| ID | Status | Date | Year | Make | Model | Transmission Type | A/C Controls | Public/Private |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #15635 | Closed | 2007 | Chevy | Silverado 1500 | public |
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The included image is ALMOST just like my air controls, except that I do not have the lower right button underneath the directional knob; just a place holder. I just bought this used truck this week. I had another 2007 Silverado and it had A/C troubles as well. :/ The current truck blows the air vent and the A/C alright… until it suddenly will blow the hottest of hot air through on the driver side. Sometimes it does, and sometimes it doesn’t. Can’t seem to figure out what triggers it. I am guessing that it is the driver’s side actuator (lots of time searching the internet). But I don’t want to keep going to a repair shop and buying actuators for the life of this truck. If my semi-educated guess is correct, is there a way to make these actuators stop breaking? Or how can I at least reduce my long-term repair cost with this issue? I’m also concerned now that the issue I had with my prior truck may rear its ugly head! I can’t afford that to happen repeatedly either. My prior truck (also a 2007 Silverado) the whole system kept overheating and melting. It would begin on fan-level 5 no longer working, then 4, then I’d begin to smell melting components, and eventually, the whole thing was inoperable, both heat and air. It cost me 350 to replace a couple of items, I’ve forgotten what they told me. The truck began doing the same thing again, after the repair. I no longer have this truck, as I was hit by a drunk driver and it was totalled. But it is obvious that Chevy hasn’t been able to produce a reliable A/C system, which I find rather pathetic. :/ Thank you! |
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Okay, lots of questions here and I will do my best to answer them all. First the problem with intermittent lack of control over the temperature of the driver’s side vents can be attributed to one of three things generally. Faulty actuator, poor terminal contact at the actuator harness connector and poor terminal contact in the junction block located at the passenger end of the dash. Remove the cover at the passenger end of the dash. Disconnect and reconnect the harness connectors several times to clear off any light corrosion that may be present. Inspect the terminals for any obis damage and correct as needed. Keep in mind that doing this will initiate the recalibration procedure. Same effect as removing and reinstalling the fuse. https://sparkys-answers.com/2011/08/hvac-actuator-recalibration-procedure.html Since you stated that your truck does not have rear defroster controls, I am going to assume you do not have a floor mounted center console in your truck either. That makes accessing the driver’s side temperature actuator very easy. Remove the under dash cover if it is present. Turn the ignition on and gently wiggle the wires at the actuator harness connector and watch the actuator shaft to see if it moves in response the the wiggling action. If the problem shows up by doing this then the terminals will need to be tightened. This test needs to be completed withing one minute of ignition on. https://sparkys-answers.com/2018/02/2006-chevrolet-silverado-drivers-temperature-door-erratic.html If the problem persists and no issues were found with the above inspection and testing then the actuator is the most likely problem. You can either replace it or you can disassemble it and try cleaning the contacts. If you replace it, I cannot stress enough to use a genuine ACDelco actuator from a trusted supplier. They cost more but I have never had an issue with one. If you want to try and clean the contacts you need to first mark the position of the actuator shaft in relation to the case. Remove the screws if present and separate the halves or the actuator housing. There may also be snap clips that have to be gently pried open so the two halves will separate. Remove the gears and look under gear with the shaft tube in it. If there are brass finger contacts gently wipe them clean and lift them slightly to restore contact tension. Locate the contact traces on the circuit board and lightly wipe any grease off the board with a soft rag. Do not use any cleaners on it and do not repeat the wiping. On or two light wipes is enough. Any more will remove carbon from the traces and ruin the circuit board. Reassemble the actuator making sure the shaft marks that you made are lined up. If you do not find the contact fingers under the gear there will be a square potentiometer on the board instead and it is not serviceable. What you can do to help prevent future problems is to keep the truck and especially the floor boards clean. You need to exercise (full cold to full hot) the actuators at least once a month. Lastly since you have manual controls do not leave the temperature slides in the same position all of the time. Going back to the issues with your old truck. Most likely the blower resistor and its harness connector had failed. There can be a few issues with replacing those parts and are generally attributed to one or more of the following. Cheap parts, poor workmanship, a stuck open fresh air inlet actuator, low refrigerant charge, riding around with the windows down and the a/c on, faulty door and window seals, missing hush panel allowing objects to strike the blower resistor and a faulty blower motor. Since you stated that blower speed 5 failed first and then speed 4 i would suspect that either the fresh air inlet door was stuck open or more likely the refrigerant charge was low. I say this because a properly working system in these trucks are so cold that one cannot stand to ride around with the blower on high for more than about 10 or 20 minutes. As a general rule of thumb a blower speed setting should be changed at least every 30 minutes of drive time. I have a different opinion of the HVAC systems in these trucks. First, let me say that all manufacturers have issues and no one is immune. Second, dollar for dollar if properly used and maintained, GM trucks have the best overall HVAC system of any manufacturer period. Especially on the automatic systems. Toyota would be a close second. You don’t hear as much about those issues because they sell so many less trucks than GM in this country. Ford sells more trucks but has only stated catching up with GM HVAC comfort in the last 10 years and they have some serious issues with their systems. With that said you know what they say opinions are like arm pits. Everybody has a couple and most of them stink. |