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Pontiac Grand Prix Climate Control/AC

245

Comments

  • porter2porter2 Member Posts: 2
    Hi everybody, I have the same heater problem with my 2002 Grand Piece, and through this awesome forum I found out that its the resistor pack for the blower motor. I just bought one tonight at the local auto shop for $29.99 and it looks pretty simple to change. The blower motor is located under a plastic cover on the passenger side under the dashboard. My resistor pack is manufactured by WELLS and the part # is DR783. I will let you know how i make out... Good luck with your Grand Piece..lol
  • 63bonneville63bonneville Member Posts: 3
    How did your heater problem turn out? On my 2001 Grand Prix, my blower motor would only run on high speed. It would not shut off even after shutting the car off and removing the key. The only way I got it to shut off was to pull the fuse for HI, and now all speeds work except HI. I was wondering if that was what your problem was before you changed the resistor? Or maybe you didn't have any speeds at all? Please let me know what your symptoms were and what you did for a fix.
  • cdamechcdamech Member Posts: 31
    It's the Blower Resistors. It needs to be replaced. it is located under the front dash on the middle/passenger side. You need to unscrew the connector and then take out
    the board that has the resistors. It costs $60 to $90 at autoparts store.
  • yellacookiyellacooki Member Posts: 2
    Hi Kym, I have a 2004 GP GT and I am experienceing the sm problem, however, I do not have a sunroof, but I have been getting the runn around with the dealership I bought my car from. I bought it used and loved until the leaking started :cry: . As a matter of fact I have an appointment in the morning to take my car in for service to attempt to try and fix this problem. Thanks for the phone number, I can not wait to call tomorrow to complain.
    Michellle
  • sahoward1sahoward1 Member Posts: 19
    I've had my 2006 Grand Prix a month and have decided I cannot live with this air conditioner coming on all the time. It's totally ridiculous. My salesman said it could be re-programmed, but the service dept said "No, it can't." I emailed and called the Pontiac Customer Assistance Center---no help. They're giving me lip service about it de-humidifying the windshield. If that were so, it should only come on in defrost mode (I could live with that), but it comes on in every mode. I want to control my heating/air conditioning system. It should default to where I left it. I'm thinking of installing a kill switch, but am afraid of of voiding my warranty. Please help. I love this car, my third pontiac, but this air conditioner thing is spoiling my new car experience.
  • rmozolrmozol Member Posts: 124
    It's funny, but I've been more concious of this because of the posts. Yesterday, my AC stayed OFF after a restart; twice in fact. It was set on 61 degrees, in the dash vent position, and fan on about half. The outdoor temp was about 55 degrees too. The car was stopped about 2 - 3 minutes too. I thought that it happened once before, but I wasn't sure since I wasn't keying on it. This time, I KNOW it stayed off though. I'll keep looking for more oddities.
  • sahoward1sahoward1 Member Posts: 19
    The A/C does stay off sometimes... if you start the car right up again after shutting it off... like you said. But this is nonsense. I can't believe this A/C was intentionally programmed to come on at 40 degrees. I have to find a solution; it's making me crazy. I'm sure this is a screw up--I've never heard of a car's A/C coming on every time. And I've had automatic climate control on two previous cars. Has anyone found a solution? I'm desperate.
  • sahoward1sahoward1 Member Posts: 19
    The A/C comes on 95% of the time, even in manual mode. Has anyone figured out a fix for this? I think the A/C should default to wherever the driver left it. This is making me totally crazy. It's much worse than the pinging when you shut it off, or the hissing coming from the radio/fan. I'd be grateful for suggestions.
  • rmozolrmozol Member Posts: 124
    Yeah, it is annoying! My procedure to leave is start car up, turn off DRLs, grab gear shift, push AC button (off), put in reverse, and drive off. They say responses become automatic after a few thousand repetitions!
  • sahoward1sahoward1 Member Posts: 19
    That should not be necessary. Computers are supposed to help the driver, not hinder. Why should that A/C compressor come on when it's 41 degrees? The guy at GM actually told me that would help the compressor last longer, because it would get lubricated every time it came on. How lubed can it get if the driver shuts it right off? Anyway, I read these posts going back a year, and apparently the AC never came on with the remote start. So the fix was to have it always come on? And I'm not even talking about the remote start, it happens with any start up. This is not right.... and I have not finished with GM yet. I've had three Impalas, a Bonneville and two Grand Prix. I bought one son a Grand Am and the other a Cavalier. But I'm furious about this.... I asked for a default to off, a default to where I left it, or a reprogram to come on at 80 degrees--all reasonable requests. GM acts like they never heard of this. I had to leave my car at the dealer for a whole day for them to tell me this was normal. Well, if it's so normal, couldn't they have told me that on the phone? I'm thinking of pulling out the AC fuse from October thru April. I live in New England. There must be a solution to this.
  • rmozolrmozol Member Posts: 124
    If you're looking for a permanent, but temporary fix, you can always just disconnect the plug at the compressor too. It wouldn't work when you wanted it to, unless you reconnected it though.
  • dblducedblduce Member Posts: 58
    im a little confused by this "AC always on" subject. I have had similar incidents, but i dont know if what i experienced is the same thing you have.

