Heater blowing out top vents

[sheltonfilms]

It was bad. REALLY bad. Took me about 3 hours, but it's done and fixed. Thanks for all the help guys.

I will NOT do the next one.

What all did you have to remove to get to it?

 

[wilsonflyer]

Basically pulled the brake pedal, accelerator and the instrument cluster. Made a wooden wedge for the bar across the instrument cluster just enough to get my hand in from the top (I have small hands.). Used a short screwdriver to align the door. Putting it back in and plugging it in was the hard part. There's no way someone with large hands could have done it without pulling the entire instrument panel/dash instead of just the front panel. Lots of cussing and arm scratches and arm stuck involved.

I think it would have been a lot easier if the booster would have pulled out enough to completely remove the brake pedal but seeing what was involved in getting the booster out and back far enough, I opted to not mess with it.

Like I said, never again. I know better now. I'd pull the entire dash/steering column if somebody held a gun to my head and told me I had to do it again (Assuming I wasn't armed too which would be highly unlikely. ). I really didn't want to have to deal with recalibrating all those steering sensors.

Oh. Forgot the brake light switch was "self-adjusting" and permanent once it went in so that was another $40. Never bothered to pull it to begin with. Brake lights on solid when I finished. Insult to injury.

 

[ratherman265]

So I think I may have a similar issue. I can select defrost and feet, or middle and feet...but if defrost is set I cannot select middle as well. Is this intentional or is something wrong? On my dad's Edge he can select all 3.

 

[thefranchise713]

I've seen some Ford vehicles support that (def+vent+floor) but the Explorer is not one of them.

 

[ratherman265]

I've seen some Ford vehicles support that (def+vent+floor) but the Explorer is not one of them.

Oh ok that's good then! Glad it's not an issue

 

[peterk9]

Oh ok that's good then! Glad it's not an issue

I guessing it is to allow for more air to be directed to the windshield.

Peter

 

[bradell86]

Heat and A/C will only blow from the defrost vents on my 2015 Explorer Sport. I know this was controlled by a vacuum system on older cars, but I'm pretty sure it is electronic now. Can anybody point me in the right direction?

 

[peterk9]

Welcome to the Forum.
Is this a 'new' to you Explorer? If so and in any case, have you checked the Climate settings to see how they are set?

Peter

 

[bradell86]

Welcome to the Forum.
Is this a 'new' to you Explorer? If so and in any case, have you checked the Climate settings to see how they are set?

Peter

I have had it since September and I'm sure it was working from all vents at that time. What additional setting would there be beyond the climate screen?

 

[peterk9]

I have had it since September and I'm sure it was working from all vents at that time. What additional setting would there be beyond the climate screen?

No other settings that I'm aware of. If this is a recent issue then perhaps it is problem with a blend door actuator. There was another member not long ago with the same issue but I haven't been able to track down that thread/post yet.

Peter

 

[bradell86]

No other settings that I'm aware of. If this is a recent issue then perhaps it is problem with a blend door actuator. There was another member not long ago with the same issue but I haven't been able to track down that thread/post yet.

Peter

I found that thread and his problem seems to be a little different than mine. He was not able to get the air to come out of the defrost at all, where I only have it coming out of the defrost vents. It seems to me like it may be a module that controls the doors not the doors themselves. I am not very versed on these systems though.

 

[peterk9]

I found that thread and his problem seems to be a little different than mine. He was not able to get the air to come out of the defrost at all, where I only have it coming out of the defrost vents. It seems to me like it may be a module that controls the doors not the doors themselves. I am not very versed on these systems though.

The thread I'm thinking of actually had a diagram posted in it showing the various actuators and he ended up replacing one that was very difficult to get at. The actuators are the devices that control the doors.

Peter

 

[Mattncsu]

Sounds like a blend door issue. My F150 has 2 for temp control and one for vent control. My drivers side temp blend door went out and is located above the transmission, in front of the center console. Decided to take it to the dealer to replace since I didn’t feel like taking my dash out.

Cost: $40 in parts, around $1,000 in labor.

Supposedly the vent blend and passenger blend door are much easier to get to.

But that’s for an F150, hopefully yours isn’t that difficult to reach.

 

[ProjectSHO89]

Blend door actuators will not cause this issue, they will result in problems with temperature control. There is a mode actuator that controls which outlet(s) airflow is directed to. It's all electronically controlled as vacuum control of the HVAC actuators hasn't been used in most Fords for about a decade, depending on specific model.

Troubleshooting this system effectively will require the use of a capable scan tool (Forscan, maybe?) in order to interrogate the various modules and to exercise/test actuators/sensors. The alternative, beyond inspection, is guessing.

I have the 2014 shop manual and I believe (hope) the 2015 model didn't change these systems. The '14 manual shows the mode actuator to be very high up on the left side of the plenum and requires that both the brake pedal assembly and the IPC be removed to access. Not an exercise for the faint of heart.

 

[DWZ]

Interesting to read this. I just bought my Explorer on Sunday and have been trying to figure out how to get through the vents in the dash. I have climate control, but when I go into the climate section in the touchscreen, as soon as I touch the vent selector, the climate control stops (the Auto indicator turns to off). Car has 30k miles. I guess I should bring it in before the 60 day warranty ends...

 

[Odrapnew]

Interesting to read this. I just bought my Explorer on Sunday and have been trying to figure out how to get through the vents in the dash. I have climate control, but when I go into the climate section in the touchscreen, as soon as I touch the vent selector, the climate control stops (the Auto indicator turns to off). Car has 30k miles. I guess I should bring it in before the 60 day warranty ends...

If you touch any of the vent/defrost buttons, the Auto light should turn off. I know with mine, if I select Auto and then want to change where the air comes out, the “Auto” light turns off, but the climate control still controls the fan speed(box around the fan speed stays highlighted). This was similar in my old Mazda. I controlled the vents and temp and let the climate control system control the fan speed.

 

[peterk9]

Interesting to read this. I just bought my Explorer on Sunday and have been trying to figure out how to get through the vents in the dash. I have climate control, but when I go into the climate section in the touchscreen, as soon as I touch the vent selector, the climate control stops (the Auto indicator turns to off). Car has 30k miles. I guess I should bring it in before the 60 day warranty ends...

Welcome to the Forum.
It's possible you may still have the 3yr/36k mile factory warranty left depending upon when your Explorer's "In Service" date was. It's normal for the 'Auto' to go OFF since you are making manual adjustments. I do believe the fan still keeps running as mentioned above.

Peter

 

[DWZ]

In service date ended in January, sadly, but the dealer offers a 60 day 2k mile additional warranty. I'll have them look at this. It seems that those center vents only blow hot when Auto is off, and I manually select those vents to be on.

 

[DWZ]

I just got a call from my Ford dealer - they are saying the system is functioning normally. When Auto is selected, heat will only come through the defrost vents - those aiming at the windows and onto the windshield. if you want heat to come through the dashboard vents, you have to do that manually. Unfortunately, it takes forever for the vehicle to heat up using the climate control. I guess Ford wised up to the all the women in my life who turn the heat on full blast (even though there is a functioning climate control) to warm up a cold car. lol

 

[Centaurus5.0]

lol