Loud blower motor (HVAC)

[lotos]

Not sure exactly what category this would fit into.. On low settings, it sounds fine, but put it to 3 or 4 and it sounds like a leaf blower under the dash! Is that normal?

[tweetdriver63]

I think it's normal for a motor about to burn out. Mine was like that. I had the additional problem of it not working on all speeds, which was the fault of a bad resistor. If the motor goes, the cheapest fix is to get a 1991 Mitsubishi Eclipse blower motor. It's a perfect fit, except the connectors are different. It's less than $50 from any parts store.

[lotos]

Loverly... what sort of surgery is required to access it?

[techlectic]

Mine's doing that too. It occasionally spits out chunks of old foam that practically disintegrates when I go to pick it up. I'm still hoping that it is this foam insulation that is to blame for the noise. Living in San Diego, I rarely use the heater, so it has not been a high priority. And I'm not looking forward to cramming down in the foot well to check it out either.

[tweetdriver63]

I think sometimes insulation causes the motor problems, and I think I've read on here somewhere about rodents liking to get into it somehow.

The blower motor is pretty easy to access behind the glovebox in Fed car. I didn't do the job myself, since I was having other things done at the same time, but I think it's relatively easy to do. If you get the Mitsubishi blower motor, you just have to take the hamster wheel off your original and put it on the new one. Then the connectors aren't the same, so you have to change them, or splice. Just make sure you check the polarity before you put it back in, or you could end up with a vacuum instead of a blower.

[Doug]

my fuzzy memory of it is contort under the pass dash, remove 3 screws from the bottom of the blower impeller, and the impeller can be removed from below!
I used to get small leaves into it and this is how you get to them and clean it all out. It's also a sign that the crappy foam stuff has perished under the right wing fender and this lets crap find a way into the fresh air intake to the impeller--the only way to get to that area is remove the right front wheel arch liner . . .

[lotusgirlmarie]

my fuzzy memory of it is contort under the pass dash, remove 3 screws from the bottom of the blower impeller, and the impeller can be removed from below!
I used to get small leaves into it and this is how you get to them and clean it all out. It's also a sign that the crappy foam stuff has perished under the right wing fender and this lets crap find a way into the fresh air intake to the impeller--the only way to get to that area is remove the right front wheel arch liner . . .

As did I and its easy to access

[lotos]

Thanks, everyone. I'll contort myself and take a peeky

[GeoffSmith]

Just relax and take up the Lotus position!

[lotos]

Well now I'm certainly hiding the camera before the wife can post pics of the maneuver...

[Doug]

oh, you'll be more contorted than that . . .