Auto Climate controller issues

gieto

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So,

my 98 accord ex v6 coupe with auto climate controls is failing.

couple months back the recirculate flap stopped moving. the light goes on and off but the flap does nothing. not the worst thing in the world.

a few weeks ago the hot/cold servo starts making ticking noises as you adjust it (a few weeks go by like this) till it finally stops moving at all on FULL hot.

I looked around the web and forums without finding much of anything, so I dove into the dash, pulled the servo boxes apart tested their little motors and found no missing teeth or slipping gears. put everything back together turned it on, pressed the recirculate button, it moved, pushed it again, it moved. On the third try is stopped again in the open(vent) position. back to square one. same thing with hot/cold knob, still stuck in full hot position.

searched web more, found most post solutions had bad controllers (dash panel) so ordered one (used, said to be in full working condition) online. unplugged old installed new. no change.

so, anyone know where to go from here?

TIA

also looking for how to make it go into diagnostic mode
 

SupraGuy

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First things first, check for something that might be jamming things from moving. I had a car that I found a mouse nest in the heater core box. The mice in it were more or less cooked and dried out when I opened the box, which was disgusting, but that was the cause for restricted air flow through the AC and the Fresh/Recirc damper not moving. Removing the mess made everything work again.

in the tech section, there's a factory repair manual, which has the troubleshooting procedures for the self diagnosis.

In short:
  1. Ignition switch ON
  2. Fan switch OFF
  3. Press and hold recirculation control swicth to "fresh" (light off) and continue to hold until it flashes 2 times.

The light will then flash to report trouble codes with 2 second gaps.

Codes are just 1, 2, and 3, which show problems with the air mix motor, mode control motor, and evaporator temperature sensor respectively.



Troubleshooting:

Recirculation control doors do not change between fresh and recirculate: diagnose at 21-14. Also check for blown fuse #3 (7.5A) in driver's under-dash. Clean and check tightness of connectors.

Failure to adjust heat isn't in the troubleshooting section, but it sounds like a mechanical jam from your description.
 

FNCONE

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This is all I have on Diagnostic, SupraGuy is that a test for motors?



 

FNCONE

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Sorry Just Reading again, for motors and temp sensor... cool I didn't know that one.
 

gieto

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so pulled open dash, cleaned fan, pulled filters, removed leaves. that gets me to the coils.
this is the auto climate control, there is no OFF on the fan. so diagnostic is different.
still have no idea where the hot/cold flap is. can't find any comprehensive diagram to show air flow through system flaps locations. tearing dash apart further, while tearing out hair. seems i'm the only person to ever go this far in.
 

gieto

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This is all I have on Diagnostic, SupraGuy is that a test for motors?




step 2 and waiting a minute in step 3 are irrelevant. just turn ignition on and press/hold auto then press/hold off together. (ac will come on then go off). a few seconds will pass then flashing will occur as noted.

EDIT; tore dash apart found hot/cold relay, works intermittenly. ordering all new actuators... will update when they arrive...
 
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