Ford Crown Vic. Blend door actuator adjustment in 2 minutes!!! No need to remove airbag! 

Bart ! I want to thank you with all of my heart. I live in Illinois, and the last 2 days the high temperatures were in the 20's for x-mas. Thanks to your video I was able to get the heat back on in my sons grand marque. He no longer has to drive to work, or pick up my grandson, in a sub freezing car. Thanks again ! Peace and grace to you and your family. 👍

Just did this on my 01 crown vic. It's got 200,000 miles on it, still runs great, but I ain't looking to invest a whole lotta time and money into this thing. It's my work crasher. This was just the fix I needed. Thanks a bunch.

Thanks for this brief reminder. I set the lever on my friend’s 2010 Mercury Grand Marquis to AC last year. It recently flopped back to heat and I was looking for a reminder on how to get to it.

Thank you very much!!! Worked exactly has you said on my 2008 Mercury Grand Marquis. I only thing different I did was to remove glove compartment by removing the two screws on the bottom of the glove compartment to make it a little easier to get into the opening. I also used a small 5/16 ratcheting wrench to remove the screw holding the actuator. Thanks again!

Thanks! I liked your bird deflector 😅🙏 08 Grand Marquis ❤ No Heat. Major blunder for Panther Series. I bought a 500W RoadPro heater. Hardwired. Done. Two minutes!

Thank you Bart! It worked. However, it didn't take anywhere near 2 minutes :)

Had to come back and drop a quick comment. Thanks for this video man, at first it didnt work, then i recharged my AC and it al l works now. Cheers! Edit: extra info for others. If your lever cant turn, its because something is seized in the BDA unit itself. No problem, as underneath that black plastic lever is a metal rod that is connected to the actual blend door. As long as that rod is parallel with the dash, your AC is on. If it is perpendicular to the dash, full heat is on.

THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT TIP! I have the opposite problem I have A/C and no Heat. You're amazing thank you so much. Now I will be able to defrost my windshield not be freezing and using the little plug-in defroster /heater. THANK YOU!!!!!!

Thanks Bart very good idea, I want to add that if the battery is disconnected before doing so, the actuator will remain closed once disconnected

Just did this but some clarification is needed. First, the screw that's removed is an 8 mm screw, in case you don't happen to have a 5/16 wrench. Second, when you pry up on the white plastic tab, what you are doing is lifting up the black part that comes out of the white plastic actuator up off the curved metal blend door shaft. The black part just slips over top of the blend door shaft. This needs to be done because the black lever is usually too tight to turn by hand. I pressed hard on it with a screw driver and it wouldn't budge. Best guess is the plastic gears inside broke and jammed the mechanism. Once you lift up the black lever, you can then turn the metal shaft with your hand. Third, I recommend removing the glove box to get it out of the way. It's only 2 screws at the bottom of the glovebox. Fourth, before you proceed with this fix, observe the black lever while turning the temp knob. If it rotates, then the blend door actuator is not the cause of your no temp change issue. If no A/C, could several be a myriad of causes. Bad compressor, no freon, etc... Finally this fix shown is for the manually controlled climate system (3 round knobs). I don't know if this applies to the Electronic Automatic Temperature Control type system (EATC). Otherwise, thanks for the video. It's gonna be 105 this week and I needs my A/C!

You are a rock star! Now I can fix my moms Crown Vic...going to get hot here in Texas soon enough...THANK YOU.

Thank you! Here I was thinking we'd have to take a day just to get this darn thing fixed. Going to try this on my '07 P7B, just in time for Arizona Summer Heat!

Harder than I thought but it’s probably cause I never work on cars at all. I got it though, thanks a lot!!!

I dropped the gIove comparment and spotted the white stem of the blend door actuator with a flashlight. I took a12 inch V-Jaw wrench and turned the white stem clockwise 1/4 turn which turns the lever. Somehow that minor turn freed up the whole mechanism and both AC and heat working normally. Hope it lasts but it's working now.

Awesome tour of best saloon Ford made!! RIP the Panther body style!!

Thank you. Did this on my 2010 It's a little valve under the black piece that moves. I was trying to move the black piece. But thanks again, a/c ice cold NO mechanic bill. 😅

Thank you for this tip I’m gonna try this tomorrow I live in Milledgeville GA and everyone is asking for 300 to 1,000 plus dolllars to replace it.

