Cracked A/C Fan < 20k miles

Ah, the good ol' days of flying in parts... brings back memories *cough* nightmares...

 

Interesting introduction!

 

So just to add I'm from south Texas. I have a 17 sr5 and my blower went out a week ago I currently have 16k on it. Brought it to Toyota they said eta for part would be about a month then they proceeded to tell me I could pick my truck and drive it till the part came in

 

So they expect you to drive for a month without being able to use the AC?

 

My dealer north of Dallas told me the same thing..... said I was "on the list" for a loaner. I promptly opened a claim with Toyota and was told I'd have a call by the end of tomorrow.

 

I went in for my 20k service today and I had the dealer confirm my broken fan. My service rep told me they should have the part in a few days. I am one of the lucky ones, my fan still works up to setting 2.

 

Yeah basically until I told them there was no way I was going to drive a 17 taco in this heat I shouldn't even be dealing with this issue. Shortly after they put me in a rental. But I'm stuck in a Corolla for a month

 

I just got an email from the dealer, part is in. It took four days to get a blower motor in metro Phoenix. Not sure why it is taking everyone so long to get them in BFE, I would think the dealers should have access to the same regional networks.

 

That plastic is so thin you can see through it!

 

My AC fan would not come on this past weekend. Turned the truck off. Decided to put it back in the garage and take another vehicle. When I restarted the truck, the fan started blowing. Dropped it off at the dealership last night, and got it back this morning. They said there was something wrong with the windings in the motor, and that the blade was shoeing fatigue, so they put a new one in. I am also in Phoenix, so the heat probably plays a factor.

 

I had my a/c quit on me last Saturday, mid-day, 97 degrees in Phoenix...I was not looking forward to driving home 30 minutes in that heat...but got over it and hit the road.

I found a shady spot a few miles away, pulled over and brought up a YouTube video on my phone detailing the a/c system...checked the relay by switching out another one to it...Decided to go to O'Reilly's.

They suggested I check the resistor...I did that...Finally, as a last resort, I turned on the truck and banged on the motor...voila...sumbitch came back on.

Turned the truck off, went into O'Reily's, came back...same thing...no a/c...banged on it again. It came on.

That happened a couple more times over the next day or two. Then today, a/c came on no problem. It was that way all day.

Stealership wants $300+ and says the part is just north of $180. O'Reily has the a/c motor for $66 bucks.

I'm going to do it myself, but wondering if the aftermarket motor is as good as the oem part.

Any suggestions on where to buy for best price and quality?

[EDIT: Found these parts on RockAuto...some poster on another thread says to steer clear of the Four Seasons blower. That leaves three other choices...

Anyone have a recommendation?

 

So, it's a bad idea to start the a/c on high??? I'm in Phoenix, too, so it's kind of a knee jerk reaction to want to get the vehicle cooled down as fast as possible...

 

That's just my opinion, I don't have data to back that up. In this case it was on the "high" setting before I even started the truck, so it accelerated from totally idle to max rpm almost instantly.

From now on I set it on low initially then ramp to high. I might be a little OCD after breaking one. It might not really matter in cooler climates, but the thermoplastic they make the fan out of is probably already weakened a bit when it's heated to 150°F. That being said, this was still a manufacturing problem from Toyota.

 

Bump for brand recommendation.