AC fan slow?

[1965 LeBaron]

My 1965 imperial air conditioning seems to blow with very little enthusiasm out of the dash. I pulled the motor which probably wasn’t used for 20 years and opened up enough to get some lubricant in there and it feels fine now however after installed in a day where I’m using air conditioning, cold air comes through, but with no enthusiasm to the point that we still have to crank our windows down. Any suggestions?

 

[Davea Lux]

Sometimes the fan control switch goes bad and gets stuck, usually in the low fan position. If you pull the heater control and remove the switch, you can carefully take it apart. Often, someone will have gotten too rough with the switch and the little tabs that hold it together will have come loose, this causes the selector switch to jump out of the retainer inside of the switch and the selector block will then be stuck in one position. Before going to the trouble of pulling the control assembly, firs take a load meter and see how much amperage the fan is drawing. If it draws the same amperage in all switch positions, good sign the switch is bad.

Dave

 

[1965 LeBaron]

Sometimes the fan control switch goes bad and gets stuck, usually in the low fan position. If you pull the heater control and remove the switch, you can carefully take it apart. Often, someone will have gotten too rough with the switch and the little tabs that hold it together will have come loose, this causes the selector switch to jump out of the retainer inside of the switch and the selector block will then be stuck in one position. Before going to the trouble of pulling the control assembly, firs take a load meter and see how much amperage the fan is drawing. If it draws the same amperage in all switch positions, good sign the switch is bad.

Dave

Thank you. The fan works at different speeds, but it just doesn’t have any.oomph!

 

[CBODY67]

With ANY vintage factory a/c vehicle, there can be lots of air leakage at the joints of the ductwork. Many used a thin, foam seal where one piece slides into another piece. With age, the foam disintegrates and goes away. Thin, foam can be found at Home Depot and similar with an adhesive back. In other situations, some "duct tape" can work, too. Getting those joints sealee better can make a lot of flow difference out of the vents. The outer vents usually have a lever to control the amount of air coming through them, too.

Another side issue is that that a/c evap core can become clogged with "stuff" that comes in through the cowl screen. And mold and algae, over time. Some disassembly can be needed.

Just some thoughts on "side issues",
CBODY67

 

[1965 LeBaron]

With ANY vintage factory a/c vehicle, there can be lots of air leakage at the joints of the ductwork. Many used a thin, foam seal where one piece slides into another piece. With age, the foam disintegrates and goes away. Thin, foam can be found at Home Depot and similar with an adhesive back. In other situations, some "duct tape" can work, too. Getting those joints sealee better can make a lot of flow difference out of the vents. The outer vents usually have a lever to control the amount of air coming through them, too.

Another side issue is that that a/c evap core can become clogged with "stuff" that comes in through the cowl screen. And mold and algae, over time. Some disassembly can be needed.

Just some thoughts on "side issues",
CBODY67

Thanks

 

[Big_John]

Thank you. The fan works at different speeds, but it just doesn’t have any.oomph!

It's probably time to replace the motor.

Bearings wear and get dry, but I see you've tried to address that. What also happens is brushes and commutator wear too. As brushes wear, you looses spring tension and the power/RPM can drop off. Also the worn brush dust gets all over inside the motor.

It should be a fairly generic motor, most were and you can find one (like a 4 Seasons) without much drama.

 

[1965 LeBaron]

I tried but they don’t fit the fan cage
Andy Beirbaum sent wrong one

 

[lemondana]

Many times when the fan motor pulls a little hard, it will overheat the fan switch plugin and the switch. you will be able to see that it's melted somewhat. You need to find a good pigtail and a new fan switch.

 

[Fury1969WI]

Many times when the fan motor pulls a little hard, it will overheat the fan switch plugin and the switch. you will be able to see that it's melted somewhat. You need to find a good pigtail and a new fan switch.

Does this imply (infer? I can never remember!) that it's time for a new fan / blower motor?

"... when the fan motor pulls a little hard..."