I was not able to feel the lever to flip, did everything else..... but I do now have AC so that's a win...thank you.

Thank you so much! It's cold out here in NY. My hvac got stuck in could after after disconnecting my battery. Once again...THANK YOU!

thanks man, those anti bird poo bands could double as some road warrior gear.. the description of the lever direction was very helpful, thanks again.

Just want to say this video really helped me out this morning. Thank you.

Thanks so much for posting. Saved me a 6 hour drive across the desert with full heat, that would have sucked! I couldn't get it all the way to cold but I got it far enough for a temp fix.

I have the same problem and was trying to figure out how to manually switch the activator without spending a bunch of money. Thanks.

Just discovered this myself after hitting the forums and youtube for days, I really didn't want to pull the dash because my wife relies on the the vic and I don't trust that I'd be able to get everything back together in time to not cost one or both of us a day of work (or me a night of sleep). It's really this simple though, but you're gonna need to put some strength into it to get that actuator lifted, for nearly 20 year old plastic it sure as shit is still rigid as hell. Good old Ford.

This works as long as actuator isn’t seized. Otherwise you have to get the the L shaped lever out of the way to move metal door hinge that it rest upon.

got my finger under it but couldn't move it. noticed the shaft had some kind of hex head so tried putting a wrench on it. i ended up using a 9/32 nd and cocking it a little. worked perfectly. if anyone has a unit off see what exact size that shaft is and you won't have to take any screws out. thanks again, mid 90's all next week...

Bart I appreciate it. It worked perfectly for my 2009 cvp. Excellent video, and you are right about a few minor scratches. It was worth it.

Thank you thank you thank you now at least i can drive until i can afford to fix it all the way.

Hey Thanks for posting this. I have an 02 CV that I've had the same problem with. My solution was to just reach in and thwack the the little post on top of the actuator with my finger fairly hard. Actually I've dropped the whole dash to do the heater core and then again to replace both actuators. I HATE those little screws that you can see and touch but cant get a wrench on. I had to do both fixes in the middle of Kentucky ice storm weather. I have a whole collection of specific open end wrenches now, just to to the fix. dropping the dash is usually a whole day job.

Manually actuate the actuator haha. Thanks man now the wife has heat. Starting to snow. Apperiate the guide

Nice job. I did something a little different. In the summertime (TX) I disconnect the heater hoses from the firewall and connect them together using a hose splicing kit thing. I plug the heater core at the firewall with duct tape so no debris or anything can get in there. Come winter I put the hoses back. Easy peasy. I love my 2010 Mercury Grand Marquis just coming up on 100,000 and this is the only problem I have had so far. Little bit of a pain figuring out just when to swap it over but I'll be damn if I'm taring the dash out to fix this $10 part.

Not working for me. The lever feels too stiff to move. I mean how hard do u gotta lift up on the plastic?

He'll yea thanx!!!! I was regretting having to pull my dash. I already did that when I did the heater core

I been thru THREE new blend doors on my two Mercury GMs, same as Crown VIc .. Then the FORTH one went bad .. garbage part do NOT buy one or replace, not worth it.. I will NEVER DO IT AGAIN .. insane nightmarish stuggle.. Now the 4th bad one STAYS in there.. I use a 9v transistor radio battery and clip it to the purple/green wires on the EAC unit and just run the blend motor to hot or cold as needed in the fall and spring times.. On my OTHER Merc, the motor itself won't run.. so I sneak a common dishwashing sponge in behing the glove compartment area where you CAN reach the blend door lever.. and I just push the sponge in to wedge it in hot or cold position as needed .. These blend actuators should have brought a major lawsuit to FORD over the definite and absolute failure EVERY OWNER will encounter.. they last about as long as a balloon in a cactus patch.. The local shop wanted $1400 to do this job !!@#$%@#% .... NEVER AGAIN... I used web available schematic and easily found which wires run up to the blend motor. Connect 9v battery in either polarity to run motor hot or cold directions .. easy as pie.. what I found was the motors are OK, it's the positioning sensor on them goes whack and you get the clik clik clik as motor drives to one end and keeps going ... if you've heard the clik sound you know exactly what I mean.

