How To Fix Climate Control Module 2003 Toyota Highlander
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 8 ก.พ. 2017
- Temperature blowing hot when it should be blowing cold? Going back and forth? It might be the wire connection to your climate control module. Mine would blow cold for a few seconds and then blow hot. Adjusting the nob slightly might make it blow cold again for a few seconds before blowing hot again. The advice from the video linked below is what helped me figure out how to resolve the issue for only the cost of some solder.
• How To Repair Toyota H... - แนวปฏิบัติและการใช้ชีวิต
I had the exact same problem recently on my 2003 Highlander. Took the entire thing apart like you did, only to figure out once I got it all apart that it wasn't a board or connector problem at all! That little board behind that center knob was just loose and pushing back into the unit. All I needed to do was remove the knob, pull the little stick forward, tighten the nut behind it and replace the knob. Works like the Arctic now! But I'm glad I found this video. If I ever run into the problem again, not only will I know how to get the whole thing apart, I'll know where to look to see if the solder joints came loose! PS - that ribbon was a BEAST to get back into the connector. Took me a minute to figure out the connector, then ended up removing the little plastic window to plug it in and snap it down without it pulling out of the connector when putting the cover back on. Thanks for the video! Saved for future reference!
This video is gold! We had lived with those knobs acting up/malfunctioning for almost 5 years until they flat out stopped working, so lame.
Two days ago I ordered a soldering kit on Amazon for less than $20, followed every single step exactly as the video, and BANG - my 2001 Highlander's climate control finally works like it was new! No replacement parts, no extra wires; I just carefully stripped the wires a little bit, removed the old solder, and resoldered the connections. I was worried because the desoldering process left a little black residue around where the wires connect but it didn't hurt a thing.
Thank you so much for this video. It was like having the perfect next door neighbor or family member right there to make this possible. I even made a cardboard insert for my socket set 👍
IN NOV 2022.....IT WORKED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! With 2 fingers to tighten nut...no sodering...no face removal....amazing. Thank you!
it works.. did it today.. the reason it breaks in the first place is the nut holding the switch to the panel gets loose and the whole switch moves from side to side when you turn the control knob.... its a bit tough cleaning out the small holes in the switch plate.. heating they up and I used a pick to get through the holes to clean they out... and getting the wires stripped is kinda tough too.... but it worked.. you need some small wire cutters and small needle nose pliers... don't need much solder.. getting the wires through the plate holes is a bit tough.. be gentle and spin the ends of the wire to make them small and round and that will help..... but good video.. that was the problem and its fixed !
I too had this issue and luckily read all the comments. I took the knob off and tighten the nut that holds the stub in place that the control knob attaches to. Now it appears to be fixed. I still need to drive it and see if it goes out when driving over bumps in the road, but no doubt this video was a life saver. I hate I didn’t find it sooner and have lived with the issue this long.
Gotta let you know how much your video was appreciated. Same issue with my 03 Highlander. An hour and a half to repair mine. Extended the wires in the ribbon cable with three pieces of cat6 wire. Soldered them to join and shrink wrapped them when finished. Flattened the back side on the solder joint. Drilled the joints out with a 1/64 drill in a pin vise and soldered the new cat6 wires in. It won't ever come apart again. Thanks a million!
You're welcome I'm glad it worked for you!
I just finished this job exactly as explained and i was successful! AWESOME video and thanks for allowing heat again (im from Minnesota).
That said I wanted to shed some light on some things that may provide additional insights ....
- make sure you solder using a fine point tip...mine was about 1mm. Not alot of space between the 3 wires.
- i was able to separate the wires like the author but make sure you hold the ribbon with a pair of needle nose pliers while you gently strip off the ends,. If you omit this you could pull out the wires on the circuit board end 😮
- if i had to do this again, i would have desoldered both ends of the wire ( including the circuit board end) and replace the ribbon with Three longer wires 3" to provide More slack. If you use the resuse the existing ribbon there is little to no slack in the wires after reinstalling.
