Blower Problem

[Biniecki]

I just recently purchased a 96 ford explorer. When I got it the blower motor would only work if it was turned to max. I had heard that this can happen if you have a bad relay. Recently the blower stopped working all together. I am assuming its a relay that is causing the problem but not sure. I do not have an owers manual for the vehicle and I tried looking up diagrams online but they don't seem to line up correctly with my vehicle.

Am I right in thinking that the problem is caused by a bad relay? If so, where is this relay located?

 

[koda2000]

do you have the manual HVAC controls ot the automatic EATC? in either case the problem often lies with the ballist resistor (manual controls) or the blower module (EACT). both of these devices are found in the same place in the engine compartment, near the blower motor, in the 5:00 position relative the the fan motor.

 

[Biniecki]

I have a manual control HVAC. When you say 5 oclock position do you mean while in the vehicle or in front of the vehicle looking at the motor? How can I tell if the resister is bad?

 

[koda2000]

I have a manual control HVAC

well, then it's called a ballast resistor (much cheaper to replace and easier to determine if it's bad). remove the old one and visually inspect it.

if your standing in front of the vehicle, the fan motor is located on the left side of the firewall inside a black plastic box. when i say 5:00 position i mean that the ballast resistor is located just to the right of the fan motor at 5 o'clock. it's held in with 2 small bolts/screws and has several wires attached to it. the only thing hard about removing it is getting stuff out of the way first.

 

[Biniecki]

Ok thanks. When visually inspecting it is it going to look like a blown fuse or how exactly can you tell if these are bad?

 

[koda2000]

Ok thanks. When visually inspecting it is it going to look like a blown fuse or how exactly can you tell if these are bad?

it has a couple of copper coils. the coils provide resistance to the 12 volt power running to the blower fan. the greater the resistance, the slower the fan runs. the less the resistance the higher the fan speed. they usually look burnt out when they go bad. if you have a VOM, you can actually test the resistance.

 

[drdoom]

Do yourself a solid and pull the fender liner for this job.

 

[Biniecki]

I found this youtube video today which i think shows pretty well how to get to it. Thought I would share it in case it could help someone else.

http://youtu.be/RUJ6Iiun7f4

 

[Turdle]

I found this youtube video today which i think shows pretty well how to get to it. Thought I would share it in case it could help someone else.

http://youtu.be/RUJ6Iiun7f4

Here you go--bookmark this index, because that video is in there.

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=54


Also, look for evidence of heat damage to the socket where the blower relay plugs into the distribution box. Jiggle the relay with the blower turned on to see if it cuts in and out with movement.

 

[MAS Tequila]

Go out and tap kinda hard on the blower motor with a paint handle or something.

Mine did the same thing a couple months ago, so I smacked it a few times and it's worked fine ever since.

It's worth a try.

MT

 

[Biniecki]

Go out and tap kinda hard on the blower motor with a paint handle or something.

Mine did the same thing a couple months ago, so I smacked it a few times and it's worked fine ever since.

It's worth a try.

MT

I did this to the Blazer I use to have. The motor itself was going out but if you hit it just right you could get it to turn on. Sometimes you could just hit the dashboard on the passenger side to achieve the same results lol. I just ordered the resistor today and will see if that fixes the problem. Worst case scenario it can always be returned

EDIT:
I just gave the blower motor a couple good knocks with my fist and it turned on again. Still only works on High so the resistor most likely still needs to be replaced. At least I can get a little heat to pump out til I can change out the part.

 

[Biniecki]

Well I got around to replacing the resistor tonight. I got he old one out without removing a lot of stuff. Just got in there with a small ratchet and 1" extension. The old one had a lot of rust on the connectors but the resistor loops still looked pretty good. I put the new one in and unfortunately this did not resolve the problem. The tapping on the blower motor no longer works to get it to turn on so I am thinking the blower may have actually gone out