96' E150 - AC Problems - Cold then abruptly Hot
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96' E150 - AC Problems - Cold then abruptly Hot
I am having some AC problems with a recently purchased 1996 E150 Conversion with a 5.8L.
The AC will blow cold and then go abruptly hot. The pressures seem to be in range and the drier/accumulator stays cold when blowing hot. Also, the rear AC stays cool (it have not yet been "cold", I will tackle that next) when the front is blowing hot.
I did some testing today since the air was blowing warm this afternoon. It ran cold in the front for about 2 hours of travel today including about 30 minutes at idle.
At this point I am guessing that this may be a blend door issue or maybe (after some reading) a faulty heater control valve.
Sometimes just switching the AC from On to Off will get it to start blowing cold instantly again.
What should be the next step to diagnose?
I would like to take a look at the blend doors or at least try to cut off the source of heat (someone suggested pinching/clampling the heat tube) but I don't really have a clue where this is.
Any ideas or help on further diagnosis of the blend doors/heater control valve.
Thanks.
The AC will blow cold and then go abruptly hot. The pressures seem to be in range and the drier/accumulator stays cold when blowing hot. Also, the rear AC stays cool (it have not yet been "cold", I will tackle that next) when the front is blowing hot.
I did some testing today since the air was blowing warm this afternoon. It ran cold in the front for about 2 hours of travel today including about 30 minutes at idle.
At this point I am guessing that this may be a blend door issue or maybe (after some reading) a faulty heater control valve.
Sometimes just switching the AC from On to Off will get it to start blowing cold instantly again.
What should be the next step to diagnose?
I would like to take a look at the blend doors or at least try to cut off the source of heat (someone suggested pinching/clampling the heat tube) but I don't really have a clue where this is.
Any ideas or help on further diagnosis of the blend doors/heater control valve.
Thanks.
Senior User
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 224
Likes: 1
I've had a similar problem. For me, it was the blend door motor. I ended up taking the motor off the plenum, opening it, and bending the contacts slightly to hit the resistive element. I did this only because I needed to confirm the problem while I ordered a replacement (cost about $80 if I remember). Anyways, that was about six months ago. I have the new one in a box and the old one hasn't failed since.
The symptoms of the problem were cold air, then all of the sudden super hot air. Turn everything off, and then sometimes turning it back on would work okay again. Usually would happen about 5-10 minutes into a drive.
Since I bent the contacts, haven't had a problem.
The symptoms of the problem were cold air, then all of the sudden super hot air. Turn everything off, and then sometimes turning it back on would work okay again. Usually would happen about 5-10 minutes into a drive.
Since I bent the contacts, haven't had a problem.
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