I had trouble with the with re-circulation door and the pivot you mentioned in your post just yesterday, and was wondering if anyone with knowledge could jump in and tell me how bad that I just screwed up .

Anyway, I noticed the door hanging down and tried to finagle it back into position before I installed my new blower motor. In my efforts I heard a distinct "snap" sound of something plastic that immediately fell towards the bottom of somewhere (never could find what exactly broke and where it ended up)... after a few colorful words, asking for forgiveness for those colorful words, then a silent prayer that I just didn't screw up (that bad).. I snapped the bottom of the door back in place where the actuator motor housing is, and finished my new blower motor installation.

At first first glance, everything SEEMS to be working fine. The new blower motor seems to be moving air great at all the required spots and at all speeds. I'm taking a wild guess that what broke was either the pivot point at the top of the recirculation door, or possibly a piece of the door itself. I made sure the door was in its "default position" all the way to the right, before installation.

So I guess my question(s) is this: what the heck is the purpose of that door, and what steps do I have to do to test it to make sure it still works as it should?



P.S.
Know this is an old thread, just seemed better revive it, as it's sort of on topic instead of making a new one. If it's more appropriate to make my own, someone please let me know.

Thanks

 

The recirc door moves to a point where you get outside air or recirculate the air inside the vehicle. If the door breaks, it will let outside air directly into the vehicle, more noticeable in the winter when the passenger gets that jet of frozen air in the privates. Not sure what year you have but you can remove the right dash speaker and look down at the top of the housing. If the pivot is still in the hole, not sure what you might have snapped. If not in the hole, the housing will need to come out to replace that door. Been there a few times.

 

Hey, thanks for responding!

Now by housing you mean the entire assembly that's above the blower motor? I was afraid of that. I was stiff and sore the next day just changing the blower motor, lol. Getting old I guess. Is it possible to slide the door out by removing the blower motor again if that turns out to be the problem and not the pivot point? It almost seems as if it could slide out of there with a little finagling, the way it was hanging. Not sure about installation, with my track record on fineness (sigh).

And another question would be, being as winter is coming soon... would it be possible to position the door to where the cold air didn't have access inside the cabin, unbolt or unplug the actuator motor and keeping the door in that position, thereby keeping my wife unaware of my colossal eff up?

 

If you have a 2001, it has a different door with a shorter pivot. You can slide those out and back in. The newer models have a longer pivot stem and you will break the door trying to get it out. If it is broken, I don't know of a way to patch it. But you could yank it out and get an 01 door and put it back in.