heat working in half the minivan

Hi, I've searched the web for this problem but haven't seen it
addressed. Our 2001 Chrysler Town & Country LX minivan gives off heat
only in the driver's side vents, the passenger side air is cold. The
fan is running but only cold air blows out. The rear vents also have
hot air coming through. The A/C works fine, only cold air comes out of
all vents. What could be causing this and is it something my husband
can fix himself? Unrelated (we think), but the lights are out on half
of the speedometer dial, does he need a special tool to access the
light fixtures there? Finally, the speedometer seems to be inaccurate
by about 5-10 miles. Once the dash is off, can he fix this as well?
Sorry about all the questions! Thanks so much for any guidance.

 

the problem will be with the blend door which is the flap inside the
heater box that adjust the temp which is independent side to side. you
may be able to get to the blend door motor by removing the glove box to
check one side if the blend door (i am not sure if this blend door is
for the left hand or right hand side) this repair will have to be
carried out by a compitent mechanic and i would advise a trip to your
chrysler dealer to have the vehicle conected to the diagnostic
equipment (DRB111) and chech the trouble code which should say blend
door out of range. if this is the case the dash bord will have to be
removed

 

There was a problem with the blend air door shaft breaking but it could
also be a bad blend door motor. You need to have it diagnosed by someone who
is familiar with the system


Unrelated (we think), but the lights are out on half

No. But the instrument cluster will have to be removed to gain access to
the bulbs. My advice would be to replace all the bulbs while the cluster is
out.


Finally, the speedometer seems to be inaccurate

Just curious why you think the speedo is off by that much. There is no
way to adjust the speedometer. Has the tire size been changed from the
original tire size ?

 

You dont specify but if it is the Dual zone system you might have a control
head problem causing this. A scan tool and multmeter will be needed to
verify the problem

Glenn Beasley
Chrysler Tech

 

Hi guys.-
This is just amazing!! Just a few days our T&C 2001 LXi had the same
symptoms as you describe! Passenger side only delivers cold air (we are
in MASS and it's getting cold...) no matter what temperature you set it
(dual temp. control). Driver side is working just fine. Sometimes you
can hear the sound of like a servo trying to open or close something.
Took it to the dealership and with the 'estimate', almost lost my
socks...: $950.
According to them, around 8-9 hours for labor and around $220 for 2
parts (blender housing components!?). They connected some sort of
computer to operate the blender or port and made no difference.
I think I can get the parts for around $150, but not sure I dare to do
the job myself. Does anybody know where I can get an exploded view of
the dashboard and how to dis-assemble it?
I imagine that to get to the faulty parts you need to go through a
complicated sequence of removing plastic parts, fasteners, latches,
etc...
Thanks to anybody that can give any addtional advise or help locating a
manual or pdf with exploded views.

Regards,
Luca/.

 

Well, well... being as persistent as I am, found out last night that
there is a TSB for this problem! 2400601 and NHTSA ref. 620069.

Called Chrysler Customer service hotline. After describing the issue
and bouncing through a couple of reps, the veredict is that Chrysler
would not cover any of the expenses. According to them the TSB is only
a document explaining how to replace the parts... Because the vehicle
is out of warranty (time and mileage - only 57K) they can't do a thing.
They re-assured that this is the first time they've heard of it and the
TSB only has updated instructions on how to do the job. I think this is
not true.
Does anybody know what the TSB exactly details? Anything else to try
before going poorer by a grand...?

Thanks for any insight,
Luca/.

 

just because you find a TSB that you think may fix your car doesnt mean it
is related to it. The TSB you are refering to came out in 2002 and
pertained to problems that were there when the vehicle was brand new. It
requireed the replacement of the evap and fin temp sensor.
I assume that your a/c heater worked up to this point and there is no need
to replace these parts. They have nothing to do with your problem anyhow.
More then likely you have a faulty blend air door motor, low on coolant or
a wiring or control head problem. A TSB is not a recall. It is used to help
with technicians to diagnois problems.
My sugestion to you would be to have someone that is familiar with this
system check it out and tell you what is wrong with the vehicle before you
start throwing, parts and labor at it.

Just my opinion

Glenn beasley
Chrysler Tech

 

for 20 bucs a day u can access a d.c website that will allow you to view the
factory manuals for 24 hours there is a link at the epa website. caramkers are
now required by law to allow aftermarket shops access to this stuff but of course
for a price

 

Mr. Glenn,
I'm surprised that being a Chrysler tech, you are providing misleading
information.

