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Strange blower motor problem - UPDATED


Guest JohnHirschi
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Guest JohnHirschi

Hi,

 

I have a strange problem I hope someone can help me with. I'm so tired of dropping the pathy off at the dealer.

 

I got in the Pathfinder after work on Monday and the air conditioner fan wouldn't blow. I turned it on all settings (Auto, 1, 2, 3), but the air wouldn't blow. I left it in the on position for the whole ride home (1/2 hour) but it never did blow.

 

The next morning I got in to go to work and it blew just fine. All positions worked. But after work it didn't work again and it hasn't worked since (even in the mornings).

 

I took it to the dealer yesterday and they told me that I had two broken "amps" One looks like a 4x6 inch box that goes by the driver's feet and another small things that goes near the blower motor. They want $370 for the parts and $160 to install them. I couldn't believe it! I figured it would be $150 at most, including the standard "bend over and take it from the dealer" fee. They say its because I have an "auto" mode on the blower.

 

Has anyone ever seen anything like this? I can't drive it here in Utah in the summer without A/C, and I can't sell it without fixing that blower. Are these the types of parts that I could get from a junkyard? I am worried that I have some other problem that blew these parts up and that when I get replacement parts that same root problem will kill the new parts.

 

I'm begging you guys for help here! What would you do in my shoes?

 

Thanks,

John

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  • 4 weeks later...

If you know exactly what the two parts look like, I'd try a wrecker and see if you can get used ones. If so, they'll probably be a lot cheaper than new, and if they blow right off the bat, at least you won't be out $500.

 

just my .02.

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Guest JohnHirschi

They showed me a picture of the two parts. I found one under my dash, but the other must be buried because I couldn't find it by just looking. Is there a way to get a picture of the part using a part number?

 

Here are the part numbers:

 

285201W660

2776170T03

 

Together they are about $370. The dealer said that they will charge me shipping and 10% if I bring them back unopened. If I open them, they won't take them back at all... So I know what one looks like, but not the other. I haven't been to a junkyard for years. What do you think they would charge for an electrical part like that?

 

John

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take some pictures of the affected areas and explain whats goin on and most likely someone will be able to help

 

$700 from a dealer........ my goodness, you can buy a lot of parts for that sort of money, sounds like they rippn you off something bad

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Avoid the dealer unless it's under warrenty. They charged me $.62 for a little dash screw and $1.64 for a little metal clip. Both would probably be $.10 together at a hardware store. I'd would have gone to the hardware store if it wouldn't had cost me $2.00 in gas.

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Guest JohnHirschi

Everyone, thanks for your input and help

 

I got desperate and decided to let the dealership fix the problem. I called them and asked, "You know that $100 you charged me to diagnose the problem? That gets applied to the $530 total right?" They said no, the $530 is in addition to the $100 they charged me. That just made me even more angry. I decided to try another dealer.

 

I went to Tim Dahle Nissan in Sandy, UT. I went and talked to their service manager (Chris Franks) about it. He went to his computer and found a diagnostic flowchart to diagnose the problem. He brought his phillips screwdriver out to the parking lot and 8 screws later had one of the parts exposed. The amp has a few electronics in it and a huge heat sink. He touched the heat sink to ground and the fan came on. So he went inside to the parts department and asked to "borrow" a new part. He took it outside and plugged it in. It worked; problem solved. It took him about 15 minutes and he only charged me for the part ($106). I offered to buy lunch for his entire crew, but he wouldn't have it.

 

What a difference... Theres more. When I got home I got the mail and there is a letter from the service manager from the original dealer that wanted to get $630 from me. The letter states that I will soon be receiving a survey in the mail from them about their service department. "This survey is very important to us and if there is any reason why you can not give (dealer name) a 100% grade please contact me so I can resolve any questions or concerns you may have."

 

I can't wait to call him today....

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