A Cars forum. AutoBanter

If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Go Back   Home » AutoBanter forum » Auto makers » Ford Explorer
Site Map Home Register Authors List Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read Web Partners

How to Replace 97 Explorer Blend Door Actuator Fails with Clicking Noise



 
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old February 27th 07, 10:07 PM posted to rec.autos.makers.ford.explorer
cw
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1
Default How to Replace 97 Explorer Blend Door Actuator Fails with Clicking Noise


Followed Steve's advice, replaced blend door actuator, fixed problem.
(
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.a...2a6d0 51afa07
)

Here is my report:

The situation

1997 Explorer Limited, AWD. Air conditioner failed with a clicking
noise. Blew hot, then cold. Noise sounds like somebody tapping a
hammer behind dashboard.

Good mechanic at neighborhood gas station said he would have to remove
dashboard, big labor job, $1200. Too bad, he said because the part is
cheap. Has seen this a lot of Ford cars and Explorers. No way around
it.

Then I found the thread cited above. Opened glove box, pushed sides
together so it would swing all the way down, revealing blend door
actuator. See bundle of wires going into white actuator box. Unclip
the wire bundle to stop the clicking. We are going to remove this
actuator and replace it. Yes, they said it can;t be done without
removing the dashboard. But they were wrong.

Before proceeding

Make sure you have or had clicking sound when operating Heat/cooling
system. The clicking sound means only the actuator is broken. The
actuator is a four-inch square plastic mechanism containing plastic
gears. It's job is to mechanically move a "blend door" to achieve the
cabin temperature you have selected.

The blend door is just a flap, or door, inside the system that splits
air flow to the cabin vents. If you choose max air, it closes off
outside air and you get 100 percent AC. If you choose 70 degrees, and
it is zero degrees outside, the blend door directs most of the heater
output to you, allowing in a little outside air to keep it at 70. If
you choose a cabin temp of 80, it lets in less outside air. In other
words, the blend door "blends" the air.

There is a shaft, or plenum, between the blend door and the actuator
on top. If that shaft is broken, Google this: Ford Explorer Blend Door
Fix by Jeff Frank. If you didn;t hear clicking, maybe that;s the
problem.

But if you have a clicking noise, the plenum is probably OK, and just
the actuator is bad.

Removing the actuator

Start with several hours and a good mood. You'll need both. You may
get discouraged. Hey, if I did it, you can. And you are going to save
$1400.

The actuator is white. Held in place by three 5/16th nut-screws (I.e.,
screw with a nut head). The two in the front you can see. Feel behind
the actuator, in the middle and slightly down, for the third screw.

Not much room for your hand. You cant see much. This will be done by
feel. After a while you will develop a mental picture of surprising
clarity of this accursed actuator box.

Because there is no room to work in there, you need the smallest
ratchet wrench available. I had a 1/8-inch drive ratchet handle with
5/16 socket. Also have on hand a 5/16 spanner (simple double-ended
tiny wrench).

Remove the two front screws. It's not too hard.

The third screw is the tough one. Before starting, duct-tape a piece
of string to your socket. Tape another piece of string to the ratchet
wrench handle. Also put a strong on the spanner. Now when you drop
them back there, you can fish them out.

The socket wrench will not fit easily on the third screw because there
is no vertical room. You must get fingers in there with both hands,
elevate the wrench horizontal, fit the socket on the head, and try to
turn it. All at the same time. You will only have room to move the
handle one "click" of the ratchet. This turns the screw about 1/8
revolution. All this is at fingertip length. It seems impossible.
Don't give up.

When discouraged, simply feel again the work area. Study with a
flashlight and a dental mirror. Get to know that area. At first,
success will be stinkin' click of the ratchet! It took me two hours to
get that screw off. Yes, its an uncomfortable position. Rest your head
on the dashboard, and learn to see the world through the ends of your
fingers. This is the $1400-dollar screw.

Success!

Now just lift or gently pry up the actuator and out it comes. You'll
seen the plastic shaft that operates the blend door. It sticks down,
which is why you have to lift the actuator before you pull it out.

Open the actuator body (you can break the tabs) and you'll see several
nylon gears and bushings. Take them apart and look carefully. If you
find some gears stripped, you know why it was clicking. Only two tiny
gears on mine were stripped, on the smallest cog-wheel. You want to
find stripped gears, because that proves the actuator is bad (and
that's what caused the clicking sound as the gears meshed wrong).

The actuator has a number written on it. Mine said: F57H-19E694-BA.
EATC (meaning electronic, not manual heater control.) This, I found
out, is the "Service Number," not the part number. My part number
turned out to be F77Z-19E616-BA.

Call a ford dealer (or internet supply house) and order a new actuator
($83.26 as of Feb, 2007) . My ford dealer's computer showed the part
in stock 20 miles away, so I drove and picked it up. I was also told
that is part will be discontinued fairly soon. (If so, you can still
find it on the internet, or at worst from a junkyard).

