More stiff flaps

Purchased replacement blend motor and spliced it into the loom, fitted onto the heater and used the diags to execute a calibration. The motor moved and did manage to complete one cycle, but it didn’t feel very convincing and still was slow to move.

Removing the heater without removing the dashboard

So despite the previous trick of forcing the heater unit apart with self tappers, which did help - It was still too stiff for the brand new servo motor to move without stalling.

So I decided to have another go at digging into the blower unit. The reason I stopped before is because I couldn’t get the bar that goes across the front of the heater blower (Bearing in mind the official procedure is to remove the entire dash assembly) - so this time I loosened the two bolts holding the dashboard to the bulkhead (one in each foot well - offside one shown circled red).

With the framework loosened, it was possible to remove the support bar and the the front cover for the blower unit - its this flap that was the stiffest.

With the front bar removed, It looked like it was possible to get the heater out without removing the dashboard.

First, from inside the engine bay disconnect the air-con pipes (Note, you do not need to do this - read on).

Second - disconnect the hot water feed pipes to the heater matrix

Third - unbolt the heater unit from the dashboard frame in the footwells (Blue circle above)

Fourth - remove / unclip any attached wires and sensors

Now lift the heater unit back a bit and you will see the hot water pipes attached to a plastic support (red circle below) - use a stubby Philips and unscrew it.

It will now be possible to lift and twist the entire unit out:

Split the A/C from Blower

With the unit on the bench, I spotted the single screw that kept the two halfs together. Therefore It may be possible to remove just the front blower without having to disconnect the Air Con pipes in the engine bay - so give this a try first.

Blower strip down and overhaul

The whole unit was stripped down, every single flap removed and regreased. But despite this, when it was fitted back together the front flap was still stiff. I had to drill out the hole to give it more clearance. That got the front flaps looser, but the white plastic gear on the side (Circled red) was also stiff, so this was sanded internally until it ran smooth.

By time you finish, you should be able to move the flap(circled red) with your little finger without any resistance.

This Video clip shows how easily the flaps should move - I’m only moving the distribution flaps - the temperature ones should move even easier as its a single flap.

Update:

I found the white plastic gear (circled red) to be very stiff on the spigot it runs on. I used sandpaper inside it to enlarge it.

Someone else has told me that they had the same problem. So check that the white gear turns easily on the spigot it attaches to.