2003 ES300 with lotsa miles. I had the familiar "scritch scritch" sounds from under the dash so I pulled all the servos (4), cleaned, and relubricated all of them. Everything went well with re-installation until it came time to install the mode servo. This is the one with the black plate with 3 paths for three different pins on arms to follow to put diverters into the different modes for the air to come from the dash: floor, floor and center dash, center dash, and so on.
Got it reinstalled with the pins going into what I thought were the right paths. Got all the connectors to the knee panel reattached and the hood release cable back in place. Started the engine up and the air was now coming from defrost middle and floor all at once. Moved the mode selector and, while the icons in the control unit in the dash changed, the air flow did not.
It was late in the day and hot so I quit. I'm going to tackle it again tomorrow.
BUT, before I do does anyone have any idea which pin goes into what path or how to figure this out? I should have written down placement or taken pictures but, sadly, I did not.
Thanks for any help you can give,
koreywill

 

Hello,

Do you actually hear a servo actuating at all?
What mode did you leave the servo in when you went for a project?

For starters, you can try to enter a Diagnostics mode for Climate Control System by pressing Auto and Recirculation buttons, and while holding them, turn the ignition to the ON position. First, you should see light and display check flash, then a Driver's side temperature indicator will show fault codes, here you can find a list of fault codes for that system; from this point, pressing Recirculation button will get you to a servo actuator check mode. The fact that nothing at all changes seems a little suspicious, even if you missed a lever, at least something ought to move; you need to check if you can hear the servo moving, if not, then you may have forgotten about the plug (ask me how I know)..

P.S. Lesson learned, taking pictures is always useful, if nothing else, you can always make a write-up about a job at hand.

Hope this helps and best of luck!

 

Hey Arsenii, Thanks for the help. I finally got it back together and the arms in all the right places. I must have jammed something when I attempted this repair the first time. The hardest part is figuring out which path each arm goes into as you put the whole assembly back into place on the guide pins next to the screw holes.
Here's what I did with the help of a very patient wife (she sat in the passenger seat, turned the key to on, turned on the a/c system, and read out the icons). I manipulated the three levers to see what setting matched the icons and then tried to visualize into which path each pin would/should go. Tried all sorts of combinations but the one that finally worked for me was with the icon showing dash and feet. At that setting (after plugging in the servo and getting it to that same position) I matched the guide pin closest to the firewall and then slowly brought the mechanism onto the other two screwhole/posts. I plugged the motor back in, held it tightly to the posts, had the wife turn the key to on, and then went through all the settings. Success!!! (Or just plain s*&$house luck.)
If you've never attempted to clean and reinstall the mode servo/motor I'd put if off for as long as you can stand it because you're in for a challenge. The thing that helped me the most was making a padded platform that was outside the car right up to the door sill and then building up the car floor to almost level with the sill with stadium cushions so there were no sharp edges. You'll be on your back for quite a while. (I'm 68y/o so I need all the help I can get). I also took off the shin/knee part below the steering wheel, removed all connectors and got that out of the way. That gave me a lot more room to work. What I didn't have (but will purchase very soon) is a goose neck led light. That would have been way better than the flashlights that kept falling over.
Still getting a 43 diagnostic code which indicates "Air outlet control servomotor". I imagine if I disconnected the battery for a while that would be cleared as the motor is definitly working.
Anyway, it's done and I hope I never have to do it again. Good luck if you do.