed I set the fan on, the "click-click-click" noise continued at the same pace.

The problem turned out to be the blend door motor / actuator (not the blend door itself). I've attached a write up of how I fixed the problem, with some pictures and diagrams, in the hope that it might help someone else that has a similar problem.

View attachment Blend door motor fix.doc

-ghh97eb :exp:

help please

hi, could you please e mail me the process you went through. For some reason I can not open your link. As I have the same problem. The blend motor does not move at all. I also have the EATC. thank you shawn

Thanks for posting this information! I've added it to the links in # 61 in my list of useful threads.

SHAWNANDMOSES said:

hi, could you please e mail me the process you went through. For some reason I can not open your link. As I have the same problem. The blend motor does not move at all. I also have the EATC. thank you shawn

Click to expand...

The file the OP posted is a Microsoft Word file, and if you don't have Microsoft Word, you won't be able to open it. I think Wordpad might be able to open .doc files, but I can't swear to it. You'd be better off downloading Word Viewer from Microsoft: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/...87-8732-48D5-8689-AB826E7B8FDF&displaylang=en

Microsoft Word is a very common program and the Word Viewer, which is free, will let you view any Word document if you don't have Word.

I had the same problem but 2 teeth were missing from the small gear so I bought a new actuator. Heres the question: The new motor is not working. How do I test the wireing harness that plugs into the blend door acutator. Where is there a wiring diagram or something that shows what relays to check? The blend door is free and moving fine. Just no power to the actuator motor. No codes are showing up and the blower motor is fine. I can't get in far enough to trace the wires on that plug.