88 Camry AC buttons not working

[shalb]

I have an 88 Camry V6 LE and two of the buttons for the AC doesn't work. There's 4 buttons total for the 4 different AC settings (lo, 1, 2, hi), but the lower two settings don't work. When you push down the button for either lo or 2, the light turns on signifying that it's selected, but no air blows out. It works on 3 or hi setting. I tried pulling out the whole AC control panel to test it, but I couldn't make heads or tails of what I saw. The only thing I could get out of it was knowing that all the buttons complete a circuit when pressed. Can anyone help?

[Jimnist]

It's your fan speed setting that's not working; not your A/C. Your fan speed resistor coil pack have corroded.

I'm not sure for the US models(but on my Aussie Camry), it's located under the front passenger side(LHS as we have RHD cars) kickpanel. It's held in by one screw and has a wire connector going into it. Once you take it out, you'll see it's broken. You can go to a wrecker and pick one up, but make sure it's not broken either. You could also re-solder some bead type resistors on if you want. Bead resistors have been a hit and miss for some. Some have ijust gone bust from heat build up on the first day or some have lasted. Resistances closest to factory setting have been posted before. Search if you want to find them

[shalb]

Thanks. I didn't even know there was such a place to look.

[Mike Gerber]

^Jumnist is correct. Most likely your blower motor resistor has gone bad. On the US cars it is located under the dash on right hand (passenger) side. When you remove it, you will most likely see two of the coil type springs are broken. I believe this is a dealer only item. It should run about $50.

Mike

[white90dx]

You can get them new at parts stores, but they are expensive there too:

http://shop.oreillyauto.com/ProductL...pe=861&PTSet=A

Get one from a junkyard!

-Charlie

[gspservice]

Originally Posted by shalb

I have an 88 Camry V6 LE and two of the buttons for the AC doesn't work. There's 4 buttons total for the 4 different AC settings (lo, 1, 2, hi), but the lower two settings don't work. When you push down the button for either lo or 2, the light turns on signifying that it's selected, but no air blows out. It works on 3 or hi setting. I tried pulling out the whole AC control panel to test it, but I couldn't make heads or tails of what I saw. The only thing I could get out of it was knowing that all the buttons complete a circuit when pressed. Can anyone help?

You might try Autozone
Part Number: MT0633

Price:
$17.99

[shalb]

Thanks guys. It was the second resister coil that broke.

@gspservice: I checked with Autozone and it seems that part is out of stock.

I'm thinking of replacing the coils with resistors, but radioshack doesn't have the 90-903 part mentioned on this link: http://www.greenhydrant.com/~drees/a...ry/faq.php#fan

Do you know the wattage of the resistors or where I can find it? The site above doesn't mention it.

[white90dx]

Originally Posted by shalb

Thanks guys. It was the second resister coil that broke.

@gspservice: I checked with Autozone and it seems that part is out of stock.

I'm thinking of replacing the coils with resistors, but radioshack doesn't have the 90-903 part mentioned on this link: http://www.greenhydrant.com/~drees/a...ry/faq.php#fan

Do you know the wattage of the resistors or where I can find it? The site above doesn't mention it.

I tried this a while ago and it didn't work so well. It is hard to find high enough wattage resistors that fit in the space available.

You can possibly solder the stock resistors back together as a temporary fix. If you get the factory part (or aftermarket replacement), it will probably keep working for another 15-20 years.

-Charlie

[shalb]

Only half of the stock resister coil that burned out remains. The other half is burnt so badly it crumbles if you try to bend it. Right now, I just soldered the half of the resister coil that remained back in as a temporary fix. I tried using solid copper wire, but when it was soldered on, the resistance changed.

My complaints with buying a new resister pack is that it uses bare coils and it's too expensive (as a $18 one existed once). The cheapest one I've found after the $18 one is $55. If using resistors keeps it working for 5 years and it only costs $10, it'll still be cheaper to use resistors instead of a $55 resistor pack.

I'm looking for the wattage so I can figure out if it's possible to make it work. I know there's room to the side but without knowing how large the resister are, I won't be able to see if replacing the coils with resistors is feasible.

[white90dx]

Originally Posted by shalb

My complaints with buying a new resister pack is that it uses bare coils and it's too expensive (as a $18 one existed once). The cheapest one I've found after the $18 one is $55. If using resistors keeps it working for 5 years and it only costs $10, it'll still be cheaper to use resistors instead of a $55 resistor pack.

I used the largest wattage resistors I could fit in the opening, and they burned out after a month or two. Just spend two gas tanks worth of money... or two oil changes... or a nice evening out's worth of money... or maybe $10 at a junkyard (you can get lucky and find fairly new ones)...

-Charlie