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Heater/AC wont blow

12K views 20 replies 4 participants last post by  martinarcher 
#1 ·
My heater or AC doesnt blow any air. I just had a safety inspection on saturday and just drove it today for the first time and it wont work. I looked at the fuse and it looks fine. The fuse is the one that says AC on it right? That was a 15a fuse. Have any other ideas of where to look?
 
#2 ·
check on the passenger side down by the floor underneath the glove box. there should be a mess of wires there. try finding where they connect to, and push it in more. i have the same problem happen every now and then. usually someone's foot kicks the wires out of place and they need pushed back in.
 
#5 ·
Under the dash on the passenger side. Did you read the thread above?? It is all in there. If you take it to a mechanic you wasted money on something that you could easily fix. Just read over that thread. On page two the causes of your problem is answered, the resistor or wiring could be a problem. The resistor is $12 at the Ford Garage and you can probably just clean up the wiring with some sandpaper, if not you can buy a replacement wiring harness for it at the Ford Garage also. if you have any specific questions after reading that thread just ask. No need to watse money, we can prevent that!
 
#6 ·
Alright, I found the blower and the resister thing that the connections go into. I just about passed out looking under there. I will have to wait to open it because i need to go get me a 8mm socket.

zzyzzx said:
Have you tried connecting the fan motor directly to 12V? I had this same problem you describe once, and it turned out to be that the motor was under water! There is a drain hole in your fender in the inside for the water running off your winshiled. If the holes get clogged (and they will eventually) then the water backs up and goes into the intake for your heat. The fan motor has a plastic cover that holds the water in. All I had to do was remove the motor, and dry it out. I reinstalled everything and it worked perfectly after about a day's use at reduced capacity. When I reinstalled the fan cover I put a drain hole in it first.

Is this worth going about? Is that a common problem?
 
#7 ·
Alright, I found the blower and the resister thing that the connections go into. I just about passed out looking under there. I will have to wait to open it because i need to go get me a 8mm socket.

zzyzzx said:
Have you tried connecting the fan motor directly to 12V? I had this same problem you describe once, and it turned out to be that the motor was under water! There is a drain hole in your fender in the inside for the water running off your winshiled. If the holes get clogged (and they will eventually) then the water backs up and goes into the intake for your heat. The fan motor has a plastic cover that holds the water in. All I had to do was remove the motor, and dry it out. I reinstalled everything and it worked perfectly after about a day's use at reduced capacity. When I reinstalled the fan cover I put a drain hole in it first.

Is this worth going about? Is that a common problem?
 
#8 ·
Check the connections first. It is not as common as the resistor or connection going bad.

Try this,

-Turn the key on and turn up the blower motor to 4.
-Climb under there and wiggle the single wire going from the resistor to the blower and see if the motor kicks on.
-If so, just clean up the connecors and put some dielectric grease on them and you should be good.
-If not, do you know how to use and/or have a multimeter?
 
#12 ·
shortguy_ad said:
I did that and wiggled, pulled and pushed on that an nothing happened. I am 99.9% positive I dont have a multimeter. Doesn't it just measure electricity or the current?
Yeah, voltage/current/resistance etc. It would be a good investment, you can get a cheap one under $20.

Anyways, try this...

Get a paper clip or something that would make a good conductor. Unplug both the single connector and the four pin connector that plugs into the resistor. Plug one end of your paperclip into the connector on the single wire(power out to the blower mototr). Plug the other end of the paper clip into one of the four connectors on the four pin plug(power in from the switch - 1 pin for each of the switch positions). Now turn the key on and click through all four speeds slowly to find which speed you jumpered on the four pin plug. If you blower mototr is OK it will turn on full speed(4th position normally) on one of the four on positions since you have bypassed the speed control resistor with the paper clip. If you get nothing, the blower mototr is shot. If it works you just need to replace that resistor bank. Good luck!
 
#15 ·
Alright, I plugged the paper clip into both of the connections. It worked. Do you think i should go in to mylocal ford dealer and just ask for a Blower resister? Thats what it is callled right? Or would a local auto store have one for less. Its a great fealing knowing the i figured out the problem for free instead of having somone else do for money. Thanks a ton for your help.
 
#16 ·
martin you beat me to it again :lol:

shortguy_ad, when i went to the ford dealer to buy it they knew exactly what i was talking about. It came out to $13.73 for me, which is pretty good. Now I got nice and toasty heat

now that i got one problem out of the way, all i have to worry about now is the over-heating issue :lol:
 
#20 ·
shortguy_ad said:
Could that diode looking thing be the problem or should i just replace the whole thing?
No problem, no need to spend money you can save instead!

Yeah the diode looking thing is a thermal limiter and will eventually open up and no longer pass current. If you can't get to the dealer for the part, you can just bypass the thermal limiter with a paper clip or a piece of wire. For what it costs - it is worth replacing.

By the way - how do the connectors look? If they are burnt or crusted up make sure to clean them up with some sandpaper before putting it back together.

Glad you will have heat soon! Winter driving sucks without it!
 
#21 ·
cdipier2 said:
martin you beat me to it again :lol:

shortguy_ad, when i went to the ford dealer to buy it they knew exactly what i was talking about. It came out to $13.73 for me, which is pretty good. Now I got nice and toasty heat

now that i got one problem out of the way, all i have to worry about now is the over-heating issue :lol:
What can I say - I'm the heat wizard. :lol: J/P! We musn't let other Escorts owners freeze in their cars - You and I have both been there - it sucks. :cry:
 
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