A/C Air Outlet Servo problem

Hey guys, I recently picked up an 03 taco (yay, first taco!) and am having a problem with the AC. The outlet switch (face, feet, defrost, etc) doesn't work right.

So I found the manual, and pulled out the lower LH trim to check the servo. It works, but it gets stuck. Depending on which position it is currently in, and which position I change the selector to (details below), it will either:
1) work perfectly
2) make an electric humm and do nothing
3) try to make the adjustment and repeatedly click as it gets stuck.

I'm not sure if the servo itself is bad, and simply isn't strong enough to operate the big white guide thingy (yeah, I have no idea what that is), or if there is a problem with the guide thingy. It is pretty difficult to adjust by hand, though I can get it to change to all of the different positions.

Any ideas?

Seems to me like it should be smooth and easy to adjust manually, and that even if I picked up a new servo it still wouldn't be strong enough to move it.



extra details:

So if the positions are 1 (face) to 5 (defrost), then:
I can start from 3, 4, or 5 and get to 3, 4, and 5 no problems. Servo adjusts the white thing, and the air blows where I told it to.

I can get from 3 to 2 about 50% of the time. I cannot get to 2 from 4 or 5. And the same in reverse - I can get to 3 from 2 about 50% of the time, and cannot get to 4 or 5 from 2.

I could not get into 1 without manually operating the white thing. And once in 1, I could not get out without manually changing it. This manual adjustment is much more difficult than any other position, and takes a good bit of force to get it to swing down (much more than I think should be necessary).

 

Sounds like something is getting in the way, intermittantly, on the inside, when it operates.

 

Yeah, that's kinda what I was thinking - like some foam sealant or something has come unstuck and is in the way. It just looks like it is going to be a nightmare to try to pull that main air baffle assembly, and wanted some validation on what I'm looking at before I get started.

 

Make a note of the position of the door, and remove the servo. Everything should move easily.