To replace that air-box damper with the 'sticky' seal, it does require taking the whole dash apart. But the cable itself is not too difficult and its not hard to try to remember to always select a combination that keeps the floor vent open a bit so it doesn't glue itself closed and break another cable.
Glad I could help, just remember to not leave the selector all the way left or right where the floor damper will be closed. It will stick and risk another cable break.
Thanks much! Your video was the best I found on how to replace the item. The other sites left out a few of the steps. Yours was more complete on each step. Thanks again!
Having the same issue, about to manually slide it down, hopefully air starts blowing in my face, right now its stuck in defrost. i bought the new cable but it still won't turn !! its too dam hot to keep guessing, and im not trying to get rip off by another mechanic. Thank u for the video
warm it up to operating temp for a few minutes with the fan on med and the temp on high; At 4:05 in the video I manually rotate the cam, but it first took a minute of some persistent and persuasive "wiggling" to get it to break free.
@@workbenchz my son had to manually turn the housing unit that control the blend doors, The doors were stuck in defrost postion. he only had to unscrew the bottom panel under the steering wheel, 4 screws, i have air blowing in my face now, Thank goodness because its getting hot out here
@@luisponce1472 my son was able to turn it manually , he unscrewed the bottom panel on driver side and he was able to turn it into the open position with a little elbow grease..he told me, meanwhile don't turn the knob into the last position( defrost) because the door will get stuck again, it definitely seem as tho it was clued shut.
Thank you! The air vents are now blowing, however I’m still stuck with HOT air, I believe the temperature switch is broke as well. In the meantime is there a way to manually blow cold AC air?
Let it heat up before you try and turn it,if stuck, and leave it in the straight up position when you shut it down that way the sticky stuff won’t be in contact with any surfaces to glue it shut and it will still function as intended as a diverter for the air control system.
Hey i’m working on mine right now, and what’s the black plastic thing that turns behind the switches? you said yours “needed a little help” mine keeps getting stuck and i’ve replaced the selector cable deals like 3 times. Would like to know what it’s called so i can replace it, or any way to fix it without buying a new one? Thanks
I think you are talking about the cam, a big black plate with slots that rotates about 90° to open/close the heat and defrost dampers. I had success letting the heat run full-blast for a while to soften the goo that had the floor damper stuck shut. Some other youtube videos cut a hole in the air box to scrape the goo off the floor damper as a long-term fix.
I found a few videos on TH-cam of cutting into the air box and it’s not that hard. I used aluminum tape to cover the gummy edge of the flapper and it works great!
Yes I see amazon changed the pic. Yes it is the cable and both plastic ends, similar to the HS-361 you see in the "similar items" but for the dampers. This is the very one I ordered (twice).
I was able to do everything in the video, but when i turned the selector knob, it had resistance and the plastic inside the knob broke. Is there something else i need to do? I tried “releasing” the clip on the new cable, but it doesn’t appear to move out of the way like in your video.
at 4:05 in the video, I manually rotate the cam and 'break free' the dampers. If you don't do that, the floor damper is still glued closed and will break your new selector switch. Afterwards, remember to always select some combination that leaves the floor vents open a little so it doesn't glue itself shut again. This was my daughter's car and we've replaced the selector 2 more times after I filmed this; for that very reason. I finally put bits of blue gaffer's tape at both ends of the selector's range to remind them.
I wish you lived near me....I am in northern Delaware....I have this dastardly problem with 2007 Ford focus.... left and center knobs.....dealer got used parts....knobs still sticking....stuck....
This is not a very difficult repair, but it will happen again and again. The Gasket for the heat flap degrades into goo and you have to run the heat for a while to loosen it up, or never turn it to a setting that doesn't include the floor vents.
same problem with mine. the hot and cold selector is starting to become hard to turn also along with the selector already breaking. i took it to a shop and he said it would be over 1k to fix due to having to take the dash apart? i’ve already tried to switch out the cable and nothing worked…. any ideas?
@@nicksweitzer4217 Yes, warm it up. The floor vent damper seal degrades to goo with age making it sticky. Warm it up with the engine at operating temperature, the heat turned all the way up and the fan on medium or medium low. Let it run like that for 5-10 minutes (or run an errand) till you can feel that the side of the airbox is warm. That has loosened up that "goo" for me. At 4:05 in the video I manually rotate the cam, but it first took a minute of some persistent and persuasive "wiggling" to get it to break free.
@@corywhitworth2712 the temperature control is a little different, but looks similar. I think this is the part you are asking about, the first review clarifies it is for the temperature control not the floor/vent/def selector: amzn.to/41dVLVJ
You’re a lifesaver, the mechanic shop told me they would have to take apart my whole dash board just to fix that
To replace that air-box damper with the 'sticky' seal, it does require taking the whole dash apart. But the cable itself is not too difficult and its not hard to try to remember to always select a combination that keeps the floor vent open a bit so it doesn't glue itself closed and break another cable.
They told me the same lie until I showed this video to my son. My son only had to remove panel underneath the driver's feet..
Same. I was told it would cost several hours of labor. I can do this myself! @@workbenchz
This worked for me. I never thought this would be fixable, let alone be able to do it myself.
Thank you very much, Kind sir.
Glad I could help, just remember to not leave the selector all the way left or right where the floor damper will be closed. It will stick and risk another cable break.
Thanks much! Your video was the best I found on how to replace the item. The other sites left out a few of the steps. Yours was more complete on each step. Thanks again!
I'm glad you found it useful
Great job! You saved a lot by doing it yourself!
When I can I do, it's faster and cheaper.
Thank you Sir! ,now I can Repair ours are self.
Just remember to leave the floor vent open a little (floor mix) or you risk it getting stuck again.
