1998 Chevy Malibu Fan relay

[John Vinti]

Where can I find the fan relay switch that controls the speed of the dashboard fan on a 1998 Chevy Malibu? Is it difficult to swap out this part? The cars's mileage is 135,000.

Thank You,
John Vinti
[email protected]

[adgjqetuo]

I replaced mine a few weeks ago. It's actually a lot easier then I thought. It's in a tight spot though.

I got the part from AutoZone, ~$20. The part name is Blower Resistor.

It's located on the passanger side under the glove box. You have to remove the black plate that covers the stuff underneith. There are 5 screws ((I think)) you have to take out, and it should come off. Once you get under there, you'll see a small black box cliped to and screwed in. You have to remove the screws and carefully move the box out of the way to get in there. Once you move it to the right out of the way, you'll see the blower motor. I didn't have to remove mine, but some people do for room to work. If you decide to remove that, the resistor is behind that sticking into the firewall. You have to remove the wire harness on the end of the resistor. There is a clip on each side holding it on, be careful not to break it off while removing. After the wire harness is removed, There are 2 screws holding the resistor in (one on each end). You need a really small (1/4"?) socket set to get in there. Once you remove the screws of the resistor, it'll slide right out of the firewall. Take the new resistor, and slide it in the old hole, and replace the screws. Once the screws are in place, replace the wire harness, and you should be done! Remember to bolt the blower back (if you chose to remove it, I didn't when i did it.) And replace the black box in it's right place, without damageing the wires...VERY important.

Also note that the resistor you pull out of the car, and the one you got at the store will look different. The one from the store has a black handel (where the wire harness clips in) and has a green microchip thing on the end (that part slides into the firewall) The factory resistor is black on the end too, but the chip is more of a gray color, and isn't as long as the new one. Don't worry about the size, it still fits in perfect.

Hope this helps! It's a little harder then it seems because of the space issues, but it's better then paying 2 hours labor at dealer. Good luck!

Mike

[BeatnikTermite]

Originally Posted by John Vinti

Where can I find the fan relay switch that controls the speed of the dashboard fan on a 1998 Chevy Malibu? Is it difficult to swap out this part? The cars's mileage is 135,000.

Thank You,
John Vinti
[email protected]

http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbul...d.php?t=324040

[john20]

My air/blower only works on full blast, (speed 5) is this the same problem?
Mines a 99.

[adgjqetuo]

Yes, It is the same exact problem...mine did the same thing...only worked on speed 5. Replaced the card, and now it works like new

Here, I found this write-up one it... It's probally easier to understand then mine, bec I did mine quickly...

Originally Posted by BeatnikTermite

This has been discussed many times here before, and I thought I would bring all of the information together in a "how-to." I have personally replaced this part with one purchased at CarQuest for $20. The repair took me about one hour to complete.

Problem: HVAC Blower motor only works on specific fan settings

Reason: Blower Motor Resistor is bad, and needs to be replaced.

Affected Model Years: 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001

Permanent Fix:

You will need: 1/4" Socket set -or- a 3/8" set with a universal joint

1. Remove the plastic cover from the underside of the passenger dash held in by four bolts. Note how the two air ducts on the left and top are connected, and how the other plastic cover piece is connected to the piece you are removing. This is helpful when you go to reinstall it.
2. Slide the Control Module to the right and pull it down carefully. Push it to the right being careful not to damage the wires.
3. Remove the blower motor power cable located on the forward side of the blower near the firewall.
4. Remove the jumper cable link to the blower motor resistor located on the resistor near the forward side of the blower.
5. Remove the blower motor held in place with three 7mm (I believe) bolts. You mat not need to do this, but it helps give you some room to work. It will also let see the blower motor resistor before proceeding.
6. Remove the two 5.5 mm bolts that hold the green blower motor resistor.
7. Install the new resistor using the two retained bolts. The improved part will be longer than the original, and black not green.
8. Re-install the blower motor using the three retained bolts, if you removed it originally.
9. Re-connect the blower motor power, and the resistor jumper.
10. Test the blower fan settings prior to putting the dash back together.
11. Align and push the Control Module up into the slot and slide it back to the left.
12. Re-install the plastic cover using four retained bolts. This is where it helped to pay attention to the ducts and the other cover when removing.

[rmiller19]

We just finished changing our resistor. Two points to consider.

Before tearing out the resistor, make sure you reseat the connector. Before we changed the resistor, positions 1 & 2 did not work. After changing 1,2,3,& 4 did not work. I reseated the cable connection to the resistor, all five positions work. Might save some effort.

Second hint. You probably won't have to remove the blower. Once you have the cover off, you can crawl up in far enough to remove the cable from the resistor. The 2 screws are to the left of the blower. If you can get them loosened with a small ratchet, you can remove the screws with the socket finger powered. We did it the hard way, dropping the blower, then realized we could have gotten to it without.

My wife is happy and life is good again.

[Captv2k]

1999 chevy malibu. I need the diagram for the wiring harness. It had a big short and all the wiring burn. I need to rewire the whole system. Any help would appriciate thank you.

[Negatoro]

Originally Posted by Captv2k

1999 chevy malibu. I need the diagram for the wiring harness. It had a big short and all the wiring burn. I need to rewire the whole system. Any help would appriciate thank you.

http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductD...pe=626&PTSet=A