2004 Camry LE - Constant blower noise & intermittent function

[A Little English]

My 2004 camry LE (235K miles) has had a noise associated with the blower for several months. The blower worked fine on all settings but had a subtle noise that was between a purr and a click. It's constant, fast-paced, rythmic and rises in pitch as the blower setting is changed. Hot or cold settings don't make a difference. The closest I can approximate is the sound made when kids put (or used to put) playing cards in the spokes of their bikes.

However in the last couple months the blower has stopped working intermittently. Sometimes it will come back on if I went over some railroad tracks or a hard bump. If I turn the car off the blower may not work when it's restarted. The last couple days it's stopped doing even that, and since there's snow on the ground it has become an issue! The fan setting doesn't make a difference, high or low.

After reading a lot of similar issues I'm thinking the blower moter has some wear and needs to be replaced, rather than the resistor. Before getting it repaired or doing it myself, am I on the right track or is there another possible issue? And is this something I can do myself through the glovebox or do I need to get a pro to do it?

Thanks for your help.

[Glenn8963]

replace the blower motor

[csaxon]

Remove, inspect, test, replace or repair.

[HotRod53]

Step 1, sounds like you need a blower motor. You may also need resistor, if your fan always works on HIGH and just the reduced speeds drop out, its the resistor.

You already need a blower because of the ticking so I would start there first, it may be responsible for both. Even if you're wrong, you needed a blower anyway. Resistors are usually easy to replace, also be aware that the resistor is not always bad, the connectors are known not get hot and burn. I fixed my connector twice in 160K on my Tacoma. Try to wiggle your connector and see what happens, remove and inspect your connector, if you see a burn mark you know its loose. Two minutes and a dental tool from Harbor Freight fixes a bad connector if it's not melted.

[johnfrisco]

Originally Posted by A Little English

My 2004 camry LE (235K miles) has had a noise associated with the blower for several months. The blower worked fine on all settings but had a subtle noise that was between a purr and a click. It's constant, fast-paced, rythmic and rises in pitch as the blower setting is changed. Hot or cold settings don't make a difference. The closest I can approximate is the sound made when kids put (or used to put) playing cards in the spokes of their bikes.

However in the last couple months the blower has stopped working intermittently. Sometimes it will come back on if I went over some railroad tracks or a hard bump. If I turn the car off the blower may not work when it's restarted. The last couple days it's stopped doing even that, and since there's snow on the ground it has become an issue! The fan setting doesn't make a difference, high or low.

After reading a lot of similar issues I'm thinking the blower moter has some wear and needs to be replaced, rather than the resistor. Before getting it repaired or doing it myself, am I on the right track or is there another possible issue? And is this something I can do myself through the glovebox or do I need to get a pro to do it?

Thanks for your help.

Sorry can't help with your problem, but with 235K miles did you ever have the head bolt issue or any other major problems. Just curious (2006 LE owner).