Just replaced the Blend Door Actuator on my Gen IV

[jdc28va]

...

Thanks; just ordered the YH-1744 part from Amazon, so we'll see how it goes.

 

[seannydeez]

Let us know how it goes. Does your explorer have the digital climate controls or the manual?

 

[jdc28va]

Let us know how it goes. Does your explorer have the digital climate controls or the manual?

Manual, with no rear controls.

 

[edwx]

You got that right......choosing the correct part took me longer than the job itself. For real.

 

[jdc28va]

Another happy success story. Recommended part off of ebay arrived pretty quickly, I changed the part out last Sunday, and it resolved my issue.

Pretty straight-forward and "simple" part swap, although the one top screw is challenging if you have even medium sized hands. You just need to be patient with it; I got frustrated and wasted some time after I started pulling the dash apart more, only to realize I wasn't getting any better access without what would have been a major dash disassembly.

 

[Nat55]

New to forum

Came across the forum as I was searching for instructions on replacing the actuator on my 2007 sports trac.

This forum saved me time and money. My extended protection has expired so from here on out any fixtures are on me and not my dealer.

Glad I found the forum as it gave me all the instructions and information I needed.

I have heat again

 

[PEAR0119]

Hey guys, the front blend door actuator in my 2006 Ex has taken a turn for worst and I am currently stuck on cool air. Now, I have taken it to the dealer and they have diagnosed this to be the issue but they want $500+ which included 3.5 hours labor. Reading through this thread that seems to be completely off. Am I right in assuming that this job should only take about 30 minutes to an hour and that the dealer was trying to squeeze a crap load of money out of me? I am buying the actuator from the dealer for $120 (yes I know parts in Canada are a rip off) and going to tackle this myself. Is the front blend door actuator in the same (or close) location as the 3rd gens?

 

[edwx]

Yes, I have a 3rd gen and it's basically in the same location as the 2nd gens.

 

[PEAR0119]

I am assuming you mean 4th gen lol, so the job shouldn't' be too bad. Thanks for the response.

 

[edwx]

You got it.....too many generations I've had a 2,3,and 4.

 

[rgoltsch]

Hey guys, the front blend door actuator in my 2006 Ex has taken a turn for worst and I am currently stuck on cool air. Now, I have taken it to the dealer and they have diagnosed this to be the issue but they want $500+ which included 3.5 hours labor. Reading through this thread that seems to be completely off. Am I right in assuming that this job should only take about 30 minutes to an hour and that the dealer was trying to squeeze a crap load of money out of me? I am buying the actuator from the dealer for $120 (yes I know parts in Canada are a rip off) and going to tackle this myself. Is the front blend door actuator in the same (or close) location as the 3rd gens?

My wife drives a 2006 Explorer XLT and I replaced hers a few years ago following the instructions I found here. It took me around an hour or so. I bought the part on Amazon and spent about $40-$50 USD.

 

[Bayouwillie]

I'm trying to help my father with what appears to be the infamous blend door problem on an '09 Sport Track with manual AC. I've been in touch with heatertreater.net and they say they don’t have a blend door fix for Explorers after '08 nor can they even help me diagnose the problem (is it a broken door, a bad actuator or something else?). First, are the dash, console and heater/AC components the same for same year regular explorers and Sport Tracs?

Edwx or anyone else: Would you know if an '09 Sport Trac is the same as a 4th gen Explorer (easy access to the actuator)?

I'm going to pop's this weekend to see what I can see by looking under the dash and through the glove box opening. Is there anyone here that can tell me anything about the plenum on '09 and later Explorers? Is there any similarity to the '08? Anyone have any information, illustrations or photos of the plenum box area?

 

[edwx]

I can't see why it wouldn't be in the same location. Just take a look, you should be able to see it. I did a quick search on Rock Auto and the part numbers look the same.

 

[Bayouwillie]

Okay, I looked at pop's 2009 Sport Trac this weekend. The actuator is easily seen once the access panel is removed just as you described. It seems to be working though as turning temperature control knob results in slow but steady rotation of the actuator hub so I'm fearing that the blend door itself is broken as seen on earlier Explorers. Didn't have my tools so I coudn't go any further. I'll let you know what I find when I go back and remove the actuator to check the connection on the door shaft. In the mean time does has anyone replaced a blend door on a generation 4 Explorer?

 

[KJRiley]

New guy here and just bought my third Explorer. It's an 06 EB with most of the bells and whistles. Not really an EB guy but the price was right. I had the blend door click of death and started searching for the fix, that brought me here and I joined. I found a wealth of knowledge on these trucks here.
I want to thank edwx for his information on where and how to change the blend door motor. I got the part from my dealer for $55 and for me it was about 1/2 hour, done. I had the random overheating problem and I will post what fixed that in the thread for it. Once again thanks ebwx and all the rest for your insightful knowledge.

 

[PEAR0119]

Hey guys, I just finally replaced the blend door actuator in my 2006 Explorer. Mine has the dual zone climate control, and I had to replace the front blend door actuator. It really is just as easy as described, just pull off the lower trim panel by your right foot (it just pulls off), then look up there and you can see it plain as day. There are just 3 screws and it comes right out.

Here is a picture of the old one I took out (The new one has the same part #)

Here is the picture of the actuator arm.

I took the actuator apart to find that the small gear had one tooth broken off, which was causing the "click/bang" every time I switched from cold to hot. Once I got the new one in there was no more "clicking/banging" when switching. I have heat once again (Not that it matters right now).

 

[Lukas2009]

Would you say that it is possible to repair the actuator by replacing the broken gear?

 

[PEAR0119]

If you could somehow find a gear of the same size and type, then yes. It can be easily removed and replaced with a similar gear set.

This is not my picture, but it indicates the exact same gear that was missing teeth on mine.

 

[Myth1978]

I just purchased a 2006 Explorer XLT and am getting the "Click of Death". I was at a total loss as to what the problem was other than my heat was not heating. Thank goodness for all the wonderful input here. I was dreading the $$$ I would have to put into getting it fixed, but I will take this on and hopefully have heat by the end of the day. Thanks for all the advice and instructions on fixing this issue!

 

[Myth1978]

All went well and I now have heat again. Took about 30 minutes to change it all out and works like a dream!