We are in the middle of a heat wave here in southern Ontario so when I hopped in my H3 today I wasn't too happy when the HVAC controls wouldn't work and hence the AC would not turn on. The air flow direction was where I last left it (vent) but turning the dial would not change the direction(foot, defrost etc.). When I turn the fan speed dial the fan speed would adjust faster and slower, so this is the only function that still works. The AC, recirculate and defrost do not work and the small orange lights do not illuminate either. Also the temperature dial does not work. I checked the fuse (#59) and the HVAC relay and they seem to be OK. I even switched both with another same ones. Any ideas and/or advice would be appreciated before I have my wallet raped by the local dealer. Do I need a new control module? Can I test it somehow with a meter? Hopefully I can resolve this before my skin is cooked by the hot black leather seat.

 

Try to recalibrate the hvac system

•Turn ON the ignition with the engine OFF.
•Turn the Temperature dial all the way to the right.
•Turn the blower control dial all the way to the right.
•Turn the mode position dial all the way to the left.
•Simultaneously press and hold the A/C and Defrost buttons until the LEDs start to flash
•Once the LEDs stop flashing, calibration is complete.

 

Thanks register1987, I tried a few times but it didn't work.

 

That is about the extent of my knowledge on the controls. You may check and see if somehow a cable got unhooked or maybe melted on the back of it.

It's easy to remove the bezel surrounding it.

First set your ebrake then turn the ignition to the "on" position so you can move the shifter to low gear. Then turn the ignition back to "acc." You can disconnect the battery now if you want but I have done it and not disconnected the battery before.

Place two fingers inside the the 12v car plugs (one in each plug) and pull the bezel out towards you. You will have to work your way around it gently pulling all the way around.

To get it far enough out of the way you will need to unhook both the hazard switch and the 4x4 controls on the back at the top.

There are two cables that hook into the hvac unit. Unhook them and look them over for any melted wires. Then hook them back up and make sure they are fully locked in.

Put everything back together be sure to hook the 4x4 and hazard cables back up. Then just firmly but gently press the bezel back in place. Hook the battery back up if you undid it and see if that makes a difference.

It should try to recalibrate the hvac if you left the battery hooked up so if the lights are blinking don't touch the controls till they stop.

 

While everything is disconnected check for power and ground with a voltmeter. If you conclude that your module is fried, there is a couple of wrecked H3's in the Hamilton area. you can source them on Kijiji.

 

The control module is the same unit used on the Pontiac Solstice; they can be found on eBay much cheaper than the same unit listed for an H3.

 

I would get it scanned before throwing parts at it any number of things could cause your issue. Could simply be a door actuator problem which causes system to run in a default setting.

 

Thanks everyone. I used voltmeter on connector and got lots of readings so I bought a new "open box" module on Ebay for $170, got it in a few days, plugged it in in about 5 minutes, now everything works again...bonus....the lights work again (bulbs were burnt out). It has been 32-36 degrees (approx 40 with humidity factor) everyday for the last 3 weeks...so glad to have ice cold AC again. I don't think I'll buy a black on black vehicle again.

 

Come on now it's Canada. Only 42 degrees with the humidex. My windows were fogging up on the outside today in Kitchener.
So do I get a prize for guessing it was the HVAC module? Glad you got it fixed after the heatwave.

 

Was your radio dead also because i'm experiencing the same problem?