Blower Motor Resistor

LARSONEM · 09-19-2007, 10:22 AM

My fan switch only seems to work on high. I'm guessing that it is the Blower Motor Resistor. My service manual indicates the following:

BLOWER MOTOR RESISTOR
The blower motor resistor is mounted to the bottom of the heater-A/C housing on the passenger side of the vehicle under the instrument panel. On models with the optional air conditioning, it can be accessed by removing the recirculation air door actuator kick cover.

I looked under the passenger side last night, but don't see anything that looks like a resistor at first glance. Do I need to pull some of the covers off the bottom? My Jeep doesn't have AC.

Anyone ever changed one of these before.

**Jerry Bransford** · 09-19-2007, 10:26 AM

There's a kick panel above the passenger-side footwell held on by just a few screws that needs to be dropped before you can spot the resistor pack. Look for something held onto the HVAC plenum with two screws and a 4 wire connector plugged into it, that's the resistor pack. Check the wiring closely too as it can get overheated and melt/cook the insulation. I ended up splicing in new wiring when I replaced my '97 TJ's resistor pack.

**mdm** · 09-19-2007, 10:28 AM

There is a plastic kick panel that you have to remove. It's the same whether the vehicle has AC or doesn't.

Look under the dash, below the glove box.

LARSONEM · 09-19-2007, 10:34 PM

Found the resistor tonight. Nothing like a stand on your head job! It was packed full of dirt and had some seeds from a maple tree in it. The wiring looked fine. So I guess its off to NAPA tomorrow morning on break or to the Jeep stealership at lunch if NAPA doesn't have one in stock.

**Grewe02** · 09-19-2007, 10:47 PM

Don't rule out www.jeepsareus.com, they always have some good prices.

bigj1974 · 09-20-2007, 12:21 AM

if the blower resistor isn't the problem you probably have an issue with the actual switch behind the dash panel, which can just be an SOB to to get into place.

In my situation I had read on here it was the blower resistor, bought it replaced it, and found out it was the switch after all. ugh.

eprovenzano · 09-20-2007, 08:36 AM

I've got the same issue. the fan would only work on high, and now has stopped working completely. I'm guessing I need replace both the resistor and the fan switch. Is the fan switch only available at a dealership?

pmh118 · 09-20-2007, 09:07 AM

Hey guys.

I am also having a bit of trouble with my HVAC system. Speeds 3 and 4 work great, but 1 and 2 don't work at all. From what I've read, the blower motor resistor could be the problem. So, I went to the Jeep dealership yesterday and bought one for $16.40--not bad.

I figured it was going to be really hard to get to, but surprisingly, it only took about 10 minutes. I figured it was all downhill from there, but apparently I was wrong. I spent about 2 hours trying to "unplug" the old one.

I snapped some pictures hoping that someone can help me out. I'm just not sure how this thing comes apart, and I'm scared to be overly forceful with it.

OLD one

#1:

#2:

#3:

#4:

NEW one

#5:

#6:

In the second picture, it looks like that little tab (facing the camera) may push up into the indented area at the top of the red clip. I tried to do that with a small screwdriver, but I didn't have any luck. I also tried to push down on the black clip part (where the grooves are) to see if that would release it, but it didn't.

After 2 hours of sore fingers and much profanity, I'm not sure what to push/pull as I try to unplug this thing.

Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!!!

Thanks.

bigj1974 · 09-20-2007, 09:51 AM

my blower resistor doesn't look like that. It seems you got the wrong thing from your pic. try going over to the left and back a little more. it's bit of a pain to get at with a screwdriver, but it's not much a pain to change out.

**Jerry Bransford** · 09-20-2007, 09:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigj1974

my blower resistor doesn't look like that. It seems you got the wrong thing from your pic. try going over to the left and back a little more. it's bit of a pain to get at with a screwdriver, but it's not much a pain to change out.

Jeep changed the type of resistor pack in later model years, they're not at all like what is in our '97/99 TJs.

**mdm** · 09-20-2007, 10:08 AM

The latest edition of JP Magazine has an interesting article on the problem with the switches. Their take on it is that the blower motor gets dirty over time and requires more current to turn it. This over heats the switchs and wiring causing the melted plastic and insulation problems we get. There fix is to wire relays into the wiring between the switch and the motor which removes the higher current draw away from the switch. They did a read on the switch temperature before and after the modification and they saw a significant reduction.

pmh118 · 09-20-2007, 10:11 AM

Yeah, I have a 2004. I noticed that it looks quite a bit different than the ones from earlier model TJs.

Toombs · 09-20-2007, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jerry Bransford

Jeep changed the type of resistor pack in later model years, they're not at all like what is in our '97/99 TJs.

I wonder when they changed....my 01 has the older style, FYI.

Mike

bigj1974 · 09-20-2007, 11:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jerry Bransford

Jeep changed the type of resistor pack in later model years, they're not at all like what is in our '97/99 TJs.

and apparently just as crappy. haha :-)

rudyyj · 09-20-2007, 01:34 PM

to answer the original question...
the red part is a "keeper" or "lock"
it needs to be slid up then it comes apart just like you would expect