Having the same issue, about to manually slide it down, hopefully air starts blowing in my face, right now its stuck in defrost. i bought the new cable but it still won't turn !! its too dam hot to keep guessing, and im not trying to get rip off by another mechanic. Thank u for the video
warm it up to operating temp for a few minutes with the fan on med and the temp on high; At 4:05 in the video I manually rotate the cam, but it first took a minute of some persistent and persuasive "wiggling" to get it to break free.
@@workbenchz my son had to manually turn the housing unit that control the blend doors, The doors were stuck in defrost postion. he only had to unscrew the bottom panel under the steering wheel, 4 screws, i have air blowing in my face now, Thank goodness because its getting hot out here
Forever39 put Grease into the Unit then pull it back and forth it will loosen up a bit
@@luisponce1472 my son was able to turn it manually , he unscrewed the bottom panel on driver side and he was able to turn it into the open position with a little elbow grease..he told me, meanwhile don't turn the knob into the last position( defrost) because the door will get stuck again, it definitely seem as tho it was clued shut.
Thank you! The air vents are now blowing, however I’m still stuck with HOT air, I believe the temperature switch is broke as well. In the meantime is there a way to manually blow cold AC air?
would u know the name of that clear plastic part i been looking for it over the place
Let it heat up before you try and turn it,if stuck, and leave it in the straight up position when you shut it down that way the sticky stuff won’t be in contact with any surfaces to glue it shut and it will still function as intended as a diverter for the air control system.
I put "NO" labels at either end of the index as a reminder to not close the floor damper.
Is the process pretty much the same for the temperature knob? Is it the similar black piece below the one you replaced?
Yes it is.
@@workbenchz thank you!
What do you do with Power for the back light Do you just leave it there do you need to cover it up
It's an enclosed plug so it's ok to leave it till it can be plugged up to the new control's backlight.
Hey i’m working on mine right now, and what’s the black plastic thing that turns behind the switches? you said yours “needed a little help” mine keeps getting stuck and i’ve replaced the selector cable deals like 3 times. Would like to know what it’s called so i can replace it, or any way to fix it without buying a new one? Thanks
I think you are talking about the cam, a big black plate with slots that rotates about 90° to open/close the heat and defrost dampers. I had success letting the heat run full-blast for a while to soften the goo that had the floor damper stuck shut. Some other youtube videos cut a hole in the air box to scrape the goo off the floor damper as a long-term fix.
I found a few videos on TH-cam of cutting into the air box and it’s not that hard. I used aluminum tape to cover the gummy edge of the flapper and it works great!
@@Steven-em5if Well Done.
@@workbenchz Thank you for the tip, I did find those videos and did that as well, and it works great! thanks for the help
Witch one is for changing the heat to ac
What's the name of the white plastic under the steering wheel where you connected the new switch?
That's the side of the air box where the cam operates the flaps that open/close the floor/defrost/vent.
Incredible 👍👍👍
Thanks
hello, the part you have listed in the description, does that include the cable? im having the same issue and want to be sure what i need to purchase.
Yes I see amazon changed the pic. Yes it is the cable and both plastic ends, similar to the HS-361 you see in the "similar items" but for the dampers. This is the very one I ordered (twice).
I was able to do everything in the video, but when i turned the selector knob, it had resistance and the plastic inside the knob broke. Is there something else i need to do? I tried “releasing” the clip on the new cable, but it doesn’t appear to move out of the way like in your video.
at 4:05 in the video, I manually rotate the cam and 'break free' the dampers. If you don't do that, the floor damper is still glued closed and will break your new selector switch. Afterwards, remember to always select some combination that leaves the floor vents open a little so it doesn't glue itself shut again. This was my daughter's car and we've replaced the selector 2 more times after I filmed this; for that very reason. I finally put bits of blue gaffer's tape at both ends of the selector's range to remind them.
I wish you lived near me....I am in northern Delaware....I have this dastardly problem with 2007 Ford focus.... left and center knobs.....dealer got used parts....knobs still sticking....stuck....
This is not a very difficult repair, but it will happen again and again. The Gasket for the heat flap degrades into goo and you have to run the heat for a while to loosen it up, or never turn it to a setting that doesn't include the floor vents.
What is that part called?
HVAC Control Selector switch HS-362
@@workbenchz thank you
same problem with mine. the hot and cold selector is starting to become hard to turn also along with the selector already breaking. i took it to a shop and he said it would be over 1k to fix due to having to take the dash apart? i’ve already tried to switch out the cable and nothing worked…. any ideas?
also the part you pushed on to manually change where the air comes out of is completely stuck in my place on mine. any ideas to fix that? thanks!
@@nicksweitzer4217 Yes, warm it up. The floor vent damper seal degrades to goo with age making it sticky. Warm it up with the engine at operating temperature, the heat turned all the way up and the fan on medium or medium low. Let it run like that for 5-10 minutes (or run an errand) till you can feel that the side of the airbox is warm. That has loosened up that "goo" for me. At 4:05 in the video I manually rotate the cam, but it first took a minute of some persistent and persuasive "wiggling" to get it to break free.
Hi Steve, the black plastic thing in the right it’s for the speed of the ac? Mine works only in number 4
If the fan speed only works in number 4, that would be a bad resistor pack, a little black electrical box that the wires to the fan connect through.
What is the name of the part you ordered?
HS-362 Hvac Control Switch, there is a link to it in the description.
@@workbenchzis it the same part for both the vent control and temp control? Or would it be different for the other?
@@corywhitworth2712 the temperature control is a little different, but looks similar. I think this is the part you are asking about, the first review clarifies it is for the temperature control not the floor/vent/def selector: amzn.to/41dVLVJ
2005 too I have to fix my girl car