Drivers Side Heat blows Cold Airor about Half Heat when it works

[DidYouJustGrabMyAss]

Hello all.
I was hoping the community may have some ideas about this.

My 2021 Mojave got a new engine at 3k miles. I don't recall ever using the heater prior. I only had it for about 2 months in the summer.
After about 3 months in the shop and right before they were gonna give it back to me, they found the driver's side vents were not blowing heat.
The dealer dug into the dash (breaking the Clock Spring in the process too) and decide that a "hvac distributing housing" needed to be replaced. So, it was.

I tested it as soon as I got it back and .... it still didn't work.

Here is the symptoms

The driver's side vent blows air but it's not hot and it's not cold. It's just air. Airflow is equal to the passenger side.
I can turn on the AC for about 15-20 seconds and then change it back to a heat setting, and the heat starts to work. But it's about 50% the heat of the passenger side.

I have been working with Chrysler and they agreed to send any possible parts this could be to limit downtime, but the dealer is saying they need to diagnose it more.

So, does the community have any idea what this could be and whats parts could possibly be needed?

I really don't want to hand my car back to them for another prolonged period of being w/o my Gladiator.


Thank you all so much for taking the time to read this!

Sponsored

 

[338edgeai]

Hello, I am having the same problem with my gladiator. At idle the air is cold only on the drivers side. Heats up when driving, not much fun in -45 weather. Have you found a solution for this at all?

 

[DirkG]

I haven't had an issue with my Gladiator, but in two of my previous vehicles, an Acura MDX and an Acura ZDX, both had similar issues. I troubleshooted and repaired both myself so I saw the problem and solution first hand. Interestingly they had different solutions.

The ZDX would not blow cold air at all and it ended up being an A/C relay in the fuse box. The faulty relay allowed the fan to blow, but the A/C never kicked in. Popped in a new one and viola, it worked.

The MDX's issue was a common one in Hondas and actually sounds more like what you're experiencing. In the MDX there were two air mix motors below the center dash that would control air to the driver, the passenger, and the two rear vents. The driver's side controlled the left side of the vehicle and the passenger side the right side. As they age, you start to hear a "clicking" sound as the motor starts to fail and does not rotate (or direct) the air properly. If they fail completely, they will not direct the correct air at all and you'll get warm when you want cold; cold when you want warm, etc.

If it were my JT, I'd have the dealer check the air mix motors which are usually below the front vents (I'm assuming Jeep uses a similar module). With an engine swap, electrical components are always susceptible. Hope this helps...

 

[DidYouJustGrabMyAss]

I have been trying to get them to troubleshoot the issue. Was scheduled the 14th, moved to the 24th and then moved again. They are very short staffed. So no resolution yet.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Is this in auto mode or manual mode on the HVAC, and how do you have the temperature set- synched both sides or independent temps on left vs. right?

 

[DidYouJustGrabMyAss]

Is this in auto mode or manual mode on the HVAC, and how do you have the temperature set- synched both sides or independent temps on left vs. right?

When I start the car its on auto. I then flip it to manual mode and force air to the top vents to see whats coming out.
The drivers side will blow air. Not hot, not cold.
I think hit MAX AC for as little as 3-5 seconds. Then back to manual and heat starts coming out.

Usually synched and been testing with HI and carious other higher temps.

 

[YoBub]

Did anyone get this resolved? I have a similar issue. 45 - 60 degree outside temp. I can have the driver's side temp set to 80 degrees, passenger set to 73, and the drivers side will blow cold,, passenger side will blow warm. It doesn't happen 100% of the time, but happens frequently. If I bump the drivers side up to max it will usually kick over to heat but then it is blasting heat. Dealer replaced the radio thinking that would help, but it did nothing.

Sponsored