RESOLVED! 98 99 00 01 02 Rodeo Blower Motor problem

Well, I put in my 3rd (4th if you count the factory one) a/c and heat blower motor into my 2000 Rodeo tonight, and finally figured out the cause. First off a tip of the hat to these forums, whereas I would never make attempts at changing parts out on my own without you. Kudos.

So, as the motor tends to go out at any time of year, It's mostly happened to me in the summer and winter (when I use it the most). As I was changing the motor out again tonight (it's bitter cold here) I paused to reach my hand up into the port/exhaust that the motor fits into.

I kid you not, I pulled a cat/rabbit/squirrel sized ball of pine needles and leaves out of the intake port. Of course! Pine needles and other detritus make their way to the ports from the vent area behind the hood, and collect right by the fan, where they are sucked against the bottom wall of the port as it narrows to feed the fan. This means that the motor is pulling the amount of air that the fan uses AGAINST this clog. It stresses the motor, and in turn burns them out quickly. It's kind of like putting your hand on a moving audio record, and feeling the motor try to continue to pull, also bad for a record player motor.

I highly recommend that if you own a 98-02 Rodeo, even if you haven't had a problem with your blower, you go right ahead and remove the blower motor and clean out the intake port. The blower is located directly underneath the glove box, on the right side. 4 brass plated screws and it's all yours. There are also many threads on how to find / remove this on these forums. The vent that you're feeling for / shoving the shop vac hose to is located on the left hand side of the cavity. Watch out for squirrels.

I hope this saves some Rodeo owners many headaches (and about 70 bucks a pop for the aftermarket blower motors)

Actually the air intake from the cowl is directly above, to the immediate left is where the fan blows through the evaporator. I dropped my fan and did find leaves, etc in the fan, the cowl intake appeared clear though.
http://www.digitalwavelabs.com/evap-leaves.jpg
This shows why there is little airflow to the vents. Always keep it on recirculate, or put a screen over the outside air intake like they should have at the factory.
-Scott

I want to try this. My R134-A was at 1/2 of what it should be but I filled it up and stop leaked it. Now it blows cold but not on high (4). It just turns off. Is it the same thing? I only need a screw driver?