97 Ford Ranger - Heat & AC Blower Fan stopped working?

Hello Ford Mechanics at large,

I own a 97 Ford Ranger and about two weeks ago the cab blower fan (for the Heat and A/C) started to intermittently fail. At that time when I started the truck, I would turn on the A/C, and noticed that the fan would "blast on" then turn off, then come back on, then off - next it just stopped. There are no whistles or whines coming from the fan (e.g. as if there was somthing stopping the fan blades).

1st thing checked: All fuses are good - no burnt one's found.

2nd thing checked: I purchased and replaced the inexpensive "fan resistor" switch module from the local Ford dealer here. Turned on truck, tested and it still fails - the fan resistor switch did not fix this.

I know the AC is still working I can almost feel cold air coming out the vents as I cruise down the road, there is just no "fan power" to blow the air out.

Is there a next good step I can try to isolate this issue? I'm fairly good with a electric DC Volt meter for a fuse box check or blower motor fan "plug going into the blower fan motor" electrical test.

Any thoughts on a good next step check to fix this "no interior blower fan" condition?

Best Regards,

Laynester

Reply to
Laynester
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I guess that I am a little late to the party on this one but I was wonderin g something. I have a 99 ford ranger that the motor has stopped blowing.. I haven't done any investigating yet but it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I had a 97 ford Taurus several years ago and the ac would work fi ne until you put the car in reverse then it would shut off. I found the pro blem to be a neutral cutoff switch. Once I replaced that it was fine. I was wondering if the 99 ford ranger has the same thing?

We had the transmission re-built last year and since then the column shifte r has been acting up. It seems that when it started messing up is when the ac motor starting going in and out.. Just a thought!

Reply to
joshuaherbison

something. I have a 99 ford ranger that the motor has stopped blowing.. I haven't done any investigating yet but it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I had a 97 ford Taurus several years ago and the ac would work fine until you put the car in reverse then it would shut off. I found the problem to be a neutral cutoff switch. Once I replaced that it was fine. I was wondering if the 99 ford ranger has the same thing?

has been acting up. It seems that when it started messing up is when the ac motor starting going in and out.. Just a thought! 99% chance the brushes in the blower motor are worn out or sticking. The other 1% is a bad connection.

Reply to
clare

something. I have a 99 ford ranger that the motor has stopped blowing.. I haven't done any investigating yet but it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I had a 97 ford Taurus several years ago and the ac would work fine until you put the car in reverse then it would shut off. I found the problem to be a neutral cutoff switch. Once I replaced that it was fine. I was wondering if the 99 ford ranger has the same thing?

has been acting up. It seems that when it started messing up is when the ac motor starting going in and out.. Just a thought!

+1

I've had those exact symptoms many times and the fix was always a new blower motor. Last time it happened on my explorer it was a motor I'd previously replaced with one from Autozone (with lifetime warranty). I took it back (they had the record in their computer) and they gave me a new motor plus about $8 because the current price was less then what I had paid 10 years earlier.

Reply to
Ashton Crusher

something. I have a 99 ford ranger that the motor has stopped blowing.. I haven't done any investigating yet but it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I had a 97 ford Taurus several years ago and the ac would work fine until you put the car in reverse then it would shut off. I found the problem to be a neutral cutoff switch. Once I replaced that it was fine. I was wondering if the 99 ford ranger has the same thing?

has been acting up. It seems that when it started messing up is when the ac motor starting going in and out.. Just a thought!

wow. That's even better than the old Craftsman commercial where the guy gets his grandpa's hammer replaced for free. GW

Reply to
Geoff Welsh

wondering something. I have a 99 ford ranger that the motor has stopped blowing.. I haven't done any investigating yet but it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I had a 97 ford Taurus several years ago and the ac would work fine until you put the car in reverse then it would shut off. I found the problem to be a neutral cutoff switch. Once I replaced that it was fine. I was wondering if the 99 ford ranger has the same thing?

shifter has been acting up. It seems that when it started messing up is when the ac motor starting going in and out.. Just a thought!

I was quite surprised. At first I thought they would giving me some sort of prorated refund and then were going to want me to pay for the new motor! But no.

Reply to
Ashton Crusher

I guess that I am a little late to the party on this one but I was wondering something. I have a 99 ford ranger that the motor has stopped blowing.. I haven't done any investigating yet but it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I had a 97 ford Taurus several years ago and the ac would work fine until you put the car in reverse then it would shut off. I found the problem to be a neutral cutoff switch. Once I replaced that it was fine. I was wondering if the 99 ford ranger has the same thing?

