2000 Maxima Auto Climate Control Failure

Several months ago, the climate control in my 2000 Maxima began acting up. It would be working fine and then suddenly all the lights would come on and I would have no control. It basically had a mind of it's own, but generally acted as if it were stuck on 65 degrees. Occasionally there would be no lights at all but the fans would still run randomly. When the problems first started, I would have no control for the first 2 or 3 minutes after starting the car but then it would start working fine.

After about a week or so of it cutting off and on, I was never able to regain control. Thinking it was just a bad controller, I brought it to the dealer, and they said that it was indeed a bad controller and that they would order the part (about $550). Since it was not a critical problem and I was busy with work, I decided instead to wait a few weeks and then buy a used controller on ebay (for about $35). However, when I hooked it up, nothing lit up, just like before, and I had no control.

Interestingly, when I hit the rear defroster button on either of the two controllers, I hear a click and the lights dim, suggesting that it is indeed working. However, no other controls respond at all.

I really don't get a good vibe from the dealer and I was wondering if anyone had an idea what the problem could be. Seemed pretty obvious that it was the controller, but apparently it wasn't.

Thanks a lot.

Reply to
joseph.sinnott
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intermittent problems like that are usually wire/connector related, which the maxima is infamous for, and not usually controller related. Could be as simple as buying some electrical contact spray and cleaning the connectors, or a complex as a broken wire somewhere in a connector (hard to track down).

Reply to
bungalow_steve

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