    if i use my AC for a day, for example, then the next day, i turn it off (push button and turn fan off), then later go to turn the fan back on, the AC would ALSO come on (button lights up without pushing it). This happened a few times, and it seemed weird that it would come on w/o having to actually push the button. What i found was that if i turned the TEMP knob up to warm/heat, then tried it, eventually i could turn on the fan w/o having the AC come on. So im assuming there must be a connection as to what the temp knob is set to as to when the AC comes on without having to push the button.

    During this past winter, i always had the temp knob turned all the way up, and every time i would turn the fan on, the AC would not come on unless i pressed the button.

    We'll see what happens this spring when i go to use the AC for the first time this year.
  • sahoward1sahoward1 Member Posts: 19
    The A/C comes on if the outdoor temp is 40 degrees or higher, which is totally absurd. It's not related to the setting inside the car. Somebody screwed up on this, and GM is evidently not willing to fix it. I'm getting nowhere with CAC. And I'm bumming. But unless this gets fixed, it will be my last GM car. And I won't use my GM credit card anymore either.
  • erichthecatterichthecatt Member Posts: 37
    Its probably a liability issue. Someone probably sued GM because they drove around with the interior windows fogged and had an accident and sued. So now it automatically dehumidifies the interior. My 05 Bonneville GXP has the a/c compressor on/off button.
  • teelove1teelove1 Member Posts: 1
    I am having that same problem with the leaking on my passenger side front and back side. I took it to the dealer and he stated they could fix it for 350.00. He could not explain why or what was leaking or the origin of the problem but he had a price. What the heck!!! What happened with you car. did it cost alot or was it a manufacturer issue. I have a 2004 grand prix gt and it cannot take this leaking water that makes a puddle on my floor. help please.
  • gxpjoeypgxpjoeyp Member Posts: 38
    I WAS DRIVING MY GP GXP THIS MORNING WITH THE AC ON FULL BLAST,GOING AROUND 25 MPH,IT WAS BLOWIN GOOD AND HARD,THEN AS I SLOWED DOWN TO MAKE A TURN,THE BLOWER SUDDENLY DECREASED ITS BLOWER POWER SIGNIFICANTLY,THEN AS I ACCELERATED THE BLOWER GOT STRONG AGAIN.HAS ANYONE HAD THIS HAPPEN TO THEM?? ALL REPLIES APPRECIATED :confuse: .

