My AC fan just konked out on an 89 Camry. I was wondering whether anyone has experience with this problem. It's a 4 speed fan and thefirst 2 speeds have gone out earlier. (A couple of years ago.) Now there is nothing. The third and fourth speeds went all at once today.(after coming on briefly.) Checked for fuses but couldn't find the problem. Someone said something about a ballast resistor. Could this be it? Where is it? How do I check it? Any help would be appreciated. I'd hate to have to take it to a repair shop. Howard
It probably is the resistor "block" for the blower motor. This is located inside in the firewall very close to the blower motor itself.
If you have a junkyard nearby, you may be able to find one or more good resistors in the cars there and simply replace your burned out one. Any comparable Camry ('87-'91) ahould do. This is what I have always done. Apparently, I am harder on my A/C and heat usage than others. :)
TJ
-----
Fight pop-ups, spyware, and adware today with Super Ad Blocker at:
It's unlikely to be the resistor block causing the High or maximum fan setting to stop working. Once the max fan is selected or switched to, the resistor block is bypassed. I'd be checking the supply fuse for the fan, If it is intact, then the fan-swith itself has failed.
I have another suggestion. On my 90 camry, after I fixed the resistor block, a few weeks later the fan (blower motor) quit working altogether. It would start and then quit in a very annoying way. Finaly it stopped running altogether. The problem was that after 14 years of faithful service, the fan motor was literally full of dirt. No kidding. The fan motor has a little tube that directs cooling air into the motor housing from the ac/heater plenum. That hose directed years of pollen and dust into the motor housing and eventually gummed up the motor. Here's a list of things to do:
1)if your resistor block is ruined replace or fix that.
2) remove the fan -it's up under the dash in the right foot well on '90 Camrys
--3 screws, the aforementioned hose and the wiring clip need to be removed.
3) Take the blower motor, still in its plastic housing with the squirrel cage fan attached, outside, or at least into a garage that you are not very picky about in terms of cleanliness. The fan itself has a clip on it but is basically a pressure fit on the blower motor shaft. Remove the fan and then extract the motor from the plastic housing. (It too is a pressure fit) Now, really I strongly suggest tht you go outside with the motor and a can of compressed air and blow the dust and debris out of that assembly. If I ever do this again I'd wear a dust mask too. The dust that accumulates is extremely fine and will float and be easily inhaled. Avoid inhaling it. After the assembly and housing is clean, you can lubricate the motor on the shaft where it contacts the bearings of the motor. I used lightweight 3-in-1 or sewing machine oil--sparingly--and only had to smell it for a couple of weeks--doubtless there is a better, odorless solution that someone else may have. On my fan assembly, the squirrel cage fan itself appeared to be gray plastic, but after cleaning, the thing was white!
4) put the blower motor back into its housing, reattach the fan, replace whole assembly on the car (reverse of disassembly) and see if it works. My experience was that a seemingly ruined blower motor has performed flawlessly now for more than a year. Note: there are other threads in this group about fan motor brushes wearing out and on fixing that pesky resistor block.
MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.