Blower motor resistor

Need a car part and don't know where to get it or how to install it. Look here!
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rer233
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Blower motor resistor

Post by rer233 »

R/A has a closeout deal on blower resistors for $13.59 (3 left after i got mine.) So anybody out there whose blower works on high speed but is missing one or more of the slower speeds-here's your chance!
if it aint there, there's a good chance it won't break!
83 SR5 Silver/Blue (Snowmobile/work beater)-totaled but drivable
85 SR5 Blue
88 SR5 White (the 'good' one)-not anymore-totaled
87 fwd silver wagon a/t
87 4wd dx Cream (a/t- not anymore- now m/t)
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dlb
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Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by dlb »

i'm surprised there's any of these left. i have managed to repair a few by removing the plastic casing from butt splices and using the metal inner portion to reattach the ends of the metal coils. finicky work though.
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ARCHINSTL
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Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by ARCHINSTL »

Thanks - just now ordered one!
Goldie lost the lowest speed last Winter, and now the second speed is intermittent.
Tom M.
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Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by c_j »

On the subject, I had to replace a broken blower motor resistor yesterday with a spare that is only a couple of years old. You can see the green corrosion starting on the one coil already. Also the high-temp brittle goop they put on the coils to prevent them from breaking due to vibration is already broken as well.
blower_motor_resistor_before.JPG
I coated it with the Plastikote Hot Paint in the hopes that will stop the corrosion. I'll probably end up paying for not doing something to stop the vibration though.
blower_motor_resistor_after.JPG
Also to note, someone must have replaced it before. They undid the two screws and that let the protective metal cage drop down (which both screws bite into), so the resistor had been sitting in the hole with nothing holding it in. Needless to say, only take out the one lower screw and you will be fine.
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xirdneh
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Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by xirdneh »

i ordered one
thanks for the alert
Love those Tercell 4x4 wagons but they sure suffer from road noise.
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rer233
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Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by rer233 »

No problem- we gotta do all we can to keep these old guys running for cheap. BTW-less than 24 hours after my post they were all gone. Maybe i should get a comission from R/A??
if it aint there, there's a good chance it won't break!
83 SR5 Silver/Blue (Snowmobile/work beater)-totaled but drivable
85 SR5 Blue
88 SR5 White (the 'good' one)-not anymore-totaled
87 fwd silver wagon a/t
87 4wd dx Cream (a/t- not anymore- now m/t)
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Location: Kirkwood, a 'burb of St. Louis

Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by ARCHINSTL »

OK - this is what I received - see the clear break and separation in the lower coil and the slight break in the upper.
Is this something to be concerned with? I'm in the dark here.
If there are no more available, should I ask for a refund - or should I attempt to fix it - with what?
The little instruction sheet said, quoting: "Minor cracks in the protective ceramic coating are normal and will not affect the blower resistor's ability to function."
I plan on calling Airtex, which is the distributor (and who shipped the resistor) - and then R/A.
Thanks,
Tom M.
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"Oh, do not ask, 'What is it?' Let us go and make our visit."
T.S. Eliot - "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"
"Now and then we had a hope that, if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates."
Mark Twain
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dlb
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Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by dlb »

i would try to find similar high temp ceramic goop and fix the broken areas. i imagine even with the damage, the resistor coils will live as long as your car, but if you've got the part out and want it to last as long as possible you may as well make the effort.

come to think of it, i'd like to find some high temp ceramic goop that i could put on any resistors i repair in the future. if you go the repair route, let us know what you use, tom.
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Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by ARCHINSTL »

OK - I just got off the phone with the tech guy at Airtex; he said not to worry as the white goop is there to just keep the wire coils separated - should they touch, the resistance would change.
He also said that if I ever have a problem with it, to give them a call and they'd replace it.
I also mentioned that RA apparently said there were only 13 in stock, and that was it. I then asked, since it was not shipped from RA but from Airtex's IA warehouse, if they had more. He did not have immediate access to the inventory, but he thought they would have more in stock, as apparently other cars used the same resistor.
So - I guess it's good to go.

OT, but Airtex makes all sorts of stuff for the auto trade; its site is http://www.airtexve.com/index.html
Tom M.
T4WD augury?
"Oh, do not ask, 'What is it?' Let us go and make our visit."
T.S. Eliot - "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"
"Now and then we had a hope that, if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates."
Mark Twain
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Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by c_j »

dlb wrote:i would try to find similar high temp ceramic goop and fix the broken areas....
I was just thinking that muffler cement might be a good product for this. It is very thick and ceramic-y, plus it dries fast.

Like Kleen-Flo #450 (it looks like this page has the wrong description at time of writing, but the picture is correct)*edit: I sent Kleen-Flo and email and their web page was corrected within a couple of hours!
Last edited by c_j on Wed Oct 23, 2013 11:40 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by ARCHINSTL »

Hey - now muffler cement would be a good idea - the Permatex that I've used in the past is good for 2000º!
I think I'll try that! That's always handy stuff to keep around.
Thanks!
Tom M.
T4WD augury?
"Oh, do not ask, 'What is it?' Let us go and make our visit."
T.S. Eliot - "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"
"Now and then we had a hope that, if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates."
Mark Twain
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Petros
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Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by Petros »

JB weld? that is metal reinforced epoxy, supposed to be good to 550 deg F. There are high temp epoxies that are good for much higher.

Is there a high temp muffer repair goo?
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Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by ARCHINSTL »

JB Weld might be a good alternative - but a little runny.
I have no ideas how hot those coils get, though - don't one or more get red-hot (enough to ignite bits of napkin, as detailed in splatterdog's thread of a few years ago?
Tom M.
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"Oh, do not ask, 'What is it?' Let us go and make our visit."
T.S. Eliot - "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"
"Now and then we had a hope that, if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates."
Mark Twain
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Re: Blower motor resistor

Post by Petros »

red hot would be about 1200-1400 deg F.
'87 Tercel 4wd SR5 (current engine swap project)
'84 Tercel 4wd (daily driver, with on going mods)
'92 Mazda MPV 4wd (wife's daily driver)
'85 Tercel 4wd DLX auto(daughter's daily driver)
'01 Honda Civic (other daughter's daily driver)
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