Buick mini-van heater problems...

pl1338

I have this Buick Terraza Minivan, it's the same as the rest of the GM mini's. It's a 2005 and it's loaded. It has the dual climate zone heating and AC up front, but the problem is that the passenger side is now a refrigerator and will not blow out hot air! The driver side does work fine, the rear H & C works fine, nice and hot. I took it to a mechanic and he showed me two plastic sticks, he said these had fallen out after a door controlling the air on that side broke them off and now has gotten stuck. He also told me it would be a cool thousand dollars for him to fix it! I'm curious, has anyone faced this problem with the GM vans and is it such a job that a mechanically inclined fella can fix it or should I pay this guy too much to do it... My concern is actually getting the parts I need.

Thanks.

PJ

McSteve

I don't know about that vehicle specifically, but usually the job is a major pain. You're probably looking at taking apart the bottom of the whole dashboard to get at the ducts. It's pretty labor-intensive, that's why the price is high.

If you're really lucky, you might be able to reach the broken linkage without taking too much apart, and then you can always just manually move it and jam it in the right position to get heat. At least until you feel like fixing it properly, or paying to have it done.

ScottK

Hey pl1338 did you ever get your minivan temp controls fixed? I have the exact same problem happen on the way home today from work. Fiddled with the rotary dial numerous times and it still blows cold on the driver and the passenger has heat.

Frustrated (and chilly) here, any help appreciated!