Well, I'm back with the removal and repair of MY 2005 Explorer air unit to fix my door. First thing I noticed was that my unit was a dual temperature setup- not too different. It had two air blend doors down inside and they do some fancy dancing when the dual temp function is chosen- fun to watch.
'll First of all, the cutting of the metal brace and ducts were the same as above. The defroster duct will come out on the driver's side.Don't panic when you see how far back that connection is- solution is very simple- I'll address it later on at the end of my post. However, the middle screw of the defroster ductwork was not fastened to anything- and here's why-while cutting and removing the left side duct, a piece of something wedged against it and the dash slid out. It looked brand new, and I couldn't see where it went.
Turns out it was supposed to go INSIDE the air plenum box to divide the air for the dual temperature control. Never got installed, but thankful someone stuffed it near the unit.
The next difference was the size of the 2 actuator cans on each side- they were bigger...so naturally the unit wouldn't slide out like the one in the junk yard.
So unscrewed the left can and swung it out of the way. Problem solved.
Everything else about the removal is the same as my previous post.
Here's how I fixed the arm. I tried everything-Gorilla glue (won't stick to plastic) construction adhesive (need rough surfaces) and I finally hit on this solution- Take a small piece of thin plastic- thick enough to sandwich between the round pin and the broken locking tab to bring it back to it's original height. Then take a small piece of super heavy duty duct tape and put it on top of the tab and wrap it around the sides- but not around the bottom of the pin. This gives it the correct amount of thickness so the duct tape wedges in the flat of the hole- and the adhesive part on the locking tab prevents it from coming out. Just be sure when you put it in, you don't have to remove it again or you will have to start the process all over again
Finally, I put some nuts on the stopping shaft I inserted into the actuator to bring it forward slightly- this keeps the door from actually touching the top of the unit when it is actuated- just about a 1/64th of an inch- so that there will be no strain on the delicate lever.
Two last things-While the box is out, you can use the Dremel to drill a hole for the new support for the cut metal brace. Goes through that pot metal in about 2 seconds- no need for any fancy angle drill
The finished brace installed for (hopefully) the last time
By the way, this is how to set up the aluminum tape to get the ducts in place without screwing the tape up. Do NOT use duct tape here (even though it's a duct) because it will detererate with the heat inside the car. The aluminum stuff it made for furnace/ac work.
Finally, the last duct you have to connect is the one that popped out so easily from the driver's defroster duct assembly that came off the top of the box. Turns out it was never properly connected at the factory- the hose was just kinda hanging on it- which is why it came out so easy. The fix is real easy- get under the dashboard on the drivers side and stick your arm up between the steering column and the gas pedal. Surprisingly, there is nothing up there except for this duct and its hose. Just grab the hose and slide it on the duct. You should here a very faint snap when it's locked on- again, something the factory didn't do right.
OK, I've taken enough space here, but I feel it's important since this information is NOWHERE ELSE. Short of replacing the heater core (yes it's down there if you want to peek at it), this is the single most buried item in the vehicle. I love this forum, and will try to document more of my fixes to keep my 13 year beast going (I'll spare you the pain of ripping into my 6 CD changer- somebody on u tube has posted a great video for that). Thanks for listening.