    THANKS,
    GXPJOEYP
  • erichthecatterichthecatt Member Posts: 37
    I believe on my "bonneville gxp" which that has the automatic climate control (i guess the g/p has the same) Theres a sensor on the dash that feels the radiated heat coming through the windshield from the sun, and adjusts the variable speed fan blower motor. Maybe you went from shade to sun....I think ive had mine react quickly a few times, but normally theres somewhat of a delay.
  • cdamechcdamech Member Posts: 31
    It's the same problem of Dirt or Leaves accumulating in the front drainage. The water overflows into the passenger side. Just clean it out but may take some undoing thus chraging $350. You can do this yourself if you have a repair manual. :)
  • c170bc170b Member Posts: 1
    What does the board look like? Just a regular circuit board? Is it accessible through the glove box? Sorry for so many questions, but I have an a/c blower problem just like this. It will simply not run sometimes and when it runs and shuts down, I can hear a click in the left from panel on the drivers side like a relay or circuit breaker has just opened. I would like to try the resistor and see what happens. Makes sense to me. Do you know the part number for the resistor board?
  • kreiderkreider Member Posts: 3
    The external temperature as registered on the climate control is way too cold and as a result, won't allow the AC to properly work. Per the owners manual, if external air is sensed below 39F, compressor will not run. It routinely registers below 39 on the hottest summer days, and will actually descend in temperature to as low as 24 when it's actually 95F outside. No manual override, so we just roast and very frustrating. 1. Has anyone seen this previously? 2. Is there an easy fix? 3. Where is this sensor located, and can it be shorted? There is an air temperature sensor in the intake manifold - is this the same that goes to the climate control inside the car? AC works fine when the sensor isn't registering <39, but I've not seen it show higher than 45 this year. Thanks!
  • raynacookraynacook Member Posts: 1
    I have 1997 Grand Prix with about 120k miles on it. I'm having AC problems (in the middle of a dead-heat summer of course). Last summer my husband recharged the AC and it was fine, blew nice cold air. This year it blows hot. He recharged again and now only the passenger side dash vents (the one beside the door and the one in the middle on passenger side of the dash) blow semi cool air, but all the driver dash vents blow very hot 'outside' Is this a bad compressor? There is also a whining noise that you can hear inside while driving when the AC is on that seems to accelerate with acceleration. The compressor is quite expensive, but if thats the problem, my hubby will do it. Any comments? Suggestions? I don't know what to do other than take the car to garage and be charged off the charts to get this car to blow me some cold air. Thanks...
  • mmxermmxer Member Posts: 12
    I hear you. I just had my AC redone. I have a 95 grand prix gtp. Old compressor fried. Had to replace the compressor, condencer.... With parts was like $600.
    Whining noise is usually a sigh that the clutch on the compressor might be going. If its still blowing out semi cold air, then the compressor should be ok, and just have to replace the clutch. Its about $100-125 or so, but you need special tools to install it.

    I suggest taking it to a shop just to get an estimate. At least they will tell you whats wrong with it.
  • sprattspratt Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2000 Grand Prix with the exact same problem; so it makes living Florida, in the summer, not a pleasant experience.
  • boostedtalonboostedtalon Member Posts: 3
    My 2004 Grand Prix makes no audibly louder air noise when turning on the recirculate function like so many cars do.. Is this normal, or is something wrong???
  • nine0fninenine0fnine Member Posts: 2
    I found the external air temp sensor and replaced it for 15 bucks. No change. Temp still reads 40 something. 99 in Chicago today. > : - ( <
  • nine0fninenine0fnine Member Posts: 2
    Well when I get in the car today with the new external air temp sensor, the read out was 103 :). The AC did kick on and blow around so cold air. I didn't have far to go and was extreamly hot today so I can't say I fixed it for sure but having the temp right is a big step in the right direction. It was really easy to change. Good luck.... :)
  • bigskidoggbigskidogg Member Posts: 8
    where is the switch located? is it easy to replace?
  • momwagmomwag Member Posts: 14
    I understand that the dash has to be pulled to get to it. Other than that, I don't know.
  • wileywapitiwileywapiti Member Posts: 3
    I have the same thing happening in my 2000 Grand Prix. I had a dealer tell me that we needed to replace the climate control system. Just a cool $800 plus labor. Let me know if you found a fix.
  • n8ten97n8ten97 Member Posts: 3
    My ac has cold air and good air flow but when I accelerate even the least bit the air flow decreases dramatically. Can anyone tell me what would be wrong or what I can replace?
  • mmxermmxer Member Posts: 12
    My 95 does this. I beleave its suspose to to keep power up. Only does it when I really gun it. Personally I like it. my old car the AC would drain massive power (4c) with [non-permissible content removed] acceleration, no problem with this car.
  • bxdbxd Member Posts: 186
    One of your vacuum lines is bad. In this year it's common for the line that runs by the battery and down to the vacuum reserve tank to get rubbed through.