- i used "desoldering wick" to remove the solder - more forgiving to use if you're a dummy like me 😢..i found this stuff st my local 'micro center ' computer store
- finally, this whole problem is caused by a lose nutt that holds the switch....it allows the switch (and the soldered ends) to cant left and right... causing them to break .. make sure to keep it screwed tight!! It is accessible by pulling off the center knob.. while you are at it, do the same to the right knob as this has a similar layout.
Great video. I just opened mine up and found the dealer must have tried
to preemptive fix it when they changed the radio. They hacked it by adding 3 little wires
to the backside of where each wire is soldered on both ends. Not a great solder job
but lasted 14 years. I resolder theirs and it works!. It's easy to get to
cause it's right on top.
with 367,000 miles, you have no idea just how much you passed on the DIY knowledge to me- mee so oo happy! thank you 😁 BTW I recommend to strip the ribbon with not the wire stripper, but simply slicing and pulling with a lil knife
OK I'm bringing my highlander down to Florida. Your good you can fix it. You got the patience I lost mine at a older age even in construction I lose my cool to easy. Beautiful job
Thank you for an excellent video. I was successful in my repair, but I needed it to motivate me to do the job. The reason the wires failed was a lack of a lock washer under the nut behind the knob.. That is why it worked loose and broke the wires. I took care of that so I wont have to do this again.
Always feels better when you do it yourself
I just did the repair on my highlander yesterday. The easier way is to just leave the switch unit attached in place with the old ribbon attached. Instead of desoldering, etc., simply solder little jumper wires across the backside of the terminals. I used wires from an old CAT5 cable. This will allow connection flexibility next time the knob get loose and not break the inflexible ribbon connections
Very good video, Thanks. I hope that is the issue I have with my 2003 Highlander. Mine has a temperature display and it is stuck on 25 degrees C (Canada) / or 77F . Turn the knob either way and it will not increase or decrease temperature. So it does cool or heat but only to that to that temperature depending on the temperature outside it does get comfortable, but I cannot set the heat higher for our freezing weather so it takes longer to heat up and vice versa in hot weather. I'll check to see if mine has the same broken solder. Thanks again!
Thank you. I watched your video and probably the one you saw also. I have this same model and same issue and I was about to take it to the dealer where they were going to charge me $800 for a USED replacement unit plus labor so it would be around $900+ so I figured there would either be a cheaper place to find one or see if I can fix it myself. I loved your video and tomorrow I'm going to fix this myself. I'll let you know how it goes!
Great video. I got the same problem on my 2006 High. Hybrid, was really intimidated about trying to fix it myself but after watching how you did it it don't look too bad. Only thing is I've never soldered anything before, so maybe I'll find a video on how to do that.
This is my project today. To hell with the inferior, as long as I get cool again. Summer is baring down on us in the south.
Great video, awesome information.
Great video, thanks for taking the time to do it.
Thank you.
excellent information. thanks
Thank you
Loved your video - thanks for the great visuals and step by step info. My wife's car gets fixed this week---Lynda sends you hugs.
thank you for your video
If you take the knob off you can see the bad solder joint. Just get a thin metal rod (coat hanger material), heat it with a torch and carefully poke the rod through the opening and melt the blob of solder back together. Put the knob back on and enjoy the A/C or heat.
Don't know if you ever check this. I watched your video and about 10 others of people doing the same thing. When I got done, not only did the hot or cold work, but now the ac, the rear defrost, the air recirculate, and the fan switcher don't work either. It's stuck on defrost. Any ideas?
Great job with the repair.
What brand is your radio and was it easy to install
To solder heat up the wire and let it draw the solder to it.
You watched my videos RickM1953 . You did well,
what do you do if the piece that the white ribbon is suppose to lock into is broken?(NOT THE PIECE THAT YOU SOLDER but the wide white ribbon that connects together).
Anyone know how to do this in Georgia, I have the same issue, shope charging 1200-1500 to replace climate control 🙄
I will need to do this on my Highlander..ugh.
Sadly I tried this and it made it worse. First the wires took me a long time to pull them through the holes. Also the desoldering and soldering was difficult. And now none of the buttons above this unit work like the A/C button and the air circulation. So I'm hunting down a used one to put in.