Take the old actuator with you so you can make sure the new one looks
exactly the same and says EATC. The new part number will probably be
slightly different, but I was told this is "always the case." Still, I
would insist on an explanation, since you must have the right part for
your model year.

Since you are now far, far too familiar with uninstalling the
actuator, reinstalling it is simple.

Just FORGET THE THIRD SCREW. You can't put it back anyway, probably.

At first, I could not get the D-shaped nylon plenum shaft (sticks out
the bottom of the actuator) to fit into its female hole. The shaft
must be aligned just the way the D-shaped plenum hole is, or they
won't insert. Scope out the current position of the hole with your
dental mirror and try to get them the same.

Don't try to rotate your new actuator shaft by hand, or with a tool.
To rotate it, just hook up the wires, turn on the car, and operate
your temperature control, which turns the shaft. Match the positions
so the actuator shaft will fit into the plenum hole.

What I eventually wound up doing was to hold the actuator in place,
and keep changing the temperature setting up and down until they two
shafts momentarily hit the point of alignment and slipped together.
You'll know when it happens, the actuator snugs down nicely.

The two front screws are pretty easy to reinstall. Dont overtighten,
they are just bedded in plastic.

That's all there is to it. Congratulations! If I can answer a
question, you can contact me through www.shga.com. Go to the forum
there, join it, and send me a private message. Note that I don't know
zip about cars, but I do (now) know about replacing a Ford Explorer
blend door actuator.

Regards,
Christian

Ads
  #2  
Old March 1st 07, 10:29 AM posted to rec.autos.makers.ford.explorer
Mikepier
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 85
Default How to Replace 97 Explorer Blend Door Actuator Fails with Clicking Noise

