so, dealer told me all 4 actuators need replaced, 2350.00 to do the job. said one of the actuators cost 500.00. I call bull****. I KNOW actuator that controls direction of air defrost, vent, floor works. So, even though I doubt it's an actuator issue, I replaced the other 3. Bought 3 online, right at 60.00 total for all 3. Removed dash, trim panels. Had to cut a hard plastic hvac pipe with hacksaw blade to gain easier access, will repair with some flex. Only tools I needed were 7mm and 8mm sockets and the large Torx (I think it was t30). To remove the panels/trim and cut the pipe and remove all 3 (all located to the right of center) only took 3 mexican beers with lime and 1 Dominican robusto. Last night, I re-installed the 3 actuators an a little less than 1 Mexican beer with a slice of lime. I am posting pics of progress. In the next couple of days, I hope to re-install fuses and do the "calibration process". I am not looking for it to solve my problem though. I really think my problem is with the electronic temperature control unit, and I bought one on Ebay for 180.00. I will install that after I confirm the actuators were NOT the 2350.00 quoted problem. Worst case scenario, I've dropped 240.00 on parts and burnt a little of my own time. Bonus, I am cleaning trim and parts that are 15 years dirty.

suggest removing everything here to replace all 3 on passenger side.

hvac pipe I cut with hacksaw blade to gain better access. actuator below it, and one behind towards firewall.

control side, mounts against stem of door it controls.

actuator face, 5 pin connector. only 2 screws hold in place, 3rd hole was alignment pin on mine.

lower most location, to the immediate right of center. screwdriver point to location.

actuator removed, pic from bottom facing up.

install lower actuator. I did use ratchet (short 1/4" drive) on most all. But deep well 5/16 and std sockets worked well starting screws.

location under pipe, screwdriver point to locate. this one is the easiest...since the pipe is removed.

top view installed, harness not hooked up yet.

same actuator, pic from front.

uppermost towards firewall location.

uppermost installed.

 

Great pictures! This will be helpful for others for years to come, many thanks. Yeah - you now see what I said that stealership was flat out trying to screw you over. It IS a good bit of work and that very top one IS a big pain to get to but it is far from $2350 worth of work.

 

You are brave to cut your hvac pipe, I just jammed my hand back there to replace mine. It doesn't add up that all the actuators would go bad at once, but please let us know what happens after you're done

 

update- 3 actuators replaced, re-calibration by one of the methods I seen in a forum here. No cold air, just like I had thought (expected). Good news though, no hot air like before. Went ahead and installed new electronic temperature control unit, programmed it according to instructions. Seemed like colder air, but not as cold as it probably should be. Thankfully I work at a trucking company and the shop guys do all the maintenance on our semis, so they have a couple a/c machines as well as top notch mechanics, so I am going to have them check the system and the components (that I was told were all working properly by my local hometown garage mechanic) one step at a time. $ 240.00 into it right now, so no big loss.

 

Joel, in our shop, checked it out. vac'd down and only recovered .02 lbs . yes, .02 not .2 that wouldn't have worked either. also noticed it had a high side cap on the low side, and gasket inside cap was deformed, and looked like dye around line where that was (leak) so, he put the correct cap on, changed out a small gm fitting on top that seemed to "spit" every once in a while, charged it with the recommended 1.6# and viola, blowing ice cold.
so, to the garage I had check it first that said a/c system is fine, then suggest I take to GM dealer to get re-calibrated....and to the GM dealer that said all 4 actuators need replaced for 2,350.00 dollars...maybe ya'll should stick to oil changes (that's the lube that runs through the engine and connects to a filter)smh.
well, Now I can look for the bad ground or noise interference in my radio that I installed recently, have pretty good access while panels are removed. I have replaced all my crimps for ground, power, speaker etc more than once, but can't seem to figure out why one of my speakers cuts out most of the time, and engine noise is there most all of the time as well. I can grab wires/harness in back of radio, or wiggle it and works just temporarilly. anybody out there better than Crutchfield on diagnosing that type issue?

 

No idea on the stereo issue but on the AC.... I work on vehicles almost daily (graphics) and see the service caps missing all the time. It seems that most people are not aware that the schrader valves in the service ports can sometimes have a tendency to leak a tiny bit and that the service caps (with the o-ring inside it) are actually a very important component in assuring a leak free AC system. GM even clearly states this in the dealer service systems.

 

Actually a cap is not necessary unless someone damages the schrader during a system check. Obviously the OP has a major leak and any qualified tech would know when the a/c system would not hold a vacuum.

DIY here:

 

Actually the SAE J639 Spec as well as the MACS (Mobile Air Conditioning Society) and other groups do state that the caps are very much necessary. So much that the latest version of the SAE J639 spec now even strongly recommends that the caps are tethered so that they are never lost.

From the MACS site...
"The newer service port caps have little tabs on the bottom which are designed to be used with a tether strap. The purpose is to fasten the service port cap directly to the service port so the caps don’t get lost. Since service port caps are considered to be the primary seal of a service port (and not the Schrader valve that’s installed down inside the port body as is commonly thought by many), the idea behind a tether is to keep the cap right at the port. Technicians know all too well about how often these caps go missing and just how many vehicles show up at the shop without these important sealing caps installed. Tethers therefore are a highly recommended (although not mandatory) requirement of SAE Standard J639."

There are a couple of problems with schrader valves in AC systems versus tire valves. In a tire the valve only has to resist plain air. Refrigerants have a far smaller molecule size and are under much higher pressures and as such can slowly escape much easier. I think when we see a more widespread roll out of the new R-1234yf refrigerant people will really be even more vigilant about those caps as losing that new refrigerant will be costly - it is over 35 times more expensive than R-134a !! It is already on many vehicles starting in around 2016 models and is mandated on all new vehicles by 2021. No experience with the new stuff myself but I'm betting like going from R-12 to R-134a, it will not be as good as the old stuff.

 

Mike Ridenour,

Greetings! How did you reattach the HVAC pipe? Did you use a rubber sleeve or glue it?

Thanks.

 

Zackman, probably not the best, but found a 3 or 4" alum stove pipe band coupling that had a hose clamp attached. Snugged it up and duct taped ends.