05 Tahoe LS AC issues

[Brewer05]

I will be driving and the AC will be be blowing snow it is so cold, but then it will start blowing hot air (heater on high hot). No changes to any of the controls or settings. At the next light I can turn off the engine and re-crank and the AC will be back to blowing snow agian.

To me is seems that there is a relay/switch being tripped somewhere that is kicking it off but have no clue where to start when it comes to ACs.

Suggestions?

 

[blackhawk17]

I have the same problem with my 05 Tahoe. I'm In Central America right now, but it happened a couple of times before I left, and now my wife says it happens all the time. I searched through several of these threads looking for ideas, and if you look at the link below, it's my exact problem. It's called a heater blend door actuator. It's pretty expensive to get it fixed at the dealer, but the part isn't expensive. So when I go on leave here in a couple of weeks I'm going to try and fix it if I can find some installation instructions. I don't know if it's in my Chilton manual or not. I like to think I'm pretty handy, so hopefully I can handle it. If you get it fixed, please update and let me know if you did it yourself or took in, cost, etc. Thanks.

http://www.tahoeforum.com/showthread.php?t=1947&highlight=heater+actuator

Hope this helps you.

 

[Brewer05]

Very similar, but mine does not seem to be a Left/Right or Front/Back issue it is the whole system, obviously it takes the back a little longer to catch up to the front vents, but I have noticed that if I dont hit a light fairly quickly to stop and re-crank that the back vents do start blowing hot air.

 

[clkelley]

If it is the blend door actuator, it is not that hard to replace, if you have someone back home with even limited mechanical ability willing to do the install for you it should not take more than an hour or so to get done.

As for the OP issue, it could be that your truck needs the condenser and ac/heater bloser fan area cleaned out and the cabin air filter replaced.

 

[Brewer05]

I take that back it happened again yesterday and the rear vents continued to blow cold air after the front had swithced to blowing hot.

Will try the filter change/ cleaning the blower this weekend.


Have a 1600 mi road trip comin up here in a couple weeks, want to get this sucker figured out.

 

[Brewer05]

Well after practically removing the whole dash on saturday trying to find the filter housing........

'05 tahoes dont have cabin air filters.... http://www.automotiveforums.com/t968332-discuss2005_tahoe_cabin_air_filter.html

Just a wild guess here but could it be the pressure sensor going bad? the '05 does not have a high and low but just one sensor that i guess does both.

 

[blackhawk17]

Here's an update on my A/C issue.

I'm home on leave and thought I would try something that I saw on YouTube from a guy that owns an 06 3500.

He said that he had already replaced the Heater door blend actuator and taken it to the dealership twice, and the problem kept coming back. He pulled the fuses that were under the dash (there are 2), and he also pulled the ones under the hood (I think there are 2). He said that he turned the key on but did not start the truck for 15-30 minutes. Then replace the fuses and it should fix the problem.

This sounded a little strange to me, but I thought what the heck- it's worth a shot. So I did it.

My problem went from being an occasional problem to an all the time problem immediately. I thought maybe it WAS the blend door actuator and pulling the fuses caused it to short out permanently instead of just every now and then. So I proceeded to remove it from under the dash on the driver's side (had to remove some trim). I noticed that it was attached to the door that moves the air from bottom to top, vent to defrost, etc. That made me wonder if the actuator actually had anything to do with my problem, so I started the car just to see what would happen.

So with the car started, the heater blend door actuator REMOVED altogether and the air running, I moved the gear by hand which moved the air from the vents to the floor, then to the defrost, etc. So clearly the heater blend door actuator has nothing to do with the problem of hot A/C on the driver's side while passenger side still works. All it does is move where the air goes- not make it hot or cold.

So now I'm worried that I broke my wife's A/C, so I'm kind of freaking out. I keep the A/C running and start to pull the A/C fuses that are under the dash. There is a 30 amp that seemed to do nothing, and a 10 amp which actually controls the door actuator that moves the air around. While I'm doing this the A/C on the passenger side is cold, A/C on driver's side is hot. After removing the fuses one at a time and putting them back in, the A/C on the driver's side starts to blow cold. And this is without restarting the car, which is what usually has to be done.

So, knowing that the 10 amp fuse controls the heater door blend actuator, logic tells me that the 30 amp fuse fixed the issue- at least temporarily. I don't know if this will be a permanent solution, but the A/C works at least as well as it was working before I ever messed with it.

I'll keep updating...

 

[z71_tahoe]

Hey guys...I've got the same problem. (04 Z71 tahoe) Passenger side is intermittently blowing hot air when commanded cold on both sides. I have the dual climate control system with the all digital controls and it sure seems like the system is just confused.

Any updates on this? Was it a climate control module issue or a actuator issue??

