How do you change the heater blower motor on a Windstar?

Answer 1

Check the Fuse first

1999-2003 - FRONT Blower

• Inside fusebox: relay #3
• Engine compartment fusebox: fuse #120

1999-2003 - REAR Blower

• Inside fusebox: relay #6
• Engine compartment fusebox: fuse #117

1995-1998 - FRONT Blower

• Inside fusebox: fuse #36

1995-1998 - REAR Blower

• Inside fusebox: N/A
• Engine compartment fusebox: fuse "E"

Front Motor Removal Procedures

• Empty the glove-box and release the clips at the back so it drops out of the way
• Remove the blower motor cover and/or the vent tube
• Remove wire harness connection
• Remove 4 retainer screws - lift motor up and out

FYI - Motors cost about $45

Rear Blower MotorThe fan for the rear heater is located behind the panel immediately to the left of the middle passenger seat. Remove the seat. Open the panel cover that is held in place by plastic screws and you will see the fan.

Before checking the motor, check the relays under the dash, drivers side:

• one relay for the rear blower
• one relay for the front blower
• there are 14 black relays and one blue flasher unit that works with the turn signals and also flashes the 4 way flashers, its a dual purpose flasher unit.

Check the relay diagram in the owners manual for the position of the correct relay.

The other fault may be no low or mid range speed on the blower switch. If this symptom pops up, it is most likely the resistor unit which is located near the blower motor - also behind the glove box.

Check for burned windings, bad connections, or check the over temp sensor for an open circuit with an ohm meter.

My symptom was no front blower operation and after 3 hours found the problem of a bad relay contact - the coil was fine and i made the mistake of not making a diagram of all the relays and flasher unit before removing them, hence the long time repair.

Also spray wd-40 on the relay contact pins for easy removal, as they are hard to remove - no room. I used pliers and be careful, as i pinched my fingers.

Good luck in this repair

The heater blower motor is directly behind the glovebox - pinch the retainer clips inward to allow the glovebox to drop down out of the way. (I sometimes forget to be sure to empty it first!)

To remove the blower motor:

* Disconnect the wiring connectors * Remove the motor cover and/or tube (used to cool the motor) * Remove the 4 screws holding the motor in place Reverse to install the new motor. The blower motor assembly hits the dash and will not clear for removal. How do I get the dash loose where i can pull the assembly out?t>=

Autozone.com lists a few choices from $40-50

Re: How do I get the dash loose...

If you had the same issue I did, the motor unit won't pull straight out after you remove the mounting screws. I just rotated the unit about 360 degrees so that the flat part of the mounting hardware is on the bottom. Then you can more easily work it out.

My question is: I bought the motor and not the motor/fan assembled. How to I remove the motor from the fan? It looks like I just pull really hard, but that always worries me if I'm not sure I should.