Golf climatronic air flap motor swap out ?

[BigCol]

Going out to any learned fellows on here who might know (particularly VW techs etc)....

My air re-circ flap motor is faulty. It's definitely knackered as I've viewed it's operation from both the top through the air intake with pollen filter removed and from inside with the glovebox removed looking at the actuator rods.

Here lies my problem...

I can see it just from inside but have no way of even getting my hand in to touch it. It's to the left hand side of the blower housing at the back. If I had extremely thin arms, four elbows and a wrist that could rotate 180 degrees I might be alright swapping it out insitu.

Does anyone know if you can separate the fan / blower housing from the heater / cooler matrix ?

It looks like it will by undoing several small bolts and then simply pulling off a peg it seems to hang on, but I'm not sure ?

Has anyone done or attempted this ?

Any help or suggestions greatly appreciated.

The car if it's any help is a 2001 GT TDI with climatronic.

[karlosthejackal]

Had a passat with the same problem. It started as a sort of "clicking" sound from under the dash on the left hand side, as I had only just purchased the car I took it back.

The garage told me that they had to remove the dash to get to the air flap motor Don't know if it's the same with the Golf , but from what you say it sounds like it could be

Any way GoodLuck

[mulkbear]

I always take the dash board out to do them, i have never seen anyone do them insitu but it could be done if you can find anyone with very small hands and arms,

[BigCol]

Thanks for the replies chaps. Look like I'm going to have a fun weekend !

[ocrp]

Have the same problem on my Passat, a constant clicking sound. The servo motor that controls the flap is slipping, and only moves it about half way up. The fact that it doesn't function properly is only half as annoying as the noise it makes.

In the summer, with the aircon running, on very hot days, the flap automatically moves into recycle mode regardless, in order to cool down the car more effectively by recycling already cool air in the car. At this point it makes a terrible racket.

From the little poking around I have done in the fan box, it seems that you need to open up the whole thing to access the part. By just removing the blower motor on its own (no easy task itself) does not give you access to the recycle flap.

My advice is, if it doesnt bother you too much, leave it. Its just another one of those miserable niggles that VW's suffer from.