TheSamba.com :: View topic - Dash blower rebuild with (cheap) Jeep resistor

Wed Apr 01, 2015 9:58 pm

I first posted this resistor upgrade idea a long time ago - well, it finally came through (true) this week...

4 years planning/thinking/researching/collecting parts - 3 days cleaning & wiring - 2 days left to
put it all back together - (including 1 day interruption for roadtrip & college visit with daughter #2)...

Here goes:

Finally collected everything needed to get everything back to NEW:
1 - new blower motor (stock)
2 - new heater core (stock)
3 - new blower switch (stock)
4 - new blower resistor...definitely not stock... :twisted:

I didn't want to renew # 1-3 just to put the old stock ceramic resistor back in - that's just
an open invitation for it to die a great, glorious death as soon as I've put it all back together... :roll:

Also, I didn't want to spring for a "new" or used stock resistor - at $90+, too expensive,
and/or no guarantee that it'll be any better than the one I took out... :roll:

[/musing]

So a while ago, I got one of these - fits most Jeeps from 1990-1996...

Mopar part #55036000 (careful - ignore the larger "stock" number)...

...less than $10 at my FLAPS or online...
http://www.mymoparpart.com/p/Jeep__/HVAC-Blower-Motor-Resistor-Resistor/49396618/55036000.html

...find a spot to mount it on the box & cut the hole...

...mount it & wire it up (it already has foam in place for an air-tight seal)...

...it sits right inside the vent port - always open to air flow (ram air -or- blower) to cool the resistors, as intended...

...thanks to my new switch, I can wire it for FOUR speeds instead of just the original three! I added
an additional female spade connector to the plug at "4" (the empty spot is for power from the dash)...

...it matches my new 4-speed switch! (which has Roman numerals, for extra class)...

...in place, bench-tested, ready to close up the box & reinstall...

(Also pictured: fan bearing dust cap in yellow; vinyl tubing is my take on tencentlife's fan
bearing oil port - comes up through the DS defrost vent for a few drops each spring...)

(Not pictured: fully cleaned ground stars; fully lubed wiper linkage, heater control cables
& clutch/brake pedal pivots; soundproofing on all front sheet metal; rust treatment
on a few spots near air intake; some light "alphabetizing" & stereo wiring labeling...)

I figure by the weekend, I should have it back together & enjoying a real dash blower
for the first time in 4 years... 8)

Give me a few more days, then I'll see you on the road!

- Dave

PS: Whenever this thing DOES burn out (they all do eventually) It'll be an easy 10-minute job... :D

Wed Apr 01, 2015 10:04 pm

Thanks! Mine is starting to fail and at the same time I am starting to smell the sweet smell of heater core. Your thread is perfect timing!

Wed Apr 01, 2015 10:46 pm

This is perfect timing. I noticed this topic which had begun earlier and wondered if it had gotten anywhere. I am fortunate enough to have a spare heater plenum from a parts van to rework, so when I dig into my dash, it is a simple swap out. The resistor in the donor has one speed dead, so I can have it all put together with this mod and not have to scavenge the resistor from the one in my dash.

Great work!

Wed Apr 01, 2015 10:53 pm

Awesome! You have to leave a note or something in there to explain to some future caretaker of your van what you did, eh?

So are you also renewing the foam on the dash flaps? If so and you don't know what foam to use, I will run downstairs to the cold garage and find the package for you. It turned my dash into a flipping hurricane of air, and silenced the dash-as-calliope-organ on the freeway.

Thu Apr 02, 2015 4:21 am

Well done my friend!
Very very well done indeed!

But..... Where were you with this info three months ago while my unit was strewn across my shop?

FYI, our early 1986 rear AC Evaporator Blowers have an air cooled resistor in the plenum like this as original equipment.

Dave

Thu Apr 02, 2015 5:49 am

Thanks for your kind words, y'all...

Like a lot of Vana-goners here, I just deal with problems when necessary & try to
prevent problems when possible... :wink:

Doug: Oh yeah, I forgot to mention my new flap foam..."camper tape" from NAPA.
It feels a lot like memory foam - very soft, easy to compress & seals perfectly.

Also, it should be obvious to any future owner where & what the resistor is for;
a label under the dash with the part number and all shall be revealed...

8)

Thu Apr 02, 2015 7:06 am

Just for clarification on the four speed switch: For ordering purposes, this is known as the AC fan switch, and not the usual three speed fan switch, correct?

Thu Apr 02, 2015 3:50 pm

djkeev wrote:

Dave, is that rodential residue I see near the bottom of your pic? I thought you had that baby buttoned up!

Better get the dust mask and shop vac ... :-)

Thu Apr 02, 2015 3:59 pm

I've yet to remove the Evaporator, that and the closet in the LR are the two virgin untouched areas of the Van.

