i got a 97 dakota 5.2L...the HVAC controls aint working! The blower works fine but its stuck on defrost and wont go to anything but off! Now i found a broken vac hose in the engine bay but i have no clue where it goes! Anyone know where it goes? possibly a pic of where it goes? Here is the hose in question! thanks

 

One of the most common problems with these Dakotas is the blend door breaks.

I have not seen the inside of one of these things, but I guess there is a plastic stop on the door & the actuator pushes too hard & brakes the stop.

The blend door then just goes to defrost all the time no matter what you do.

I just had mine fixed at the dealer last month. Cost $700

I hear there is a cheap & easy fix - but its urban legand - no one has ever actually done it.

 

First guess...it goes to the cruise servo. I can't remember at the moment, let me look at mine. Yeah that leak is your problem. It tees off the vacuum supply to your HVAC servos.

 

Yeah, that one in your hand IS the branch that goes to your HVAC. It is routed down. Look down on the firewall and you'll see where it broke off. You may have to move the heater hoses and that purge solenoid a little to see it. Take a razor blade and cut off a small piece of the tube and take it to the parts store and have them find you some small hose so you can splice it back together. Make sure it fits tight and is sort of thick walled.