How to remove heater blower motor?

Jamos · January 23rd, 2011, 22:39

I have an '06 Jetta.
Last year the resistor pack in my blower motor went out. I bought a new one, and now about 8 months later that one has burnt up too.

World Impex kindly replaced it for free under warranty, but mentioned that my fan motor is probably going bad, causing too much resistance.

Like on cue, the fan has started making noises.
I would like to remove it to either lube/clean it or replace it.

My questions are:

-Is it easy to access from under the passenger area? In the same spot as where the resistor plugs in?
-How does it remove?
-Anyone had the same problem?

sbart · January 25th, 2011, 19:35

Jamos,
The blower motor is located beside the resistor pack. It is very simple to remove it. Just unplug the main connector (located beside the resistor pack) and turn the the blower unit counter clock wise. The whole blower motor will come down. Pull it carefully out so you don't break the fan or other plastic parts as there is not much room under the dash. Let me know how it goes and what you find wrong with your motor.
Also, I would inspect blower fan grille opening to make sure it is not obstructed from the outside (under the hood). In my case, I found bunch of dried tree leaves that were sucked in and caused some noise. To access this grille opening, just open the hood and pull off the plastic cover that joins with the windshield.

Good luck!

Jamos · January 26th, 2011, 18:16

Thanks for all that info sbart!

I'm going to check this out tomorrow.
Now that you mention the leaves, I suspect I might have a very similar situation as you. All last year we had to park the Jetta where it got lots of pine needles falling on it. I wonder if some got sucked into the system and are causing the fan problems? Shouldn't the cabin filter catch anything like that before it makes it to the fan assembly?

Glad that it's easy to remove the fan, on many older vehicles it's way buried under the dash...and getting to it involves a full dash removal!

Windjammer · January 26th, 2011, 18:35

Have you replaced the cabin filter? That should catch any debris before it gets to the blower motor.

SpeedFreek · January 27th, 2011, 11:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by sbart

Jamos,
The blower motor is located beside the resistor pack. It is very simple to remove it. Just unplug the main connector (located beside the resistor pack)

What side of the fan is the resistor pack on? I pulled my fan out in 2 seconds but cant find those damn resistors, if thats even my problem.

n1das · January 27th, 2011, 11:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by Windjammer

Have you replaced the cabin filter? That should catch any debris before it gets to the blower motor.

The A4 cars had the cabin filter ahead of the fan/blower assembly and would catch all debris before it gets to the blower motor.

In the A5 and newer cars, the cabin filter is downstream from the fan/blower motor assembly. Basically every piece of debris that gets past the grille in the inlet area under the front cowling passes thru the blower wheel before getting caught by the cabin filter.

It reminds me of old direct-air, upright vacuum cleaners where everything you picked up passes through the fan chamber and then gets blown into the bag. You had to be somewhat careful with what you vacuumed up to prevent breaking the fan (actually a backward-curved impeller). These are also referred to as "dirty air" systems. Canister and shop vacs are "clean air" systems where the fan is located AFTER the filter bag and there's no risk of breaking anything.

Jamos · January 27th, 2011, 21:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by n1das

The A4 cars had the cabin filter ahead of the fan/blower assembly and would catch all debris before it gets to the blower motor.

In the A5 and newer cars, the cabin filter is downstream from the fan/blower motor assembly. Basically every piece of debris that gets past the grille in the inlet area under the front cowling passes thru the blower wheel before getting caught by the cabin filter.

Wow, how stupid is that!
No wonder it's not uncommon for the A5's to have fan/resistor pack problems.
This should not be a normal problem for a 5 year old vehicle.

tdiatlast · January 28th, 2011, 05:55

For my 87 Audi 4000S, I placed a finer mesh screen in the air inlet, at the base of the windshield, to catch larger debris.

Has anyone done this on an 09-10 Jetta? It would be nice to keep crap out of the blower.

admiralbrown · December 12th, 2011, 08:39

Quote:

Has anyone done this on an 09-10 Jetta? It would be nice to keep crap out of the blower.

Great thread. My 2009 Sportwagen TDI was invaded by mice over the last week. I turned on the blower this morning and heard something in the fan. I pulled the cabin air filter and it is pretty clean, I'll pull the blower tonight. Seems silly to put the filter after the blower. I'll try to see how I can install a mesh to keep the mice out again.

tdiatlast · December 12th, 2011, 11:12

What's the easiest way to get at the topside of the blower, under the cowling? The plastic cowling is fragile, and I'm afraid to just start pulling on it.
I'd like to put a slightly finer mesh screen directly on top of the mesh intake, but I can't get to it w/o removing the plastic cowling. Did I say it was fragile? I'm afraid if I stare at it too long, it'll crack...

admiralbrown · December 12th, 2011, 11:43

I couldn't wait and at lunchtime I pulled the blower, no debris other than the dead mouse I decapitated this morning. He had gnawed through the debris shield and fallen into the blower cage over the weekend.
I've got to remove the plastic cover at the cowl, it doesn't look to fragile. I'll take a piece if 1/4" hardware cloth and make a mouse proof cover. To seal it though will take access top and bottom to the debris screen above the blower.
Just pop the cowl cover out from underneath the rubber seal that leads to the engine compartment. It is tedious work to reinstall the cover, but should be quick coming off.

tdiatlast · December 12th, 2011, 12:23

How do you separate the plastic cowl from the base of the windshield? That's where I'm afraid I'll break it...

Sootman · December 12th, 2011, 16:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by SpeedFreek

What side of the fan is the resistor pack on? I pulled my fan out in 2 seconds but cant find those damn resistors, if thats even my problem.

I must be doing something wrong when pulling my fan. I can twist it easily enough but it's real mean pulling it down and out. I cleaned the electrical contacts with Deoxit and used a plastic lube on the shaft where I could reach. The fan doesn't spin real freely but I'll know more tomorrow morning. It has been squealing in this cold weather but never a problem in the summer. I'd done this once before several years ago. I guess it's just routine maintainence on the A5's

admiralbrown · December 12th, 2011, 17:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by tdiatlast

How do you separate the plastic cowl from the base of the windshield? That's where I'm afraid I'll break it...

I don't know either and I now have a broken cowl cover. I realized I couldn't separate the cover from the windshield so I pivoted the free end up and was able to remove the lower trim piece that covers the debris shield. The debris shield should be easy to unscrew or cover with metal mesh. But I lifted the cowl cover too far to get a better look and it cracked. Good news is the recirculate flap is on an electric servo so I just have to close it after driving and that should keep the mice out of the blower cage. Kind of disgusting removing mouse brains from the wall of the blower housing.

tdiatlast · December 12th, 2011, 18:22

Yuck! FYI, I found fiberglas screen material, designed for windows/screens if you have pets, that is a larger mesh than normal screen material. I'll just cut a hunk of that, and use automobile putty/sealant (whatever it's called...the black stuff that stays soft) to secure it around the debris shield.
I'll probably try to do the same thing on my 2012...different shape, design, but the same "open" cowl area.

So...the question remains. How is the plastic cowl at the base of the windshield removed, to gain access to the area underneath?