I'm trying to figure out what is wrong = with the fan for my heater unit. Sometimes it comes on when I activate it, = sometimes it doesnt. When it comes on, usually it makes a squealing noise, and = what's more, stops operating after a while. It seems to like operating = best when the van (85 vanagon westfalia, 'Buster') is moving. All this data = has led me to think the electric motor is just 'gummed up' or has some blockage, = and maybe an inspection and possible cleaning will do wonders. The = thing is, how the heck do I get at this thing? The Haynes manual says you = have to remove the facia, which is what they call the dashboard, and to do this, = you have do disattach the steering column from the facia. Well, the = steering column is attached to the facia by some funky shear bolts, which = apparently you have to drill thru to get off.

Well, I called my local VW mechanic = looking to see if he had some of these bolts that I could use to replace the ones that = I would be drilling off, and he's said, 'What a minute dude, you dont need to = remove the dash, you can get access to the heater components from underneath = towards the center, just remove the plastic cover over the shifter.' Well, so = I did this, and there is *some* access to the heater components, but it doesnt = look like enough to get at the motor.