HVAC intake door actuator replacement. How the hell do you even get to it?

[triangles]

As the topic says I'm trying to figure out how to even get to the intake door actuator to replace a dead intake door actuator for my AC and for the life of me I can't get to it without breaking stuff. My Haynes manual is MIA and the factory service manual is useless as tits on a bull, regarding how to get to the damned thing. Any help would be greatly appreciated before I destroy my HVAC trying to get to the damned thing.

 

[Prime]

As the topic says I'm trying to figure out how to even get to the intake door actuator to replace a dead intake door actuator for my AC and for the life of me I can't get to it without breaking stuff. My Haynes manual is MIA and the factory service manual is useless as tits on a bull, regarding how to get to the damned thing. Any help would be greatly appreciated before I destroy my HVAC trying to get to the damned thing.

What year are we talking?

 

[triangles]

It is an '04. Sorry I though I had put this under first gen.

Anyway I figured it out and managed not to break anything. For anyone trying to do the same I have some pointers.

- Remove glove box
- remove blower motor
- Separate the blower housing (there are 3 screws toward the firewall that are a pain to get to).
- I loosened some other stuff and removed a bracket near the door so that I could pivot the lower blower housing out.
- You then have to remove the airbag so that you can get to the last nut holding the upper half of the blower housing in. They hid that sucker right under the dash practically at the base of the windshield. There is a stud on the firewall and you go in through the opening in the dash were the airbag was to remove the nut. I then flexed everything that was in the way to get the upper blower housing off of the stud.

Once I had the actuator out I found out they are unobtanium discontinued. So I took the one I had apart and lubed up the gears and then applied voltage and cycled it back and forth several times before reattaching it to the upper blower housing. I then cycled it attached to the housing making sure the door cycled properly. Install is pretty much the opposite of removal.

I know my vehicle sat for a very long time before I bought it and I'm guessing the door was just stuck from sitting for so long and the actuator wasn't strong enough to break it free.