I did the same thing to my 2004 LX but I'm left handed and took 5 minutes to pull the air bag and flip the lever :)

ok, before i watch the video fully, i have to give 2 thumbs up for the bird anti theft device

Worked great! Had to have my ac running to get it unstuck from heat but switched perfectly to ac with this method!

Why are these damn actuators so defective?? 😡

Well, it's not really a fix but a workaround. Thank you though.

GREAT!! JUST GREAT VIDEO, I have the same issue, and this fix is perfect for me, THANK YOU

I found out this work I took the high vacuum pump that I use for AC work and connected it to the inlet line and it's stuck the door right into position I release the vacuum hit it with WD-40 did this a few times and it started working perfectly

Thank you..saved me a lot of money

Funny I did a1959 F100 Grand Marquis frame swap, I replace that thing 3 times in less than a year, the Parts Store ones will not last as long as the original, so now I have a hidden choke cable with nob connected to the blend door under the dash. Even with a warranty I still had to keep replacing it, so now in the summer I just push it in, and winter pull it out.

going to try it, just dont completely understand. when i take out the screw and lift it, the lever is under it? can you see it or just feel it??

Thanks. Though that might be possible. My wife’s Taurus had a related problem. The blend door is on a rack and the actuator has a pinion. The rack lost a tooth and stuck. You could reach the rack and get it past the missing tooth to reset to heat or cool as the seasons change. 5:08

This is a huge help

I love you you are my hero no bullshit just straight to the point with good video ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

I lost heat today while driving and could be its stuck on cold and have to try pushing it back so it blows hot air in this 20 degree weather. At lleast until i get back home from this road trip and change the actuator. Hope it works. I will keep you posted and thanks for sharing.

Incredible! Got my AC back in my 2001. Thanks!

Wow it really worked 😳😳😳 thanks man

I am very curious: what year is your Ford CV? Thanks.

I did this today and it worked but only for a short time and it changed back to heat again. If I do this again and unplug it next time will it last?

I have an ‘07 town car, if I have a/c on and cold comes out passenger side but heat on drivers side, will this be the actuator I need to access?

Trying to do this on 2004. There is a whole box it has a bunch if tiny colored wires coming out the top center. It has a black looks like lever on the bottom. Amy ideals??? Tia.

saved me this summer!!!

Bro mine just went out . Seen no videos came along yours and bingo problem fixed,

You have given no indication of what years and models this applies to -- do you even know? The Panther chassis covers 1979 to 2011, Ford Crown Victoria, Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor, Mercury Grand Marquis, and Lincoln Town Car. Automatic climate controls and manual (Police Interceptor) have different systems.

I don't know how people get their hands in there I got some big boy hands its a pain in my ass to get in there. I'll see if I can reach in there from another angle I have a few other things in the way though ill move them so I can maybe slide my hand in there better. You can also use a shorter screw driver and slide it under the whole actuator at that same corner left of the screw mount and pull down so it goes up makes it easier for some.

Very great video! I’m going to try it right now. 👍🏽

I have a 2006 Grand Marquis with EATC. There's a mass of wires blocking access to the screw on my vehicle. Even so, this would take 30-45 minutes due to the difficulty of removing the screw.

My 04 town car has a problem where the floor vent heater valve is stuck open and it pours in engine heat with everything off, was riding around all day yesterday dripping sweat, and to top it off I can’t use AC because it’s compressor clutch is about to lock up

I was going to bypass the heater code....but ended up doing this....My grand marquis 2007 would start on AC and then in few seconds heat would start even though i have temperature on 60....what i did was started my car made sure AC is working before it could turn to heat i turned the car off and kind of similar to this video but just removed the connector on top of the actuator...now my AC is working and because no connection to actuator it cant do anything....i live in south texas so I dont really care about heat.

I would rather do that twice a year than suffer the nightmare job of replacing it!

FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THINGS GOOD YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO PUSH THE PLASTIC L it’s a little metal piece under the L shaped plastic thing. I used a buddy and a knife to push the whole contraption up. Once you figure it out you are gonna think “wow this guy in the video explained it wrong”

DONT BE CONFUSED HE HAS A ARROW POINTING TO A PIECE OF THE BLEND DOOR THAT LOOKS LIKE A LEVER BUT THE LEVER IS A TINY PIECE OF METAL UNDERNIETH THIS DONT TRY AND SPIN THIS THINKING ITS STUCK AND SNAP YOUR CLIPS THAT HOLD THIS IN PLACE.

noi can’t get it to turn man can you give me a tip?