Very untrue. From www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov (goverment site):

Make: CHRYSLER
Model: TOWN AND COUNTRY
Year: 2001

Service Bulletin Number: 2400601
NHTSA Item Number: 620069
Summary Description:
SOME VEHICLE OPERATORS MAY COMPLAIN OF NO HEAT IN ANY MODE, FROM THE
FRONT RIGHT SIDE OF THE VEHICLE. THIS BULLETIN INVOLVES REPLACING THE
BLEND AIR DOOR SHAFT WITH A NEW PART. *TT

Unless you have a different source to get this information, this TSB
was issued on May 2001 and has nothing to do with any of the components
that you refer above.

Yes, myself and the original initiator of this thread explained this
clearly in our postings. Problem as described on the TSB, has to do
with ONLY cold air coming from the passenger side or the inability to
regulate the mixture of cold/hot air. The way this is described, if you
look at it closely, is pretty vague but yet reveals that the problem is
affecting only the right side (passenger) and gives instructions on how
to replace the blender door shaft ONLY.

a) Faulty air door motor - it's possible
b) low on coolant - Almost impossible, since left side works perfectly
on both extremes (hot or cold)
c) control head problem - my intital description of the problem,
detailed that the dealership tried operating the blender door with ??
(computer device) and got same results. So, I don't think control head
problem at this point is an educated guess OR

d) *** faulty blend door shaft as the TSB mentions and explains how to
replace !! ***

The TSB might not be a recall. But to me, it clearly indicates that the
company has taken the extra time and effort to document a procedure to
replace a part that can fail (Verbatim: SOME OPERATOR MAY COMPLAIN...).
The failure in my car together with the original posting submitter and
a few other threads I found describing similar problems, is an
indication that there might be an abnormal incidence of this issue.

I can just imagine tons of other customers that don't have the time or
knowledge to do a good research and fall in the trap. Modesty on a
side, I'm a pretty good 'googler' and yet took me a good time/effort
to find leads to this problem. On top of it, imagine how many van
owners outside of the 'cold' belt never use the heater on the car and
might have the shaft or the blender housing faulted but never realized
it!? How much revenue does this produce? The dealership wins (labor &
parts), Chrysler saves and us, just pay.
Do you know that the blender housing was redesigned due to a weakness
in it (redesigned end of travel tab)? Why is the problem so specific to
only the passenger side? Simple: design flaw corrected with a new
blender housing or in some other cases with a new blend door shaft.

A reputable dealership has checked the car and offered to do the job
for close to $1K... However, after the latest events, I called another
one and explained my thoughts and mentioned the TSB; guess what? they
are going to try the procedure as per the above TSB doc. and try to
replace the shaft without dis-assembling the whole dashboard! I guess
they can get to it from under the driver side...
We'll see and I'll keep you guys posted.
Share what you know, learn what you don't.

Than you, but was not very accurate.

 

Yes I stand corrected. somehow I thought we were refering to the 2002 as I
stated in my last reply and not a 2001. But either way just because there
is a TSB does not mean that the problem is due to that bulletin. The
system would have to be checked out.

Glenn

 

When you purchased your car the warranty was 3/36 and you had the option to
purchase an extended warranty . Your warranty has expired now and you have
a problem with you vehicle that you think should be covered under
warranty. How much did you pay for your house and how long have you lived
in it? When something goes wrong after the intial 12 months or whatever
warranty, do you complain to the builder? You say the dealer checked it
out and told you it would cost 1k to fix. that told me that someone didnt
know how to check it out or just wasnt sure of the fix. It takes less then
1/2 hour to install the shaft you are refering to.Take your vehicle to
someone that wants to fix your car. If you take it to someone and tell
them you want this TSB done to your car and it doesnt fix it are you going
to blame them because the heat still does not work?

Just a thought?

Glenn

 

Hmmm, picture this: you are Chrysler and started the 2001 Van batch
production on Jul-Aug/05 (just a guess since I have no idea how they
schedule their manufacturing process). The cars start to sell a few
months later or around the same time-frame. As more are sold and start
hitting the streets, early production complaints start to show up. Some
of them address the right side heating problem...
You as a reputable manufacturer, look into it and uncover that there is
a part(s) that was not best designed. Logically, foresee that this
might become a major problem, so you decide to re-design it,
manufacture and INSTALL the modified part in the new/to be produced
vans.

