Date: Fri, 30 May 2003 12:25:38 -0700
Reply-To: wilden1@JUNO.COM
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Stan Wilder <wilden1@JUNO.COM>
Subject: Re: Front Heater Fan Removal & Replacing HOW TO! - LONG
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Fan motor .................. With Resistor $15.00
http://www.williamwareagency.com/forsale/firesale0.htm
If you don't like the price ............. demand a better price!
You might be surprised.
More stuff coming tonight and tomorrow, book mark the page.
Stan Wilder
On Mon, 12 May 2003 19:55:38 -0700 Joel Cort <joel_cort@YAHOO.COM>
writes:
> Hi Shannon and other Listees
>
> I read you problem and have done this job before. It sure sounds
> like you need a new fan motor. You can pick one up at the Bus Depot,
> Vanagain or VolksCafe for about $100 + shipping. That is the easy
> part, now you have to install the new mortor..... read on.
>
> David Beierl -- dbeierl@attglobal.net has been a great resource and
> wealth
> of information on how to do this for me. He even shipped out FedEx
> those
> darn 11 clips to me.
>
> This is a fairly easy job as far as Vanagons are concerned but be
> ready to spend the weekend.
>
> Before you get started with this project you may also want to order
> those darn 11 clamps at your VW dealer. They are VW Part number 321
> 819 059 and you will need them to reseal the heater unit. Having
> the Bentley guide will also be helpful.
>
> Below are some basic instructions for doing the job:
>
> Disconnect the battery: You will be working without the dash and
> with exposed hot terminals so it is best to disconnect the ground
> connection. To do this move the passenger seat forward, remove the
> plate under the rear of the seat protecting the battery and loosed
> the ground connection. Pull the ground wire off the terminal and
> fasten it so that it does not flip back and touch the battery
> terminal again.
> Instrument cluster removal: Pull the instrument panel off and
> remove all the wiring. There are 4 Phillips #2 screws holding the
> plastic tab of the instrument cluster. Be careful, these tabs can
> get brittle with age. They will break and shatter. Wiggle you hand
> behind the speedometer and unclip the spedo cable. Just squeeze the
> connector and it will come out. Next pull out the switches by
> pressing the tabs to release them from the cluster. The cluster
> should lift out and remove the big wire connector plug. This will
> provide you room to get under the dash board. Put the cluster in a
> safe place that you will not sit or lay other components on.
> Vent lever removal: Release all the vent levers. If you pull on
> the blue and red rubber knobs they will work off the lever. You will
> be able to see the mounting nut after the instrument panel is
> removed. You may have to remove the front and rear heater fan
> switches as well. Also remove any auxiliary wiring on the dash that
> you may have added on.
> Radio: Remove the radio you are on your own here
> Remove the Glove box: press the retaining tabs and lower the
> box to the floor board. Slide it off its pivot. Be careful not to
> press the retaining tabs to much or too hard, they could be brittle
> and break.
> Syncro dash plate: (Applies to SYNCRO Model) Remove the Syncro
> dash plate and Differential lock switch(es).
> Steering column: Remove the two bolts holding the steering
> column to the dash frame. These are safety bolts without a head
> because it is meant to snap off when the bolts are torque at the
> factory. I used a pair of vise grips and was able to turn these
> bolts loose. I replaced them with normal bolts. I think they are a
> thread of 8x1.25 mm and 25 cm long. The steering column will drop
> to the driver s seat and that is ok and out of the way.
> Dashboard attachment: Unbolt the dashboard
> a. 6 or 8 #3 Philips head below the windshield
> b. 4 big bolts along the door jams. You will need to be able to
> open the doors wide enough to get your screwdriver/bolt driver in
> there
>
> 9) Dash removal: Ok the Dash should be loose and ready to pull
> off.
> a. Lift it up slowly and check what else is still wired and
> connected, like the cig lighter or AC switches, You will have to
> unplug all.
> b. I did it by myself but with an extra person it sure is easier to
> lift and pull the dash out one side or the other.
>
> 10) Review the heater unit: With the dash out you can now see the
> heater unit shell.
>
> a. Fastening clips: Check to see if there are black metallic
> clips (11 of them) snapping the upper half of this heater together.
> This
> is an indication that your heater has been pull out and separated
> once
> before for service. If there are no clips then this is the first
> time this heater
> unit is being serviced. There is a smooth factory mold gluing the
> upper
> and lower half of the heater unit sealed from the factory. You will
> have to
> run a blade or knife along this edge to separate the two halves.
> Make sure
> that you order the 11 clips available only at the VW dealers. It
> will be tough
> on a Sunday afternoon to find these at NAPA. They cost about $2 or
> so.
> VW part number 321 819 059
>
> b. Heater unit support: Ok the heater unit is held in place by 4
> long Philips
> screws, 2 inside the cabin and 2 from outside by the headlights.
> You will have to remove the front upper grill to get to these.
