heater only works over 40 degrees F?

[1meanGTA]

this is the third year now... the last couple, i couldn't afford to fix it and just froze my butt off all winter. this year, i can afford to fix it, but dont want to pay some shop 600+ to change my heater if i dont absolutely have to.

every year, my heater works just fine until i really start to need it. once it gets under about 40 degrees fahrenheit outside, it stops working and only blows cold air. once it warms up again, heater blows really hot, works very well. the truck is a 98 eddie bauer with the electronic climate control.

anything i can check or troubleshoot before letting a shop rape me? i really dont want to have my toes numb while making the 90 minute drive for the family christmas and thanksgiving again this year but 600 bucks is a lot of money...

 

[BrooklynBay]

What did the shop want to replace for $600? Was it the heater core, automatic climate control (EACT), blend door, thermostat, fan clutch, etc?

 

[2TimingTom]

What does the temp gauge read on the dash?

 

[1meanGTA]

they said the blend door was sticking but couldn't tell me how they knew that, just said it was a common problem. most of the 600 was labor for tearing the dash apart. if its that common, i figure you guys will know better than them

temp gauge reads normal.

 

[1meanGTA]

ive seen the threads about the easy blend door fixes, making them manual by the way. i couldn't find any info on anyone having similar problems to mine though, where it works fine for 9 months of the year, and falls on its face when i really need it.

 

[1meanGTA]

bump

 

[1meanGTA]

can the cold make a thermostat stick?

 

[1meanGTA]

update - took it to the biggest local ford dealership for diagnostics today, and they told me the blend door actuator was bad, and quoted 2100 to tear out the dash, replace it, and the heater core while everything was apart.

laughing, since i know where the actuator is, i paid for the diagnostics, picked up a new actuator at autozone, and swapped it in the parking lot in about 5 minutes, however now neither the new, or my old actuator does anything when i swap from a/c to heat. i tested the old one before taking it out, and it did turn (it was warm enough today my heat was working). i can't remember for sure if the vehicle was on when i plugged in the new actuator.

i tested all of my fuses in the fuse box and they're fine... i'm assuming i screwed something up hot plugging the new actuator? where do i start to troubleshoot, or should i just bite the bullet and take it back for more diagnostics?

 

[1meanGTA]

anybody? is the climate control unit in the dash the next place to troubleshoot, or does it tie into the main computer which then ties into the actuator?

i'm in a temporary living situation with most of my tools and my ford service manuals in storage

 

[BrooklynBay]

Could you disconnect the blend door actuator, and move the blend door by hand?

 

[1meanGTA]

i have't tried yet, the actuator is out and the blend door is currently on heat, which is all i care about for the next few months.

i read somewhere that you could use a ratchet to turn the piece the actuator fits into but i haven't tried it.