[tr1ac]

The AC in my car only blows out of the lower vents no matter what setting the manual climate control panel is set to. The air blows cold and increases and decreases when adjusted but when I change the settings for which vents I want it to come out of, no luck. Any ideas on what could be causing this? Thanks!


edit: I'm guessing it could be the switch itself or some control unit but was wondering if anyone has dealt with this before.

 

[rich1068]

To clarify, your ventilation controls look a little like this?

https://www.epartsland.com/products/saab-9-3-manual-heater-climate-controls-99-02-5174685

If so it's the crappy connecting rod (commonly known as the toilet/loo roll holder because it err... looks like one) that has broken or become disconnected behind the vent direction control dial. Common fault and a real pain in the ****. I tried various fixes but ended up settling on using a very long screwdriver to "set" the vents where they're most handy. In my convertible that's mainly to my feet and a little to the screen. Remove the panel with a round ended cutlery knife or similar, have a peek inside and this post will make perfect sense.

More info here https://www.saabcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=721436

 

[tr1ac]

Darn. I was hoping it was something simple. I will take it apart and see what I find. Hopefully I can rig something up. Thanks!

 

[rich1068]

It is simple. It's bust And the fix is more of an official bodge to make up for the heater box shifting over time. I tried to come up with a solution that didn't involve dismantling the whole car but just couldn't or rather couldn't be bothered for a £1000 car that has the roof down most of the time. I don't really give it a thought now.

The other thing to keep in mind is referenced in that link. If you strengthen the loo roll holder then the weak point becomes the dial itself which easily cracks around the spline if pressure is applied.

:edit:

Car looks great btw

 

[tr1ac]

It is simple. It's bust And the fix is more of an official bodge to make up for the heater box shifting over time. I tried to come up with a solution that didn't involve dismantling the whole car but just couldn't or rather couldn't be bothered for a £1000 car that has the roof down most of the time. I don't really give it a thought now.

The other thing to keep in mind is referenced in that link. If you strengthen the loo roll holder then the weak point becomes the dial itself which easily cracks around the spline if pressure is applied.

:edit:

Car looks great btw

I guess I will just get in there and manually adjust it once and leave it alone. Also, my car looks a lot better in the picture than it actually does lol. It's a little rough but I got it for dirt cheap and it barely has 100k miles on it. All of the issues are cosmetic or things like this current problem that really don't matter much. I look forward to fixing it up. Thanks though!

 

[rich1068]

If you do start to dismantle things and the temperature dial is a bit stiff take advantage of the improved access and get some grease on where you can. Saves that dial breaking too.