Yes, that is indeed rodent residue, very old residue.
Every mouse entry point is closed and Daizee's Mouse repelling Peppermint oil is placed throughout the unit as a deterrent. Even in the rear by the tail lights.

Dave

Thu Apr 02, 2015 5:29 pm

djkeev wrote: I've yet to remove the Evaporator, that and the closet in the LR are the two virgin untouched areas of the Van.

Yes, that is indeed rodent residue, very old residue.
Every mouse entry point is closed and Daizee's Mouse repelling Peppermint oil is placed throughout the unit as a deterrent. Even in the rear by the tail lights.

Dave

Oh Shit!!!!!! :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops:

Tough little critters to deal with when storing a car.

In Arizona my cousin had pack rats the size of small cats making nests of cactus spines in his stored cars. These nests where huge and the rats nasty, they'd chew through anything and every thing, right though wires conductor and all, every rubber seal they could find, and hoses they loved hoses. Once in the cockpit the interior was a goner.

Thu Apr 02, 2015 5:33 pm

This is really nifty, and quite timely for the Syncro climate control box I'm currently servicing. Is the resistor accessible in its current location, without having to remove the dash?

Thu Apr 02, 2015 6:32 pm

The factory blower resistor is only accessible by removing the dash, removing the air box and opening it up.

It is inside mounted in the upper corner.

Dave

Thu Apr 02, 2015 6:36 pm

@ Zeitgeist: Indeed.

With this mod, the new resistor is right up in front of your right knee; literally a 10-minute
job - just remove the lower (center) dash panel & you're most of the way there... 8)

RE: The switch...I've had this one laying around for a while so I might be forgetting
something, but I don't recall specifying 4-speed; I thought I just ordered GoWesty's
standard "blower switch" and this is what I got... <shrug>

Thu Apr 02, 2015 9:32 pm

dhaavers wrote: @ Zeitgeist: Indeed.

With this mod, the new resistor is right up in front of your right knee; literally a 10-minute
job - just remove the lower (center) dash panel & you're most of the way there... 8)

Best answer ever! When I pulled the heater housing, the resistor had clearly shown signs of over heating and blistering the plastic. I traced this back to the ground crowns, but was still pretty nervous about reusing the unit, so the idea of installing a DIY serviceable brand new unit is really optimal

Fri Apr 03, 2015 12:51 am

I haven't pulled my dash yet (on the syncro), but its only got three sliders for climate control. I don't think I have any fresh air inflow, meaning any airflow over the resistor could actually be HOT air. Issue?

Fri Apr 03, 2015 1:50 am

I actually moved my resistor pack to one of the braces that the steering wheel bolts to under the cluster in mine. I simply moved the bracket that holds it down over there and screwed it down with a self tapping screw and wired it to the blower. Now whenever it needs changed out, I simply have to remove the cluster to get at it.

Fri Apr 03, 2015 4:02 am

t3 kopf wrote: I actually moved my resistor pack to one of the braces that the steering wheel bolts to under the cluster in mine. I simply moved the bracket that holds it down over there and screwed it down with a self tapping screw and wired it to the blower. Now whenever it needs changed out, I simply have to remove the cluster to get at it.

Which is going to be sooner rather than later.

These units get HOT!!!!

They are all placed in areas of air flow to cool them off.

No air flow will create a very hot unit that will very soon burn itself out........

Not unlike running your internal combustion engine without a cooling fan and sitting still.

Dave

Fri Apr 03, 2015 6:28 am

luVWagn wrote: I haven't pulled my dash yet (on the syncro), but its only got three sliders for climate control. I don't
think I have any fresh air inflow, meaning any airflow over the resistor could actually be HOT air. Issue?
I can't imagine you don't have fresh air intake. You got one of these behind your top grille? (Thanks for the pic, Dave!)

On my version, the resistor is BEFORE the heater core, so yes, I'll always be getting outside ambient air.
("Cool" & "hot" are relative terms...right?) :wink:

Also, with only 3 sliders, maybe your van lost one of the plastic handles over the years...???
I'd bet there are 4 in there if you look close...http://www.gowesty.com/library_article.php?id=311

OTOH, your Syncro is a hightop conversion, which got me thinking...If you only have 3 sliders on the dash,
maybe Reimo deleted the bottom one which was for fresh air to the rear roof vents over the sliding door...???

Just a guess...<shrug>

Fri Apr 03, 2015 6:30 am

The modern vehicles I've serviced all attach the resistor packs to heat sinks, and install them directly in the fresh airflow and blower fan output prior to the heater core. Not sure what VW had in mind with their original design.

Fri Apr 03, 2015 6:35 am

Zeitgeist 13 wrote: ...the resistor had clearly shown signs of over heating and blistering the plastic...

I had the same issue, but mine had actually burned a HOLE through the plastic (sorry no pic). I smeared a nice dab
of silicone to patch the hole & never looked back. Yeah - NO WAY I'm putting that resistor back in there... :evil: :evil: :evil: