Help!! I'm freezing my tush off

[A_Stray_Bullet]

Ok...I have a 98 mark viii...love my car
But I'm having a heat problem..not had heat for a few months but now it's getting too cold, had ice this morning and trying to get the windshield defogged is getting ridiculous.
AC and blowers work just no heat, finally brought it into buckys was charged $100 to tell me it's the blend door
They say they can take it off,glue it and it might or might not hold.
For another $300 not really liking this option.
Looking at some posts I looked for the grey lever under the glove box but there isn't one (broke off?) I also have a parts car I bought with a blown head gasket for $700 ...best purchase ever!! but it also has no grey lever.

I'm don't think I can pull the dash to replace the part myself but I read somewhere that I can pull the glovebox and push the lever down to get heat that way..this possible?
Well any suggestions would be very appreciated
Sincerely ...freezing her ass off in seattle

 

[soclose]

Hope it is just the lever and can be fixed. My heater quit blowing hot last month. Took it in & assumed it was the heater blend door but...NO! Seems the door on the heater box is broken. Got one from Carlos (racebronco2) and it will be installed after Thanksgiving as it won't make it here until late Wed. As long as the dash is out, I'm going to have the blend door and heater core replaced with new 'Ford' parts to (hopefully) eliminate any future expense related to the labor intensive dash removal. All I can say is I'm glad it's not my only car AND this had better take care of expensive repairs for a LONG time.

 

[todd2fst4u]

http://www.markviii.org/LOD2/emergency_heat.htm

http://www.markviii.org/LOD2/blend_door_repair.htm

 

[soduka]

Shouldn't have spent the money for them to tell you that, no heat is the most documented and common issue a 97-98 Mark VIII owner will run across.

 

[91 LSC SE]

Soduka is correct, they shouldn't have charged you anything for that info. There is no computer test, you can run a self diagnostic of the Hvac system to easily provide that info.

 

[91 LSC SE]

There is an easy quick fix, did mine two years ago and still works fine.

Remove the headlight switch (pull the dial for manual lights) and remove that small cover. Remove the dash part that has the vents in it (this goes over the dash with the tach and speedo). Remove the message center and behind it you will see the blend door actuator.

Cycle the car (when running) from cold to hot and see how the black plastic arm moves. I believe it moves to the pass. side for cold and to the driver for hot air. Yours will most likely be cracked. Gently help the arm with a screw driver it if doesn't go all the way (see my pics)
Once it is all the way, use a zip tie to go around the actuator arm and pull it tight. I would then use Auto goop (the best adhesive I've seen) to help reenforce the zip tie. Do not use too much! Or the arm won't spin back to cold. I have only use the zip tie for since 2013 and had to adjust it in 2014.

Also note: there is another grey arm under under the glove box. Both of the arms on my M8 were broken. I used a small hose clamp for the grey arm and it worked like a charm for a year and a half and fell off just recently (I didn't want to put it on too tight with concern that it make crack the arm). Only took 2 minutes to put it back on and it has been fine ever since.

See pics. Last one is the lower grey door.



Broken grey arm:


Clamped grey arm:

 

[A_Stray_Bullet]

Thanks guys...I was actually able to see a lever up under the right side of the glove box...just barely could reach it...pulled it down...HEAT!! Lol
Tied a string around it pulled it down and kept it tight by snagging it in the glove box.
It's redneck I know but I'm not mechanically inclined to fix it myself and a piece of string is cheaper than a shop doing it right lol...

 

[91 LSC SE]

a zip tie isn't that much more than string and works permanently. You do not have to be mechanically inclined, it is much easier than it looks.
You just have to remove a few screws and pull off the vents cover (plastic cover over your gages), then lift up the Message Center Control Panel, you will be able to see and fix the broken arm with the zip tie.

 

[donniej]

You can drop dow the glove box and reach back, find the lever and move it just a tiny bit to the right to get full heat. It doesn't move much, maybe half an inch.

I fixed mine with a hose clamp and Krazy glue. Its just behind the computer screen display thingy

 

[A_Stray_Bullet]

Thanks forgot to mention it's fixed correctly now

 

[91 LSC SE]

Cycle the car (when running) from cold to hot and see how the black plastic arm moves. I believe it moves to the pass. side for cold and to the driver for hot air. Yours will most likely be cracked. Gently help the arm with a screw driver it if doesn't go all the way

The bottom clamp fell off after 5 years or so. i was searching for the details on my previous fix and noticed my comment above and wanted to clarify it.
When the blend door moves to the pass. side (counter clockwise) it blow hot air (not cold). When it spins to the driver side (clockwise) it will blow cold air.