2001 Chevy Blazer, 250,000 miles.

Time for another repair to the 20-year-old Chevy Blazer. The air conditioner blower motor has been making horrid squealing sounds, due to worn out bearings, and needed to be replaced.

I've hesitated for a while to do this job myself, because it seemed rather complicated. And to pay a mechanic to do it was going to be expensive. But after watching a few youtube videos on the repair, I gained the confidence that I can handle this. I ordered the parts, which were only $65, and went at it.

The fan. It's tucked into the back corner of the firewall in a small niche, and is hard to get to.



In order to gain access to the fan, you first have to remove the electronic control module (ECM). And underneath that, is the radiator coolant recovery tank (CRT), which also has to be removed.



The ECM was just two large plugs and four screws.



The CRT was three screws and a hose. You're going to wonder about the green tape. That's my technique to tape the screws down next to where they came from, so they won't get lost, and I won't have a big pile of screws and wonder which one goes where. Neat and orderly.

I had no idea that coolant tank had that flat extension underneath the ECM module.



The next impediment is the big wire bundle. They had to be released from that bracket on the wall, on the left, so they could be pulled out of the way. Who designs these crazy brackets?



And finally, I have access to the fan!



One of my tricks for not losing screws is to put a magnet next to it so that it doesn't fall down and get lost. The magnet catches it and holds on. The fan is held in place with five hex screws.



There's always that one darned screw that you can't reach, and requires a socket wrench extension, a universal joint adapter, and the arms of a contortionist.



The old fan is out!



The cavity where the fan blows air over the heating and air conditioning coils.



Test the new fan before installing, by running wires from the + & - battery terminals to the fan motor electrical connector. It spins, and it's quiet!



The new fan is in! Easier said than done. One screw fell into a crevice and couldn't be retrieved, and was replaced with a loose spare from my mayonnaise jar collection of extras. That's the rusty one you see at 2 o'clock. Note the masking tape holding that hose out of the way so I don't have to fight it all the time. Then it was a matter of re-installing the wire bundle, CRT & ECM.



Testing. The air conditioner still blows cold, the fan is nice and quiet, and all four fan speeds work! Mission successful. Four hours of work, longer than I expected.



Done. I'll never take my blower motor for granted again. I'll be ready to do this again in another quarter-million miles. And with the motor problem fixed, it should quit blowing out the fan speed resister electronics every year.

 

Nice write up! Might be sticky material.

George