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No Windshield Defrost

D

duntov

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Las Vegas, NV
When I switch on my front defrost all i get is a whistling sound the the air not reaching my windshield. It seems as if a door is not opening. I followed the lines from the vacuum ball to my firewall, I didn't notice any broken lines. Any suggestions what it may be?
 
duntov said:
When I switch on my front defrost all i get is a whistling sound the the air not reaching my windshield. It seems as if a door is not opening. I followed the lines from the vacuum ball to my firewall, I didn't notice any broken lines. Any suggestions what it may be?
Click to expand...
It's funny, my 99 does the same thing. 99XJSPORT06 recently filled me in that it is a common 97+ issue that has to do with an arm falling out of the actuator that opens the defrost door. If you take the radio out and feel around in the vicinity of the heater box, you should be able to feel the arm that has become disengaged. I need to do this also because it's scary driving around with only the 1/100th of your windshield that's closest to the dash clear.
 
Here is the page I scanned out of my 99 FSM and sent to Collin. Like mentioned you can feel around inside of there and push that arm back into its place. This will work anywhere from a few weeks to a few months, depending on how often you use your defroster, and how high of a setting that you use it on. I find that keeping it on speed setting 1 or 2 helps to keep it in place longer.



scan0001zn4.jpg


Look at the image on the bottom right of this page. You'll see where I circled the problem right under the words "Panel/Demist Door Actuator".

The problem you are hearing is because this has slipped out of place, and the door is slamming shut. In my case, as well as Collin's, the defroster only works on half of the windshield (luckily the drivers half). I never have gotten around to a permanent fix for it (tossed around a few ideas), because I really only use the defroster in the winter, and leaving it on speed 2 does a good enough job for me. So every time it slips off, I just pull the radio out, reach in there and pop it back on. Takes just a few minutes and beats tearing the whole dash apart just to fix the stupid thing.
 
99XJSPORT06 said:
beats tearing the whole dash apart just to fix the stupid thing.
Click to expand...
Note to self: when doing evaporator whenever it happens...fix this problem permanently.
 
90PioSport99 said:
Note to self: when doing evaporator whenever it happens...fix this problem permanently.
Click to expand...

Oh hell yeah. When the day comes for me to throw a new evaporator at it, i'm going through and fixing anything that is broken, or about to be broken inside the dash.
 
I'm also having problems, but kinda the opposite of what you guys are experiencing. Mine stays on defrost no matter if I select dash or floor for the heat. Back during the summer my A/C would randomly stop working and act like it was kicking open into defrost which you could feel and hear the whistling of air from right at the windshield. Could it be a stuck actuator if I'm looking that above picture right? Anyone have any ideas? You guys seem to have a good grip on how it's all put together inside the jeep.
 
white99XJ said:
I'm also having problems, but kinda the opposite of what you guys are experiencing. Mine stays on defrost no matter if I select dash or floor for the heat. Back during the summer my A/C would randomly stop working and act like it was kicking open into defrost which you could feel and hear the whistling of air from right at the windshield. Could it be a stuck actuator if I'm looking that above picture right? Anyone have any ideas? You guys seem to have a good grip on how it's all put together inside the jeep.
Click to expand...
Your problem is the same as my 87 XJ had. Check the small vaccum line from the vaccum canister (under the bumper unless moved) and follow it up under the battery box.
 
It finally got cold enough out here in the Nor Cal area and I just discovered my '99 defroster ONLY defrosts/deices the driver's side of the windshield. That's the craziest thing I have seen on this Jeep since I bought it back in March.
 
rocknxj said:
It finally got cold enough out here in the Nor Cal area and I just discovered my '99 defroster ONLY defrosts/deices the driver's side of the windshield. That's the craziest thing I have seen on this Jeep since I bought it back in March.
Click to expand...

Welcome to my world. Pull the radio out and pop that arm that I circled in that image back on and you'll be good to go, for a while atleast.
 
Well, I had to get in there and pop mine back on this afternoon after attempting to clear the snow and ice off the windshield yesterday morning. Found it a good opportunity to snap a couple of pictures of the offending part, and a short video of where it is in relation to everything else.

As a side note, I found it much easier to have the ignition on, and the defroster setting on 1 while trying to push the arm back in. It just didn't want to pop back on this time with out the defroster being on, not sure why though.

The small piece with the green dot is the arm that keeps popping off. Simply push this to the right and you'll be good to go for however long it lasts....sometimes a couple of weeks, sometimes a year...depending on how often you use it, and how high of a setting you go to (I try not to go above speed 2).

1000835or2.jpg


1000834qb3.jpg



Short video of where it is:

http://s173.photobucket.com/albums/w...erActuator.flv
 
bump for this helping me out today!!! can't thank you enought for the pics and video! with the search on here is it rare anyone can post an issue ;)

anyone have a more permanent fix for this yet?
thanks again
 
Last edited:
Does the arm just have a hole in it that slides on to a pin to actuate the door?

Why not make sure the arm is on the pin, and then glue a flat piece of plastic to the pin to keep the arm from coming off. Or maybe a clip/codder pin. Ofcourse this is just a random thought from somebody who just ran across this thread.

But while we are on the subject, is the vacuum module attached to the arm the one that controls the direction the air blows? I'm tracking down a vacuum issue, and it'd be nice to be able to test it at the actuator for the door.
 
dagr8tim said:
Does the arm just have a hole in it that slides on to a pin to actuate the door?

Why not make sure the arm is on the pin, and then glue a flat piece of plastic to the pin to keep the arm from coming off. Or maybe a clip/codder pin. Ofcourse this is just a random thought from somebody who just ran across this thread.
.
Click to expand...

not on mine, it is like a cylinder that fits into someting. you can't realy get into it but if you push it in back will hold for a bit but it is like it is not making a solid conetion (may have broken part inside that you can't see)

it is hard to get at with just the radio out, it is like you have to take the full dash off the firewall to get to into it.
 
Glad the pictures and video are helping everyone! I haven't had a chance to come up with a solution just yet...got other issues such as bad mpg's and rough starting that are higher up on the priority list at the moment...that and I only use my defroster in the winter so it's not like it's a year round necessity for the climate I live in.
 
I found that mine was not the arm coming off that hook, but that the part that hooks into the door broke. a nice 2 cent screw and I was good to go (after pulling the dash all the way off to get to it.
on the hook there should be ring that holds it in. if yours if coming off I bet that ring is gone. not sure the right name for it but it is like a washer that too small so it should bite into the plastic.
 
thanks for the fix suggestion- I'm having the same "no windshiled defrost" issue, I'm going to try this on my 99 and see if that fixes the problem and report back.

Never knew how important that fan was till I drove for 6 hours in pouring rain...ugh.

Side note: how hard is it to pull the whole dash off?
(on my 1995 xj it all came off in one piece - tho it was a bitch)
 
Ok so i found the "arm" that goes back in, did that

but for some reason that is not explained here, thread, i still only have air coming from the driverside defrost vent, why?

97 xj 4.0 aw4 192k+ miles.
 
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