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Ford Explorer AC and Heater Problems

237 messages,  Last post on Nov 27, 2009 at 10:43 AM

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What is this discussion about? Ford Explorer, Heating / Cooling, SUV

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#178 of 237 2002 defrost not getting much air by ceikey12 Dec 29, 2008 (9:08 pm)
I have a 2002. When I put on the front defrost, not much air comes out. Much of the air still comes out of the floor. Any ideas what could be causing this?
#179 of 237 Re: 2002 Ford Explorer Heating Problems please help!! [Mishasma] by heatertreater Jan 05, 2009 (9:23 pm)
Replying to: Mishasma (Dec 18, 2008 11:53 am) This thread has discussed both the old and newer plenum boxes. The pre 02 box is the easier to fix. As mentioned, you can fully open the glove box and view the actuator motor on top of the box. Ford didn't leave much room to work on the motor, but with a little patience, the motor can be removed. Figure on some scraped knuckles and a couple of censored comments to get the job done. Two attachment methods were used. One is just a plastic pinch connection and the motor can be removed by prying up with a large screw driver. Screws directly into the box were also used and the two front screws are easy, but the back one requires a very slim ratchet. Either way, with a box of bandaids and persistence the motor can be removed.   Once the motor is off, you can feel the top of the axle or view it with a mirror. My favorite trick is to use a digital camera to "see" where I can't put my head. On this one, there's not even enough room for a camera. There are two common break patterns for the axle and examples and pictures are available on the HeaterTreater web site. Most of the time, you will find one of these fail modes and the diagnosis of a broke blend door(common) is fairly obvious.   The trick now is replacing the blend door without having to remove the steering column, remove the dash, evacuate the AC, drain the radiator, and finally remove the plenum box. Replacing the blend door is easy, it's the work to remove and replace the dash that is difficult....and after you go to all that work, you are just putting in another plastic blend door that will break again over time. The good news is that the second time you will be experienced and it will take a little less time.   There are various fixes for this problem ranging from a three cent nail inserted into the motor axle to paying the dealer $$$$$ to disassemble the Explorer and put in new OEM Ford approved plastic. The HeaterTreater fix cuts an opening in the bottom of the plenum box in the passenger side footwell and replaces the door with a metal replacement that will NOT have the same failure problems as the plastic door. You end up with metal duct tape sealing the bottom cut in the box and if you lay on your back and squeeze under the dash, it will look hacked. Fully functional, but hacked. The solution has been installed in hundreds of Explorer/Ranger/Mountaineer's with 100% success. This isn't the least expensive fix, but is a severe fraction of dealer cost and is proven to be a one time permanent solution. The engineers at HeaterTreater are the experts and you can rely on the fixes and customer support from that team to guarantee success on restoring HVAC function to your automobile. Check the web site(heatertreater.net) for full details of the fix and technical reports on different solutions.   The newer box(02+) is a different animal and the fix is completely different. Again, check the technical information at HeaterTreater to understand, diagnose, and fix problems on this box as well as the earlier box. Replies to this message: ceikey12 (Jan 08, 2009 1:37 pm)
#180 of 237 damdifiknow by damdifiknow Jan 07, 2009 (1:14 pm)
I have a 97 explorer (4x4) 4.0efi , i went out and everything worked fine ... parked to like two hours and then used remote starter truck started no problem , need i say this was in a bad snow storm up here in ottawa canada. But when i went out to truck 5 minutes later i noticed the windows were not unfrosting...no heat , no blowing air nadda everything is dead in the heating system ? checked everything from fuses to connections under dash to under hood fuses ...is at total loss here not mechanically inclinded as the old saying goes any suggestions !!!!!
#181 of 237 Re: 2002 Ford Explorer Heating Problems please help!! [heatertreater] by ceikey12 Jan 08, 2009 (1:37 pm)
Replying to: heatertreater (Jan 05, 2009 9:23 pm) Thanks heatertreater. Just to be clear...from this thread it sounds like the common result of the blend door failure is no heat. In my case, the air gets plenty hot (or cold if using AC) it just doesn't adjust from defrost, to floor, to vents, etc. Are we talking about the same failure mode (blend door) which will have this result as well?