On Feb 27, 4:07 pm, "cw" > wrote:
> Followed Steve's advice, replaced blend door actuator, fixed problem.
> (http://groups.google.com/group/rec.a...plorer/browse_...
> )
>
> Here is my report:
>
> The situation
>
> 1997 Explorer Limited, AWD. Air conditioner failed with a clicking
> noise. Blew hot, then cold. Noise sounds like somebody tapping a
> hammer behind dashboard.
>
> Good mechanic at neighborhood gas station said he would have to remove
> dashboard, big labor job, $1200. Too bad, he said because the part is
> cheap. Has seen this a lot of Ford cars and Explorers. No way around
> it.
>
> Then I found the thread cited above. Opened glove box, pushed sides
> together so it would swing all the way down, revealing blend door
> actuator. See bundle of wires going into white actuator box. Unclip
> the wire bundle to stop the clicking. We are going to remove this
> actuator and replace it. Yes, they said it can;t be done without
> removing the dashboard. But they were wrong.
>
> Before proceeding
>
> Make sure you have or had clicking sound when operating Heat/cooling
> system. The clicking sound means only the actuator is broken. The
> actuator is a four-inch square plastic mechanism containing plastic
> gears. It's job is to mechanically move a "blend door" to achieve the
> cabin temperature you have selected.
>
> The blend door is just a flap, or door, inside the system that splits
> air flow to the cabin vents. If you choose max air, it closes off
> outside air and you get 100 percent AC. If you choose 70 degrees, and
> it is zero degrees outside, the blend door directs most of the heater
> output to you, allowing in a little outside air to keep it at 70. If
> you choose a cabin temp of 80, it lets in less outside air. In other
> words, the blend door "blends" the air.
>
> There is a shaft, or plenum, between the blend door and the actuator
> on top. If that shaft is broken, Google this: Ford Explorer Blend Door
> Fix by Jeff Frank. If you didn;t hear clicking, maybe that;s the
> problem.
>
> But if you have a clicking noise, the plenum is probably OK, and just
> the actuator is bad.
>
> Removing the actuator
>
> Start with several hours and a good mood. You'll need both. You may
> get discouraged. Hey, if I did it, you can. And you are going to save
> $1400.
>
> The actuator is white. Held in place by three 5/16th nut-screws (I.e.,
> screw with a nut head). The two in the front you can see. Feel behind
> the actuator, in the middle and slightly down, for the third screw.
>
> Not much room for your hand. You cant see much. This will be done by
> feel. After a while you will develop a mental picture of surprising
> clarity of this accursed actuator box.
>
> Because there is no room to work in there, you need the smallest
> ratchet wrench available. I had a 1/8-inch drive ratchet handle with
> 5/16 socket. Also have on hand a 5/16 spanner (simple double-ended
> tiny wrench).
>
> Remove the two front screws. It's not too hard.
>
> The third screw is the tough one. Before starting, duct-tape a piece
> of string to your socket. Tape another piece of string to the ratchet
> wrench handle. Also put a strong on the spanner. Now when you drop
> them back there, you can fish them out.
>
> The socket wrench will not fit easily on the third screw because there
> is no vertical room. You must get fingers in there with both hands,
> elevate the wrench horizontal, fit the socket on the head, and try to
> turn it. All at the same time. You will only have room to move the
> handle one "click" of the ratchet. This turns the screw about 1/8
> revolution. All this is at fingertip length. It seems impossible.
> Don't give up.
>
> When discouraged, simply feel again the work area. Study with a
> flashlight and a dental mirror. Get to know that area. At first,
> success will be stinkin' click of the ratchet! It took me two hours to
> get that screw off. Yes, its an uncomfortable position. Rest your head
> on the dashboard, and learn to see the world through the ends of your
> fingers. This is the $1400-dollar screw.
>
> Success!
>
> Now just lift or gently pry up the actuator and out it comes. You'll
> seen the plastic shaft that operates the blend door. It sticks down,
> which is why you have to lift the actuator before you pull it out.
>
> Open the actuator body (you can break the tabs) and you'll see several
> nylon gears and bushings. Take them apart and look carefully. If you
> find some gears stripped, you know why it was clicking. Only two tiny
> gears on mine were stripped, on the smallest cog-wheel. You want to
> find stripped gears, because that proves the actuator is bad (and
> that's what caused the clicking sound as the gears meshed wrong).
>
> The actuator has a number written on it. Mine said: F57H-19E694-BA.
> EATC (meaning electronic, not manual heater control.) This, I found
> out, is the "Service Number," not the part number. My part number
> turned out to be F77Z-19E616-BA.
>
> Call a ford dealer (or internet supply house) and order a new actuator
> ($83.26 as of Feb, 2007) . My ford dealer's computer showed the part
> in stock 20 miles away, so I drove and picked it up. I was also told
> that is part will be discontinued fairly soon. (If so, you can still
> find it on the internet, or at worst from a junkyard).
>
> Take the old actuator with you so you can make sure the new one looks
> exactly the same and says EATC. The new part number will probably be
> slightly different, but I was told this is "always the case." Still, I
> would insist on an explanation, since you must have the right part for
> your model year.
>
> Since you are now far, far too familiar with uninstalling the
> actuator, reinstalling it is simple.
>
> Just FORGET THE THIRD SCREW. You can't put it back anyway, probably.
>
> At first, I could not get the D-shaped nylon plenum shaft (sticks out
> the bottom of the actuator) to fit into its female hole. The shaft
> must be aligned just the way the D-shaped plenum hole is, or they
> won't insert. Scope out the current position of the hole with your
> dental mirror and try to get them the same.
>
> Don't try to rotate your new actuator shaft by hand, or with a tool.
> To rotate it, just hook up the wires, turn on the car, and operate
> your temperature control, which turns the shaft. Match the positions
> so the actuator shaft will fit into the plenum hole.
>
> What I eventually wound up doing was to hold the actuator in place,
> and keep changing the temperature setting up and down until they two
> shafts momentarily hit the point of alignment and slipped together.
> You'll know when it happens, the actuator snugs down nicely.
>
> The two front screws are pretty easy to reinstall. Dont overtighten,
> they are just bedded in plastic.
>
> That's all there is to it. Congratulations! If I can answer a
> question, you can contact me throughwww.shga.com. Go to the forum
> there, join it, and send me a private message. Note that I don't know
> zip about cars, but I do (now) know about replacing a Ford Explorer
> blend door actuator.
>
> Regards,
> Christian


Here is a good link with pics:
http://www.blenddoorfix.netfirms.com/

  #3  
Old November 6th 16, 07:18 PM posted to rec.autos.makers.ford.explorer
Scott
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1
Default How to Replace 97 Explorer Blend Door Actuator Fails with Clicking Noise

replying to cw, Scott wrote:
I did this exact procedure on my 96 Explorer. Go OEM the with replacement
part. The one I bought from RockAuto didn't work. Motor didn't move at all
when plugged in. Outside looked the same, but cracked it open and the
circuitry wasn't even close! The one thing I did differently is to separate
the base from the unit itself. They snap together, Once separated, the base
is A LOT easier to put back in. Even the third screw in the back. After
putting the base back in, installing the unit is literally a snap. Just make
sure to plug it in and ensure it turns when turning the heat up / down.

--
for full context, visit http://www.motorsforum.com/ford-expl...-cl-18361-.htm


 




Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Clicking noise near right headlamp door Vern Corvette 7 November 29th 06 03:41 AM
Blend door or what? Dave Morrison Ford Explorer 3 November 4th 06 02:46 PM
Faulty front door lock actuator removal 98 Explorer [email protected] Ford Explorer 1 January 31st 06 01:16 PM
'96 Explorer heater blend door broken? (and a cheap fix) [email protected] Ford Explorer 2 February 2nd 05 06:40 PM
Blend Door repair on Explorer [email protected] Ford Explorer 0 February 1st 05 01:34 AM


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 08:16 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004-2024 AutoBanter.
The comments are property of their posters.