> Once
> you remove the grill you will see against the firewall just the
> Phillips
> head holding a felt or soft washer. These should be the upper
> supporting
> screws for the heater unit. They may be rusted to where you cannot
> get
> your screwdriver into it. Just work it and don t strip it or rush
> this part. On
> the inside the screws should be easier. You may need a long
> Phillips #3
> screwdriver.
> David Beierl adds: The big M6 screws holding the heater box
> in are Phillips #3 and not #2, and if you use a #2 driver
> you're gonna most likely mess them up. Not too terrible
> on the exposed ones, but a big problem with the buried
> ones on the heater box. What I've actually done is use
> the longest #3 I could get, and clamp one of the special
> Vise-grips made for hex nuts on the plastic handle to
> turn it with, then lean into the end with as much body
> weight as I can manage to keep the driver from coming out.
> With that combination I could get enough force in there to
> either remove the screw or twist the head off -- not as good
> obviously but far better than buggering the head of the screw.
>
> c. Coolant hose removal: You will also need to remove the coolant
> hoses
> coming up from the housing. Be neat and try to capture any coolant
> drips before
> they get to the rug. I used lots of newspaper rags and paper
> towels. Not too much
> came out when I did this, but the heater core is full of coolant so
> when you take the
> actual heater unit out be aware that some coolant may drip. I put a
> couple of corks
> in the pipes to keep them as sealed as I could.
>
> 11) Removal out of the van: Ok the disassembly is complete you are
> ready to take the heater unit out of the van for the service. Again
> plug the coolant pipes and hoses to not loose too much coolant on
> the front rug in the van.
>
>
>
> 12) Servicing the Heater Unit:
> a. Separate the two halves: with the heater unit in your work
> area (or garage floor) you can now separate the shells and get to
> the fan motor. See the seam between the two shells and try to run a
> knife or a blade along that seam. Be patient and work it slowly to
> not damage anything internal and yourself. Refer to the Bentley
> instructions if need be. Again make sure that you have the VW
> engineered clips to buckle these two halves once you are ready to re
> install.
>
> b. Replacing the Heater Fan: With the two halves split you can now
> service the fan motor. I recall that it easily comes out. You will
> probably have to remove the squirrel cages from you old motor and
> insert them on the new motor. It may take a very small Allen wrench
> for that don t know? Forgot? Mark the orientation of all the parts
> to fit back in place properly and in the right direction. Refit the
> new fan motor and test it out with a 12-volt source. Make sure it
> works and spins in the correct direction.
>
> c. Wiring the Heater Fan: The wires are connected/soldered to the
> big green resistor. This is what provides the 3 fan speeds. You will
> also note the three or four wires coming from the switch to the big
> resistor. Do you soldering tricks and remember where the yellow,
> brown, black wires go. If the big green resistor is cracked or
> blackened it may need to be replaced as well. Test it out on all
> three speeds.
>
> d. Heater core servicing: You may choose to service other
> components of the heater unit such as the heater radiator core of
> the vent flaps. You can check the heater core for any leakage,
> which you could have smelled as sweet maple syrup prior to taking
> this job on. There should be signs of corrosion if the core is
> leaking. You can remove the heater core and flush it out or look for
> any signs of leaks. In which case it would be very very wise to
> change the heater core as well since you have it all out and can do
> it right. List vendors sell this unit for around $100.
>
> e. Vent Flaps Servicing: While you are at it, check the foam seals
> around all the flaps. These are usually burned out after 10 + years
> in service, and may need to be replaced. I made all the replacement
> seal from foam pieces that I had laying around from old packaging.
> Go to a hardware store and check out the foam material in the
> heating and air conditioning section. They usually will have some
> material that will work. You cannot get this from VW so you have to
> custom make this. The important flaps to check are the lower flaps.
> This seal is what stops the outside from coming into the cab and
> warming up the Van in the summer time.
>
> 13) Reinstallation: OK you are done. I'm done, I can t think of
> anything else at the moment. Refit the heater flaps, the heater
> core, the fan motor and cage, the resistor and reassemble the two
> halves using the 11 clips. Refit the heater unit in the van, refit
> the coolant hoses on the heater core. Check the vent cabling to
> ensure that all works well inside the box. Refit and remount
> everything in reverse order and you should be golden.
>
> 14) Fill the coolant and bleed the circuit as described on the
> list or in Bentley. Flush the air out and you are set.
>
> Hope this helps,
>
> Joel Cort Joel.cort@usa.xerox.com or Joel_Cort@yahoo
> 89 Syncro Westy
> Rochester NY.
>
> LiMBO representative for the Western New York region.
>
>
> Shannon Mitchell <vze4rq5j@VERIZON.NET> wrote:
> My front heater fan is going on the fritz... loud screeching noise
> and it is driving me crazy... Where is this fan? and how hard is it
> to change?
>
> Thanks in advance
> Shannon
> 91 Vanagon
>
>
>
>
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