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The heater fan motor and other questions

posted by  Vladimir on  Thu Feb 20 06:44 CST 2003
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last visit: Sun Oct 5 18:40 CST 2014
[RELATED]

Hi, all.

The heater fan sometimes whines like small animal in the trows of death. Is this a sign of the fan motor's demise? If so, is it difficult to replace? The reason I am asking is that by reading the Bentley manual I was not scared at all, but when I talked to the guy at IPD, he told me that the going joke about these cars is that the whole car is built around the heater fan motor and replacing it is one of the most difficult jobs on this car and shops normally charge around 5 hours' labor for it. Now I am scared. I am not about to dive into this project while it's cold out, so it is for future planning.

Also, I feel very little air flow from under the dash vents when I select the fow to go there (first button on the left). If I close all the dash vents It increases slightly, but still is kind of half-hearted. The dash vents blow hard, so I know I have air flow, but my feet are FREEZING! I do hear the doors operate when I push the selector buttons in and out, so I presume the vaccuum is ok, but is that presumption wrong? Do I not have enough vaccuum to fully turn the flap? Does the ducting get disengaged sometimes or the flap breaks? Again, I have not gone in to look around since it's so cold here, but maybe there are known issues that can point me in right direction so I would not have to spend more looking than absolutely necessary.

Well, digging out of the snow storm last night I "shaved" off the antenna mast on the 240. I am wondering if there is a flexible alternative for these things. Can I just replace the antenna with the generic flexible "stubby" antenna? Something tells me I will break it again if I replace it with OEM replacement unit.

TIA, as usual.
Vladimir

--
Vladimir. '98 S70. Base, 5-speed manual. And the now the new arrival - '91 240 sedan automatic.








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    The heater fan motor and other questions

    posted by  B.C. on  Thu Feb 20 07:17 CST 2003
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    last visit: Wed Mar 28 22:28 CST 2012
    [RELATED]

    The sound you hear from the blower motor may indeed be the bushings failing. After they are worn larger, the shaft tries to walk around the inside in a hypocycloid motion, instead of spinning inside them. It can't so it screams.

    More usual sign of failure is that the shaft drops down a little when the power is off, allowing the turbine blades to touch the inside of the housing. Mostly heard if the fan is running in #3 or #4 when the key is turned off. My 1986 244 has made this sound going on two years now, so maybe it's no such an immediate thing.

    Replacment is a large job, as many things have to be removed and replaced. There are several posts on this BBRD about how to. Look in Archives and FAQ's.

    The first time I had one go out (1979 245DL) the dealer quote was indeed 5 hours of labor. Their part was $110.00, I learned to do it myself.

    Luckily I got a photo copy of the pages their parts department had because of a major upgrade for that year. Took me longer than 5 hours because I had to drill a 5/8 inch hole in the bottom of the air box for the upgrade.

    Don't be too apprehensive about the job. If I can, you can.

    The air flow problem could be another problem. The vacuum system starts with a smaller tube from the intake manifold through the firewall and to the vacuum reservoir. That thing is like three white plastic spheres, end to end, in behind the lower radio box. It can be seen when the right side center control kick panel is removed. All this is really a warmer weather activity.

    Post again when the snow clears??

    In the meantime, try opening the floor vents and closing ALL the others manually. Also, in the silence right after turning off the key, listen carefully for the hisssing of a vacuum leak back in there somewhere. May take two tries, RH and LH side. Maybe take off the felt knee pads first. Hope this helps.

    Regarding the power antenna. The cost of a replacement mast could be very close to that of a rubber flexible replacement. Also, new mast is low labor. To do it takes a savvy helper, one wrench, and 10 minutes, and no snow.

    Good Luck,

    Bob

    :>)







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      The heater fan motor and other questions

      posted by  Vladimir on  Fri Feb 21 08:27 CST 2003
      Author: [PROFILE] [EVERY POST] [THREADS] [BEST POSTS] RSS Feed     [IGNORE ALL POSTS]
      last visit: Sun Oct 5 18:40 CST 2014
      [RELATED]

      Bon, thanks for the reply. I will attempt the fan motor when it's warmer.

      My antenna is (was) a fixed type, not the power antenna. This is why I want to replace it with third party unit (a flexible one). My S70 has a power antenna and I do know how to replace the mast on that.

      Thanks again,
      Vladimir
      --
      Vladimir. '98 S70. Base, 5-speed manual. And the now the new arrival - '91 240 sedan automatic.







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