Question is:
A) How long did it took to complete this cycle?
B) How many are there out there with the faulty one?
C) How much would it cost to Chrysler to replace all of thoses that
they know had this potential problem?

So, you tell me what you consider fair? I know, I know, it is not a
fair world. It's really made of profit or losses...

I am not arguing for warranty coverage on a normal tear and wear
component. Just some consideration from the company, and thought that
the fair thing to do was to divide the expense. So, at the end, we both
loose less, and next time I'm in the process selection of a new car,
this event is weighted in and considered.

The other lesson I've learned and bothers me is that dealerships (in
general) do not do a very good job of investigating. I know the final
outcome of our case is still in the air. But, there is a chance that
with only 1/2 hour labor and a fairly inexpensive part the problem
might be resolved. Either way, I believe that this should have been
discovered and offered by the Chrysler techs and not me!
On the other hand, I want to believe that they honestly thought that
the only way to get to the part is by pulling out the dashboard, and
not trying replace the shaft and if it fixes it, still charge me for
the first diagnose... Well, who knows the real truth!?

Kind readers: Just to share a bit more of our experience. Had a chance
to look into the +100 TSB's appliccable (check for yourself in the
address provided above) to our van. We experienced several of them
while in warranty! Moan and groan sound coming from the front!? Which
took I don't know how many dealer visits and replacement of parts
untill the whole front steering assembly was finally replaced. Front
link problem? Heated seats issue? Etc., etc. My humble opinion, like it
or not, is that there is some relationship between potential defects
and TSB's...

BTW, the syandard warranty was for 4/48 and we bought the extended
warranty from a third party company that went out of business on Dec/05
(1stSource)... Learned the lesson, and next time I'm looking into
extended warranties, I'll probably go straight and buy it from the
manufacturer.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.
Luca/.

 

Picture this: buy a coffee machine, bicycle,tv, DVD machine, computer,
computer software, printers, fax machines and anything else and they all
have problems when they are built. Once they are on the market they find
out the product has problems, these products dont have TSB's that would
tell us of an update. They would only issue a recall if it is determined
to be a safety issue. I had a TV that Sony new of a bad solder joint. The
technician charged me for the repair, he new exactly what the problem was.
I had to pay for it because i was out of warranty. My one cup coffee
machine made by Meletta spills water everywhere when ever it wants to.
Meletta was aware of the problem and redesigned it. I was out of warranty
and there was nothing I could do.It isnt fair. but the warrty was out.
I normally dont get into these debates. This is the last reply I have on
this.
You have a happy Thanksgiving

Glenn

Glenn

 

Update: Finally got the van back from the dealership after 3 days. Not
sure how they got to the blender assembly without removing the
dashboard. Found that the shaft and right side motor were in trouble...
Initially thought there was something wrong with the shaft being too
short (however, it has been working for years with no problems).
Must have fallen in grace with the service manager (and has won my
loyalty), since they went in replaced the motor and not sure if the
shaft as well, since the blend door was 'bonded' to the shaft using
some epoxy or crazy glue.
Anyway, total cost with parts and 3 hours labor was a little under
$300; a lot better than the $1K originally quoted from the other place.
Don't know how long it will last, but I've always heard that repaired
'bones' are harder to break... Time will tell.
Best to everyone,
Luca/.

 

Just my $0.02 cents since you posted an update, but any experienced
car buyer knows all about this kind of a problem, and if they are
worried about it they simply avoid buying early production model
vehicles.

There's lots and lots and lots of models out there that have been
in production for more than 2 model years. Granted, you won't
have the sexiest latest thing on the block that you can show off
to your friends, but it's going to be more reliable. So which is
more important to you, sex appeal or reliablility?

A good auto dealer salesman would have asked you this question
when you went to buy and if you had just kept saying reliability,
reliability, relaibility over and over they would have steered you
to a production model that had been in production for some years.

IMHO the car buyers that want the newest flashiest sex appeal cars
out there are usually the ones quick to sell them when the initial
factory warranty is close to expiring.

Ted

 

I fixed this issue in 30 minutes.. you can find directions on TSB
2400601 or.. If you need instructions to fix this issue can send me
an email at . Again, The fix should take you
less than 30 minutes. you will need a phillips screwdriver, an 8mm
socket or small 8mm wrench... and potentially a $5 part from your
dealer.

Good luck
Dave

 

You must be an optimist - otherwise you would have titled your thread
"heat not working in half the minivan". Anyway - looks like your
optimism paid off.

Bill Putney
(To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my
address with the letter 'x')