I went for years just making a hard right turn to turn on the heat in winter. I'd hear "thunk!" and get heat immediately.

I don't know what I did.... lifted the actuator and the lever doesn't move, actuator won't go back down into postition it's kinda stuck where I had to move it to get to the lever.... but hey, I have AC now lolllllll

Haha so I have heat && it’s blowing through the defrost and feet hopefully I get my cold ac back lol

Why does it fail? & will replacing it fox the problem?

How can I tell if mine is bad? When I bought the car, I found 1 or 2 of these in the car from rock auto which I feel is a little suspicious

I am still struggling with the actuator. I saw it when I took removed the glove comparment, but I did not know that I had to lift it up at the nodge. I was actually trying to push on the nodge itself which did not move. I gave up on this because for some reason when I drive I hear a flapping noise after I am turning and the thing switches from cold to hot by itself. I have no clue why or how it is doing that. Does that mean that the metal lever under the nodge is broken ? Thanks.

Do you think its the same on a Lincoln Town car?

What year is your crown vic? I have the opposite problem it'll blow cold but wont let me go to heat and i hear a squeaking inside the dash.

Thank-you sooo much for this video

Does it matter if it’s automatic or manual actuator?

Thank you man! It worked

Good idea if you intend of leaving it on hot or cold for each season but doesn't help if you want to actually fix it.

Nice video thank you the ford dealership wanted over 900 dollars to replace they are out of their minds

Have to see if this works on a 95 Grand Marquis, discovered it failed the other day what 140* heat was coming out the dash.

Too bad this will never work in Ohio where we experience four seasons a week. This video is helpful though. Too bad you can't replace the actautor like this. Thanks for the video.

I just don’t understand. How does pushing up on the corner tab expose the lever? Are you trying to get it free or just exposed?

super helpful!

This is something to use in an emergency, but not as a cure. It is hard to know if the damper is fully open to cooling and having it underneath the acutator puts pressure on the damper shaft and the acutator hold down screws. I wish I never did this. Now I have to take out the airbag and I was hoping not to do that. A lot of positive comments but not a fix I would leave without a plan to do it right as it could break something and cause more problems and money but great in a pinch. Thanks Bart..

Hello, Great video! Will this work on a 2001 crown Vic?? Trying to fix my girlfriend's brother's so it will switch to heat.

Sorry I’m a little confused. Does this change the temp, or where it’s blowing from? I have ice cold air and equally great heat. But it only blows from the defrost vents.

Hey, thanks for this video! I’m probably going to give your method a try, but I have a question I hope you can answer. My actuator is in the final stages of failing and clicks constantly. The noise is actually a large thump amplified by the plastic duct work. Is there a wire I can disconnect from the actuator to stop this without interfering with the operation of the heat/AC? Your reply would be truly appreciated

Thank you!!!

I did this about a year ago and i had other unrelated problems after but removed the tape i had holding it to tey and help my car unover heat (thats not how that works apparently, who knew) but since then i cant get the thing to move any more lol

So i did this exact thing and no cold air ? Any suggestions people ?

does anyone know whats wrong if the car has heat on defrost and seems to come out of the floor but not the middle vents also has no cold air on ac

Will this work on on a Mercury Marauder???

Question? Can you just turn the square knob on top to turn the blend door ?

Awesome!

brilliant!

If I'm this deep into it, I'm just going to fix it.

I was holding my flashlight with the wrong hand.

Question for the 08 grand marquis lovers. My AC went out; I changed the blend door actuator & main control module. When I change the settings you can hear a click.. but no AC, no heat or cool. Almost like the blower motor isn’t going on. Any ideas? Any fuses to check? Again.. lol. I am getting error code 25 in the dash.

BEST FUCKING VIDEO OF ALL TIME!!!! I LOVE YOU MAN!!!

Luckily, mines stuck on heat. Sucks in the summer, but sucks less in Upstate NY winters.