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Three AC actuators in the Challenger - here's what you need to know

26K views 12 replies 6 participants last post by  GreyRX 
#1 ·
I keep getting these AC actuator problems and there is no single place that details which one causes which problem. This is my attempt to fix that and also get an answer to my problem.

I know there are 3 actuators - one is on the passenger side, and two are on the driver side. Of those latter two, one is close to the noise dampener under the steering wheel and the second is higher up, harder to get to, and deeper in the dash.

  • Blend door
  • Mode door
  • Recirculation door

A blend door is mounted within the heating and air conditioning system and pivots to divert warm or cool air into different passages within the system to keep the passenger area at the desired temperature. The workshop manual I found online says it "is located on the driver side end of the HVAC air distribution housing, close to the dash panel."

The mode door actuator is located on the driver side end of the HVAC air distribution housing, close to the instrument panel. The mode door actuator is mechanically connected to the floor, defrost/demist and the panel-air doors.

The recirculation door actuator is located on the passenger side, inboard side of the HVAC air inlet housing and is directly connected to the pivot shaft of the recirculation-air door.


There are a number of problems these actuators cause, and the fix is always to swap it out.

  • Loud clicking noises when they break. Super annoying, and also means your AC won't work properly. You gotta swap it out, just findout which one the noise is coming from by using your ears and hands (vibrations on panels).
  • Hot air blowing when cool is selected. That's the blend door, I think, you gotta swap it out.
  • Flashing lights on defroster knobs. The vents will blow heat for like 15 seconds before finally turning cold. It's re-calibrating the mode door, swap that unit out.

You can take it to the dealer and pay well over $1,000 in labor to have them fix this, or you can do in on your own with 2 tools and 30 minutes of your time. Your arm will be very tired but it will be well worth it.

Here is a handy graphic to show you how to change it out.


I have seen various posts saying to swap out fuses, unplugging negative, setting dials in voodoo ways... none of it worked for me. The part is like $23 on Amazon, buy multiples because they will all go bad every couple of years.
 
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#2 ·
there's a temperature actuator for left and right sides (2015+) and the blend actuator that is dash / floor / defroster or recirc modes for air flow direction.

the earlier years had a temperature actuator and the blend actuator
 
#6 · (Edited)
Thanks for the info everyone. I bought the part and replaced the actuator closest to the bottom of the driver's side. While I was there, I turned on the car and tested it. I never heard any clicking of the clicking that I've been told is associated with a bad actuator, before or after the swap. Is there a chance that the problem could be something else? Or did I swap out the wrong actuator?

The problem I'm having is that there is cold air coming from the driver's side and mid-low cold air coming from the passenger's side. Also, I can still make hot air come out on both sides if I want to.
 
#10 ·
I replaced the two actuators on the passenger's side and these were my results: At night, both sides went to -10 degrees which is great, but during the day the driver's side was just slightly colder than the passenger's side. It is blowing cold air out now, but if anyone could tell me why one side is still slightly colder than the other (in case something else is wrong) the help would be appreciated. Also, I'm not surprised that it takes a while for one side to get cold because I live in Vegas and our weather has been at about 110 degrees every day, so I expect it to take a while to get cold.

In any case, it is better now than it was before, thanks for the help everyone!
 
#12 ·
there are sensors in the mirror that command the actuator for left or right sides independently.

Such as sun is coming from one side of the vehicle and may have more heat gain and command more cooling for that given side.
 
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