 

[blackhawk17]

No, sorry no updates from me. The last thing I touched was what I previously posted. My wife told me that it did happen again, but it fixed itself after only a few seconds? I don't know, she's not very car savvy so it's hard to know what really happened. I just know that it is NOT the blend door actuator. So don't waste time on that. So far I haven't seen any 100% solution anywhere. Even people who went to the dealer have had it come back.

 

[z71_tahoe]

No, sorry no updates from me. The last thing I touched was what I previously posted. My wife told me that it did happen again, but it fixed itself after only a few seconds? I don't know, she's not very car savvy so it's hard to know what really happened. I just know that it is NOT the blend door actuator. So don't waste time on that. So far I haven't seen any 100% solution anywhere. Even people who went to the dealer have had it come back.

Thanks Blackhawk! That's what I am afraid of. I really hesitate to take this thing to the dealer...some of these guys are saying the dealer spent like 30hrs finding it. 30hrs times shop labor rates...YIKES! Pretty sure I can't afford that right now.

 

[Donut Slayer]

try this guys:
http://www.sparkys-answers.com/2009/09/2004-chevrolet-tahoe-blows-hot-air.html

 

[Nimrod_R]

My 2004 Tahoe has the same problem, drivers side will all of a sudden start blowing hot while the passenger side is still cold air. Turning off the ignition and restarting is the only way to get it to go back to normal. It doesnt matter if I have been on a long trip or been driving 5 minutes after having sat all night, you never know when its gonna happen. As of a few days ago, its happening constantly now.

 

[rockenthebowtie]

Nimrod thats going to be the HVAC temperature door actuator its located under the dash just tothe left under the glove compartment you need to take off the long black that goes across under the dash then you will see a little black motor with like 4-5 wire connector with 2 brass colored screws holding it in place all you need is a 9/32 1/4 inch drive socket to get them out its pretty easy to do

 

[samotahoe]

you might want to even look inside to see if there might be something that's blocking the blend door, some debis could get in there to cause this type of situation. last time I seen this In our shop there was some leaves that kept the door partially open and the door would try to fix itself all the time and so it seemed like a intermittent problem but ended up being the debris.

 

[Nimrod_R]

Thanks......

 

[Bald Jerry]

AC Blowing Hot Air

I had the same problem with my 05 Tahoe and it was the blend door actuator that was the problem. I would have AC on and it would blow heat no matter what I put the temperature on. I would shut it down at the next light and then I got the AC and the same thing with heat. It would sometimes blow cold air out one side of the truck and heat out the other. Sometimes it affected the back heat/AC too. It had no rhyme or reason and would be fine for a bit then back to problems. Heard some clicking from under the dashboard at times too, but changed the blend door actuator from what Rockenthebowtie told me and all it perfect now.

Mine was located passenger side under the glove box left hand side. Take the black cover down and it is just 2 screws and it will slide out so you can get it out of your way. Play with the heat turning it all the way up, then the AC all the way down. I just went back and forth doing that and I duplicated the problem. It is just a plug and 2 screws that hold the blend door actuator in and simple to change like Rockenthebowtie says. I would get the AC Delco and spend the money because in my opinion anything cheap that deals with electronic parts just does not last and is junk.

I hope this is your problem because sounds like yours is doing the same thing mine did when I had the problem and shut it down and started it back up and all was good..

 

[Jrbanker]

I have a similiar problem my heater doesn't work only on the drivers side of course I am going to need this for defrost this winter. So I called the dealer their are 3-4 acuators under the dash all which control this system. You have to figure out which one is not working they put a voltmeter on each one and then figure out which one is not working. I am just going to disconnect one at a time and see which one controls the heat. They also said one of the doors in my heater may just be stuck closed and have to manually be open. I am going to work on this ASAP. I will try first to pull that 10A fuse and see if it fixes the problem thanks for the advice. (2003 Tahoe)

 

[CondoMan]

I've read this Forum and another one dealing with this same exact problem and I have an 04 Tahoe LT with a dual digital AC Control Module that has been doing this same thing for years. Just this week though it decided to stink in the heat mode on the driver's side and I took it in to a friend that read the computer and found no issues. He popped the fuse under the hood and reset it but that didn't work either. He suggested purchasing an AC Control Module but I'm hoping that SOMEONE has since this thread was last posted in has resolved the issue. I'd really like to purchase the CORRECT part to fix it instead of buying a Control Module and if that doesn't work, then buying an Actuator. Has ANYONE gotten their vehicle fixed permanently? And if so, would you please reply and note what part needed to be replaced. Thanks!

 

[jimsnorton]

Ancient thread... My '03 LT with digital, dual climate control, has no front blower at all, and my rear only blows cold air, no matter the setting. Sounds like a typical Tahoe issue, but these forums are not very active and finding help is pretty impossible.

 

[Nimrod_R]

I know its old thread but hope this helps. https://youtu.be/mNEzNY1Eps0