['96 GLT w/ECC] Latest AC/REC light woes

[jreed]

I haven't tried cleaning the switch contacts inside the ECC unit, but that's something I would probably try if I were in your situation. I took my ECC unit apart last year to check for capacitor explosions (I found none) but while doing that I noticed that the front panel switches are accessible -- you can see them in the picture below:

Front panel of the ECC unit seen from inside

You can loosen the screws and detach the electrical connector and perhaps clean out the switch contacts -- it may be worth a shot and if that fixes the error code it will be less expensive than buying another ECC unit.
Good luck!

[s2zeller]

Excellent idea... I fixed the gas cap door actuator sticking by saturating it with contact cleaner. This is definitely worth a shot!

[s2zeller]

Thanks, JReed, for the great suggestion...

After clearing the ECC codes (still only 1-4-1), pulling the ECC control unit from the center console and removing the rear metal case from the faceplate of the control unit, I did indeed get access to the switches controlling the driver- and passenger-side vents. Since I was planning to replace the unit anyhow, I was feeling a little more fearless about mucking with the innards.

I took out the driver-side switch and then disassembled it to get to the black plastic case at the center. The following pictures were actually taken during re-assembly, but should give you an idea of things.

The disassembly is fairly straightforward.

After removing a retaining nut on the switch stem, four metal tabs need to be bent to allow removal of one piece of the metal ‘cage’. Here the four tabs (two on each end) are straightened out:

SwitchStemBracket.png (228.03 KiB) Viewed 433 times

Pull this part of the bracket and the attached switch stem out from the rest of the switch.

Now, two tabs on the side need to be pried out a bit to free the black plastic case:

CaseBracket.png (170.92 KiB) Viewed 433 times

At this point, I noticed that I could gently pry open each side and see where the contacts were. However, the box was hinged at the top and would prevent a good cleaning. So, I needed to cut that hinge (I used the scissors on my Swiss Army knife) in order to get fuller access:

OpenCaseWithDisc.png (168.64 KiB) Viewed 433 times

Once the hinge was destroyed, I could get the contact disc out (you should remember how it was oriented inside the box) and expose the internal contacts:

OpenCase.png (158.96 KiB) Viewed 433 times

A paper towel soaked in contact cleaner was used to clean both the disc and the contacts inside the case.

Here is the cleaned-up disc:

CleanDisc.png (56.07 KiB) Viewed 433 times

I then reassembled it all (putting electrical tape over the hinge area) and went out for an extended test drive. I moved the driver-side control to various problem temperature settings and had nothing unexpected (i.e. no suddenly hot or suddenly cold blasts).

So, it looks like this might (fingers crossed) be the last of the ECC problems for a while. Thanks again to JReed for suggesting this line of repair.

[jreed]

Great work and great photos! It looks like it was an interesting job! Thanks for writing it up and sharing. Most appreciated!