We had the transmission re-built last year and since then the column shifter has been acting up. It seems that when it started messing up is when the ac motor starting going in and out.. Just a thought!

Reply to
Guv Bob

I guess that I am a little late to the party on this one but I was wondering something. I have a 99 ford ranger that the motor has stopped blowing.. I haven't done any investigating yet but it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I had a 97 ford Taurus several years ago and the ac would work fine until you put the car in reverse then it would shut off. I found the problem to be a neutral cutoff switch. Once I replaced that it was fine. I was wondering if the 99 ford ranger has the same thing?

We had the transmission re-built last year and since then the column shifter has been acting up. It seems that when it started messing up is when the ac motor starting going in and out.. Just a thought!

Reply to
Guv Bob

something. I have a 99 ford ranger that the motor has stopped blowing.. I haven't done any investigating yet but it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I had a 97 ford Taurus several years ago and the ac would work fine until you put the car in reverse then it would shut off. I found the problem to be a neutral cutoff switch. Once I replaced that it was fine. I was wondering if the 99 ford ranger has the same thing?

has been acting up. It seems that when it started messing up is when the ac motor starting going in and out.. Just a thought!

wiring - a loose wire, bad electrical component or the circuit inside the fan. I would just grab the meter, put the negative lead on ground and start testing wiring junctions until you can isolate it. Sometimes, just moving wires will make or break a bad connection and help. Just don't get too jiggy with it. :O)

Every ford I've seen with the problem has been one of 2 things - a high resistance (burned ) connector in the blower circuit, or worn out brushes in the fan motor. About 6:1 brushes over connections

Reply to
clare

something. I have a 99 ford ranger that the motor has stopped blowing.. I haven't done any investigating yet but it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I had a 97 ford Taurus several years ago and the ac would work fine until you put the car in reverse then it would shut off. I found the problem to be a neutral cutoff switch. Once I replaced that it was fine. I was wondering if the 99 ford ranger has the same thing?

has been acting up. It seems that when it started messing up is when the ac motor starting going in and out.. Just a thought!

wiring - a loose wire, bad electrical component or the circuit inside the fan. I would just grab the meter, put the negative lead on ground and start testing wiring junctions until you can isolate it. Sometimes, just moving wires will make or break a bad connection and help. Just don't get too jiggy with it. :O)

forget to check the mechanical stuff myself. Check the easy stuff outside the motor assembly first.

I've had a couple fan motors that would go on and off by themselves. Thought it might be the wiring but in both cases it was just a worn out fan. The brushes sometimes made contact and sometimes didn't. ...

Reply to
Ashton Crusher

snipped-for-privacy@snyder.on.ca wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

If you have a habit of running the fan on high a lot of the time I would be checking the connectors on the resistor block, pretty common. FYI I never run the fan on any of my vehicles,on high, and have never wore a motor out yet. KB

Reply to
Kevin Bottorff

The resistor block is NOT used when on high speed - so if there is no high speed or other speed it is NOT the resistor block - and the motor can wear out on low speed too if it is run more or less steadily. If a car has AC it wears out faster because it gets used more. And I have replaced HUNDREDS of fan motors over 4 decades. (only 1? on my own vehicle)

Reply to
clare

snipped-for-privacy@snyder.on.ca wrote in news:ad6ns89sc6dus55cclf3go6moc0aa9gpju@

4ax.com:

except the wire for high does run through the block connector and melting the connector and ends is fairly common on those. That is a bushing motor so the faster it runs the more likely it will heat the bushings and wear them out faster. and I always ask and the ones that run the blower on high do tend to wear them out sooner. also almost all modern cars run the fan all the time to guarenty cabin pressure. very few have a true off. KB

Reply to
Kevin Bottorff

something. I have a 99 ford ranger that the motor has stopped blowing.. I haven't done any investigating yet but it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I had a 97 ford Taurus several years ago and the ac would work fine until you put the car in reverse then it would shut off. I found the problem to be a neutral cutoff switch. Once I replaced that it was fine. I was wondering if the 99 ford ranger has the same thing?

has been acting up. It seems that when it started messing up is when the ac motor starting going in and out.. Just a thought!