#182 of 237 HeaterTreater by heatertreater Jan 08, 2009 (5:23 pm)
Simple question, but the answer is a little complex and has to be divided between 02- and 02+. - On the 02+ models, the blend door is on a horizontal axis. When the door breaks, gravity will usually pull it to the bottom of the box. If can wedge in different positions, but it is most common for it to lie in the bottom, blocking air flow through the heater core. However, it isn't a complete blockage. The 02+ has a vacuum button that will shut down coolant flow through the heater core when the door is forced to the full down position for Max AC. Just the weight of the door is not enough to depress this switch and it will actually hold a broken door slightly open. You will get a minor amount of heat, and poor AC efficiency when the door is broken and just lying in the bottom of the box. - On the older models, the blend door is on a vertical axis. When it breaks it can swing open and shut freely and operation is unpredictable. Again, it can break in different ways and wedge in any position in the box, but usually just "flaps in the breeze". A lot of customers will report that they can get heat if they go uphill, make a hard right turn, and hit the blower motor to full blast. What is happening is that the door is being pushed around by motion of the automobile and the door is pinned in one position by blasting the fan motor to hold it in place. If you check through different posts, you can find a lot of "superstitions" to get heat or AC. If this describes your truck, it's fairly certain that the blend door is broken. You can find pictures of both systems on the heatertreater.net web site.   To your question directly: The switch between defrost/vent/floor is controlled by the mode door. This door is vacuum actuated on the Explorer and failure to switch is usually a vacuum leak somewhere in the system. The no-vacuum default mode is defrost-only for safety reasons. If this is your problem, you need to start with an inspection under the hood for loose or deteriorated vacuum lines and move on to using a handheld vacuum gauge/pump to check operation of the doors and trace a vacuum leak back to the source. Replies to this message: ceikey12 (Jan 09, 2009 10:20 am)
#183 of 237 Re: HeaterTreater [heatertreater] by ceikey12 Jan 09, 2009 (10:20 am)
Replying to: heatertreater (Jan 08, 2009 5:23 pm) Based on what you are saying, it does seem to be a vacuum issue. However, in all modes, I get a high flow of air to the floor and insufficient flow to the mode it is actually set to (even when in defrost mode). It also seems that the drivers side floor gets most of the flow and the passenger side floor gets very little. My wife is always complaining about cold feet.
#184 of 237 Re: 2006 ford explorer/ no heat/ overheating [iamdugliest] by kaa Feb 17, 2009 (11:37 am)
Replying to: iamdugliest (Nov 09, 2008 11:34 am) I have the same POS 2006 Ford Explorer with exactly the same problem. I have been told to change the radiator, change the thermostat, change the fan clutch assembly, change the blend door. All of which did nothing but help Ford pay for their over priced employee pension fund. I will never buy another Ford product. 2 years old and I cant drive it in the winter unless I want to freeze to death. Pathetic.   The roar is probably your fan clutch but who knows. If you have a small leak in your radiator it can also cause the fan to engage and sound like a freakin bus.
#185 of 237 1998 Ford Explorer by nugget616 Mar 13, 2009 (6:38 am)
I have a 1998 Ford Explorer that mice have gotten into--in the blower, I have taken my glove box out and can see the bower and it had trash in front of the blower and a bit of trash in the blower I got wat was lose out I've had to cut the grid on left side so I can get my hand in there, I'm still cleaning on stuck on gunk, I've yet to get the smell out I turn on the vents and I'm still getting that odor yukkkk--anyway before I started this process the blend door was working fine on max/ac the door closed on regular ac and vent the door opened well the door stopped operating and has started operating again But the door is only open the it's turned on the max/ac it's close on everything else hearter/deforst etc. now I think I'm crazy WHEN and how does this door operate--seems as if it's working backwards now but maybe I just Thought it was working the reverse before--help--also any ideas how to remove this smell and could it be in the vent if so is there any way to get to them--Ford wants a fortune to do this, I'm trying to do what I can. Thanks so much for any help

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