    Take the battery out, and look for a fairly thin, hard plastic line. Should run by the battery and down to a ball-shaped tank under the driver's side front end of the car. Follow along it's complete path up through the engine bay. If that's not it, look around engine at other vacuum lines and you should find a bad one. Local auto parts will sell you new line.
  • n8ten97n8ten97 Member Posts: 3
    I appreciate your help bxd! Il check it out and let you know the results. -n8ten97
  • kreiderkreider Member Posts: 3
    I did fix this problem with a new temperature sensor - it only cost 7 bucks at the dealership, but took some time to find under the front bumper in one of the air intakes for cooling the radiator, totally out of sight. You can find it by sticking your hand in the intake and feeling around with your palm pointed up, it's connected to the bumper with one of those goofy plastic barbed pins that allow for easy insertion, forceful removal. Worked great for about 3 months, now the AC just doesn't cool yet again, and it isn't the sensor since that still works.
  • kreiderkreider Member Posts: 3
    Sounds like this may be a compressor issue. It isn't the exterior temperature sensor this time. Any ideas?
  • knepskiknepski Member Posts: 2
    I recently started noticing this porblem in my '99 GT also. On a recent trip about 3 hours in I noticed the temp reading 68 on a 103 degree day and the AC would blow cool air but not cold. Normally the AC blows really cold air and I rarely run it down on 60 for more than a couple of minutes. I noticed that as I went down hills the sensor tended to correct itself and the AC would blow cold again until I started the next hill climb then the external temp would drop down to 68 again. This happened about 5 or 6 times and eventually it stayed on 68. That was a week ago and now it's on 54 consistently. I'll try the sensor swap and see what happens.
  • kjp760kjp760 Member Posts: 1
    Hi,

    I am brand new to this site and read a few threads before I decided to ask my question. I have a '97 Grand Prix GT with a manual control AC System. It has been in the shop three times in the last two weeks and after a few hundred dollars, the AC still is not cold. The shop said the control panel was bad, so I replaced it but this didn't solve the problem. They have stated it is full of freon, everything turns on, but it doesn't get cold.

    Does anyone have any ideas on what to check? I fixed the problem of it blowing out the heater, defrost and dash at the same time. The vacuum hose had come loose under the washer fluid reservoir. This works right now, it switches from max to normal AC, the clutch engages on the compressor, switches to heat, defrost, etc....you can move the temp switch from cold to hot and it gets hotter, just won't get cold.....

    I would appreciate any suggestions.

    Thanks!
  • bigstakzbigstakz Member Posts: 1
    Hi, I'm new to this site and I thought that it would be very helpful in helping figure out whats wrong with my blower. My blower only works #5 and not 1-4. What could possibly be the problem?
  • rob68rob68 Member Posts: 1
    i put freeon in my car it was working fine untill the next day it was blowing hot air
  • sparkensparken Member Posts: 1
    I have a 98 GT w/ dual climate control, when I lower the temperature below 74 degrees I hear a squeaking noise like a flapper is trying to close but its jammed. It continues trying to close (squeaking) until I raise the temp above 74 degrees. Anyone have this problem? Anyone know where I can get a diagram of the climate control system?
  • kcf2044kcf2044 Member Posts: 1
    Hello,

    I have the exact same problem. Mine is a 1998 GTP with 200K miles. It has been a pretty good car overall, I bought it new.

    I will detail the problems: It has a totally electronic climate control system. There is no cable control valves for heater core that I know of... It also has dual climate control.

    When the AC is on and it is running in single mode operation the driver's side vents blow out warm air. The air temperature doesn't seem to change until the set point for the auto AC is around 82 degrees. Meanwhile, the passenger side is blow cooler air. This is while the unit is in single mode. Switching to dual mode and setting the passenger side to 60 does not seem to change anything.