the wiring - a loose wire, bad electrical component or the circuit inside the fan. I would just grab the meter, put the negative lead on ground and start testing wiring junctions until you can isolate it. Sometimes, just moving wires will make or break a bad connection and help. Just don't get too jiggy with it. :O)

always forget to check the mechanical stuff myself. Check the easy stuff outside the motor assembly first.

the "whack test" is quite useful on worn motors GW

Reply to
Geoff Welsh

And the "bushings" are not the usual problem when blower motors get intermittent and quit. It is the "brushes". Totally different parts, totally different function. And on a ranger (at least on up to '97? high speed TOTALLY bypasses the resistor block. The connector on the blower motor RELAY is the most commonly overheated/damaged connector, followed by the connector to the blower switch - the resitors and switch are on the ground side of the motor - so to test the motor simply see what voltage you have ACROSS the terminals of the motor with the fan turned on (any speed) If it is 12 volts, or very close, the problem is in the motor itself - absolutely no if's ands or buts about it.

Reply to
clare

something. I have a 99 ford ranger that the motor has stopped blowing.. I haven't done any investigating yet but it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I had a 97 ford Taurus several years ago and the ac would work fine until you put the car in reverse then it would shut off. I found the problem to be a neutral cutoff switch. Once I replaced that it was fine. I was wondering if the 99 ford ranger has the same thing?

has been acting up. It seems that when it started messing up is when the ac motor starting going in and out.. Just a thought!

the wiring - a loose wire, bad electrical component or the circuit inside the fan. I would just grab the meter, put the negative lead on ground and start testing wiring junctions until you can isolate it. Sometimes, just moving wires will make or break a bad connection and help. Just don't get too jiggy with it. :O)

always forget to check the mechanical stuff myself. Check the easy stuff outside the motor assembly first.

It works well when they are just getting intermittent - but if you ignore it foe a week or so, it doesn't work any more.

Reply to
clare

something. I have a 99 ford ranger that the motor has stopped blowing.. I haven't done any investigating yet but it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I had a 97 ford Taurus several years ago and the ac would work fine until you put the car in reverse then it would shut off. I found the problem to be a neutral cutoff switch. Once I replaced that it was fine. I was wondering if the 99 ford ranger has the same thing?

has been acting up. It seems that when it started messing up is when the ac motor starting going in and out.. Just a thought!

the wiring - a loose wire, bad electrical component or the circuit inside the fan. I would just grab the meter, put the negative lead on ground and start testing wiring junctions until you can isolate it. Sometimes, just moving wires will make or break a bad connection and help. Just don't get too jiggy with it. :O)

always forget to check the mechanical stuff myself. Check the easy stuff outside the motor assembly first.

On my last one it wasn't very successful. Whacking it did not good but strangely, wiggling the wires did. Must have made something move inside. Because the Whack test didn't seem to help I was not optimistic it was just a bum motor but instead might be a wiring problem buried somewhere. But the new motor completely eliminated the problem.

Reply to
Ashton Crusher

my blower not running....early 90's Ranger. Disconnected the power at the connection on the blower, checked for voltage....got 11+ volts. Figured the blower must be worn out. Ordered new blower, and while it was in transit, took the old one out. For fun, jumped the connections and the SOB ran fine. Reconnected connector, no joy.

I can't see any problem with the connector. The prongs clearly seem to be making connection, but the motor doesn't run.

Wasted money on a new blower, I guess, but how do I get the old one to work like it is supposed to? It has to be the connector, doesn't it? Or....is the 11+ volts an indication I'm not getting real power to the connector?

Reply to
paul

trying, trying. The voltage on the connector keeps dropping, and the battery is running down...I can still jump the fan off the battery and get an immediate surge. I thought, perhaps, there was a broken or almost broken wire, as improbable as that might be, but extensive twisting and bending with VAmeter reading the outbput of the connector says 'no problem'. Maybe I'll replace the module in the plenum to be sure.

Reply to
paul

What position do you have the switch on? On high the power goes directly to the motor unless the switch or a wire is bad. On medium and low speeds power goes through a set of resistors.. With the motor disconnected you should have full battery voltage across the motor terminals in eavery position because there is no load to drop the voltage. I believe the high speed is provided by a relay bypassing the resistors. What year,exactly, is the ranger? The 1st gen and seconf gen Rangers may be wired differently - and even between

1993 (first year of gen2) and 1996 there are likrly differences If it's 92-94 see the deagram here:

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How to test the resistor is here:
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The circuit is the same on 2.3 liter and 4 liter trucks as well.

Reply to
Clare Snyder

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