Blend door “band aid” fix

[Pluto]

Ok, guys so I have the infamous broken blend door. I live in south Texas and it’s as hot as ever right now. I work two jobs and do not have the time to pull the dash right now. I ended up purchasing a bypass hose to bypass the heater hoses at the water pump off of eBay for less than $20. It gave me my cold a/c back. I hope this thread helps someone who doesn’t have the time (or money) to fix this issue.

[redcoats1976]

good to know.i rarely use the heater and leave the a/c on max cold to avoid this issue,but at least i know how to handle it now.

[Scotty D]

Ok I have a question??
Anybody have The procedure to do the blend door that is . so I can see how it’s done I have all the parts I need to know if the AC Coolant or freon needs to be drained first thank you ?

[PepeLePew]

nice band aid tip! Be careful when it's time for inspection though since they should be looking at how much heat you get from your defroster. If it isn't hot enough, they could fail you.

[boomerbsg]

Originally Posted by PepeLePew

nice band aid tip! Be careful when it's time for inspection though since they should be looking at how much heat you get from your defroster. If it isn't hot enough, they could fail you.

is this something they manually check? or is this something they see on the screen?

about to do this myself for much the same reasons.. lol


and oh the irony.. to have your car fail inspection.. in texas.. for not being hot enough...

[chuckie669]

In a non emission county they barely check anything. Lady that did mine was just super excited to drive it into the shop

Since you posted this as an fyi, it would be helpful if you have details or reference to the size hose you bought while fresh on your mind

[Pluto]

Originally Posted by chuckie669

In a non emission county they barely check anything. Lady that did mine was just super excited to drive it into the shop

Since you posted this as an fyi, it would be helpful if you have details or reference to the size hose you bought while fresh on your mind

Here is what I purchased:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/LS1-LS2-LS3...ss!78363!US!-1

[PepeLePew]

Originally Posted by boomerbsg

is this something they manually check? or is this something they see on the screen?

about to do this myself for much the same reasons.. lol


and oh the irony.. to have your car fail inspection.. in texas.. for not being hot enough...

In Texas, they are supposed to check the temperature of the air blowing from the defrost vents. In my 25 years of driving and about 40 trips to the inspection station (I’ve always had multiple cars), I’ve only been to 2 inspection stations where everything thoroughly checked including the defroster. They were a Kwik Kar in Peosper and a Firestone in McKinney. The 2 things in common with these places is that they also repair cars. My guess is that they drive revenue through repairs by serving as an inspection station so they are incented to find a reason to fail you. I was failed at Kwik Kar for having a leak in a power steering hose that wasn’t even leaking. There was grime on the hose since the vehicle had 215k miles on it and I’ve never cleaned the engine bay. They quoted me $350 to replace the hose and wouldn’t pass me until it was fixed. I went directly to autozone and bought a $35 hose and fixed it myself and was back at the station in about an hour and passed.

The independent inspection stations only make money on the inspections. There is a reason they can get you in and out in 15 minutes with no hassle!!!

[KenKat]

Originally Posted by Scotty D

Ok I have a question??
Anybody have The procedure to do the blend door that is . so I can see how it’s done I have all the parts I need to know if the AC Coolant or freon needs to be drained first thank you ?

You should not need to mess with the refrigerant / ac coolant as the blend door just mixes hot air into the hvac air system. Your AC is still working fine; it’s just that the blend door is stuck and mixing in hot air.

[Tajefe Couple]

So glad we don't have to do emission checks in Kansas, sounds like a hassle and like PePe said a way for shops to drive revenue
Oh yeah thanks for the link

[uvraise]

Did you consider in-line valves? That's what I'm leaning towards

Originally Posted by Pluto

Here is what I purchased:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/LS1-LS2-LS3...ss!78363!US!-1

[Tajefe Couple]

Originally Posted by uvraise

Did you consider in-line valves? That's what I'm leaning towards

Could you elaborate on the valves your considering?
My Ac seems to get warm whenever it feels the need while driving. All temps except IAT almost always have the same readings when it happens. The consistent is IAT is always in the 110-120 range when the AC starts getting warm. Always happens when driving and never changing AC settings. Can shut the car off for a few minutes and back to cold air, or just be driving and again back to cold air.
Expansion valve maybe? Going to buddys this weekend and put a pro set of gauges on it instead of my cheap set and try to troubleshoot from there.

[Silveradoss573]

So is there a way to help avoid this issue?

[MrRaZ28]

Originally Posted by PepeLePew

In Texas, they are supposed to check the temperature of the air blowing from the defrost vents. In my 25 years of driving and about 40 trips to the inspection station (I’ve always had multiple cars), I’ve only been to 2 inspection stations where everything thoroughly checked including the defroster. They were a Kwik Kar in Peosper and a Firestone in McKinney. The 2 things in common with these places is that they also repair cars. My guess is that they drive revenue through repairs by serving as an inspection station so they are incented to find a reason to fail you. I was failed at Kwik Kar for having a leak in a power steering hose that wasn’t even leaking. There was grime on the hose since the vehicle had 215k miles on it and I’ve never cleaned the engine bay. They quoted me $350 to replace the hose and wouldn’t pass me until it was fixed. I went directly to autozone and bought a $35 hose and fixed it myself and was back at the station in about an hour and passed.

The independent inspection stations only make money on the inspections. There is a reason they can get you in and out in 15 minutes with no hassle!!!

I'm going to be honest with you, I've never heard of this and I'm a former certified inspector (expired 3 years ago). I have never once seen anyone use a thermometer to check A/C or defrost vents in the shops I worked (including dealers) and when taking my personal vehicles.. most of these line techs don't even own a thermometer The list is OBD, wipers, lights (head lights, tail lights, dash lights), signals, hazard, brakes, gas cap. Even reverse lights aren't on the required list.

Edit: Here's the list for a passenger car from the TX DMV:

1. Horn
2. Windshield Wipers
3. Mirror
4. Steering
5. Seat Belts
6. Brakes (system) (Parking - beginning with 1960 models)
7. Tires
8. Wheel Assembly
9. Exhaust System
10. Exhaust Emission System (beginning with 1968 models)
11. Beam Indicator (beginning with 1948 models)
12. Tail Lamps (2); (1) if 1959 model or earlier
13. Stop Lamps (3) 1986 and newer; (2) if 1960-1985; (1) if 1959 model or earlier
14. License Plate Lamp (1)
15. Rear Red Reflectors (2)
16. Turn Signal Lamps (beginning with 1960 models)
17. Head Lamps (2)
18. Motor, Serial, or Vehicle Identification Number
19. Gas caps on vehicles 2-24 model years old
20. Window Tint.