    I was thinking about getting a junk yard climate control module but since the first guy that made this posting tried it and it didn't fix his problem I am not sure what to do.

    Thanks.
  • storm21935storm21935 Member Posts: 2
    Hi,
    I had been reading some of your discussions, and you are excellent! I was hoping that you might be able to help me with an unusual problem that I am having with a 98 Grand Prix GT (2 DR, 3.8L, nat asp). Recently I noticed that when the heater/air blower motor switch is moved from off or high to an intermediate speed, the blower usually stops and the daytime running lights go out. If I pull the fuse for the blower intermediate speeds, the blower does not work, but the DRL&#146;s do. During the time that the DRL&#146;s are out, the air conditioning can not be activated. I am not sure if it is related, but the indicator for the rear window defrost no longer lights, but I can hear the relay click, and think that I see the lights dim slightly. Sometimes I can still get a lower intermediate speed for the blower motor, and the DRL&#146;s work. Does anybody have any experience or suggestions for this combination?
  • woodpilewoodpile Member Posts: 2
    Hey there, PLEASE let me know if you have figured out your blower problem. I just had my grand prix in the shop and they can't figure it out. It's cold in Wisconsin!!! My problem is the exact same thing you're having. Thanks
    Steve
  • justin_n_mojustin_n_mo Member Posts: 4
    Hello,
    I recently just had my heater go out also, fortunetly after reading several sites and going to my college's automotive dept. I found out it is my resistor pack that I have to replace. However, I may possibly have stumbled across an answer for your question. I have included a link to a site that explains it. Since you are having problems with your DRL's and your heater it is possibly your resistor pack and an ignition switch (I think). Here is the sites that explain it better along with photos of how to replace the part.

    http://www.clubgp.com/newforum/tm.asp?m=20670

    I hope this helps.
    Justin
  • justin_n_mojustin_n_mo Member Posts: 4
    Hello,
    I recently just had my heater go out also, fortunetly after reading several sites and going to my college's automotive dept. I found out it is my resistor pack that I have to replace. However, I may possibly have stumbled across an answer for your question. I have included a link to a site that explains it. Since you are having problems with your DRL's and your heater it is possibly your resistor pack and an ignition switch (I think). Here is the sites that explain it better along with photos of how to replace the part.

    http://www.clubgp.com/newforum/tm.asp?m=20670
  • woodpilewoodpile Member Posts: 2
    Hey thank you. I will give it a shot. If it works I will post the outcome.
  • boostedtalonboostedtalon Member Posts: 3
  • storm21935storm21935 Member Posts: 2
    Wow! Thanks for all the info. I tried changing the resistor pack as a start, but of course that didn't help. I pulled the control panel out of the dash and traced wires. I found that the entire row of three mini fuses located second from the left by the glove compartment (includes HVAC CNTRL, Blower, and Powre Drop) loses power when the circuit is loaded. I jumped the row with power from the BLOWER HI mini fuse and everything worked. Not sure if the fuse center is powered all from one source or if the fan ignition switch from your link is the culprit. I will be investigating more and will post. Thanks everyone.
  • monz1562monz1562 Member Posts: 2
    My 97 Grand Prix is doing the weirdest things. When I go to run my heater on 1-4 my daytime running lights go off. The heater will only work on #5 sometimes. Or it just won't work at all and the daytime running lights won't work either!

    And the low coolant light stays on (even though I have had my radiator flushed and filled)and the temperature gage will go from 100 to 260 and then back down again. I know that it is not overheating.

    HELP! Has anyone had a problem like this? I have taken to two people and they can't figure it out!! Others have asked for me to bring it in when the problem is occurring and of coarse they aren't open then.
  • fasteddie3fasteddie3 Member Posts: 2
    ok ok i read most of the responces but min is a bit different............ my blower does not sut off when i remove key from ignition. weird huh........i whought it was the swith but all the contros still work so there must be more....hmmmmmz all i can think of is to ask for help if u wanna contact me directly message me fasteddie1722 on yahoo messenger
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