[SOLVED] HELP! Think i messed up big time.

[white yukon]

Hey all,

So i had the bright idea of switching out the door actuator on the drivers side of a 2015 yukon. Did the typical trouble shooting and pointed to that as the issue. So when i removed the actuator being the curious person i am i grabbed the shaft to rotate by hand. Just checking to make sure the door wasn't stuck. Well, that was the fateful downfall. When turning by hand/fingers the cam seemed to move a skosh then seemed to lock up. Naturally i thought uh oh, door is stuck.

Well ended up attempting to remove the cam gear between the actuator and hvac box. As some of you may know it is a bit more complex than just a shaft with a door attached to it. Turns out i removed the whole cam assembly, off the hvac box. BIG problem. Have come to discover too late that this is a PITA to reattach. There is little to no room to maneuver the cam assembly back into place and i am afraid there is metal structure in the way which may force me to removed a bunch of stuff i don't want to.

Went searching online for tutorials or perhaps videos of people working in this area to potentially give me a better idea as to how to correct this issue. Not having much luck, well any really. Out of ideas other than removing the whole dash and not even sure that would provide access to reassemble. Might have to remove the whole hvac which is crushing for me.

Hoping someone, anyone, on here either made the same mistake and figured out a better fix than i currently fear is in front of me; or perhaps someone knows of someone who can shed some light as to how to maneuver the cam gear assembly back onto the hvac box without removal.

Any and all advise, or comments, appreciated.

 

[Tahoe14]

@Doubeleive, @Fless, @OR VietVet, @swathdiver

 

[OR VietVet]

I am a GMT800 guy and to tell you the truth, I have no idea how a driver's door actuator and an HVAC unit cross paths.

My landlord has a 2018 Suburban and I hope I never have to dig in to his to find out.

Good luck.

 

[Fless]

No clue here, either; never been near one.

 

[Doubeleive]

Hey all,

So i had the bright idea of switching out the door actuator on the drivers side of a 2015 yukon. Did the typical trouble shooting and pointed to that as the issue. So when i removed the actuator being the curious person i am i grabbed the shaft to rotate by hand. Just checking to make sure the door wasn't stuck. Well, that was the fateful downfall. When turning by hand/fingers the cam seemed to move a skosh then seemed to lock up. Naturally i thought uh oh, door is stuck.

Well ended up attempting to remove the cam gear between the actuator and hvac box. As some of you may know it is a bit more complex than just a shaft with a door attached to it. Turns out i removed the whole cam assembly, off the hvac box. BIG problem. Have come to discover too late that this is a PITA to reattach. There is little to no room to maneuver the cam assembly back into place and i am afraid there is metal structure in the way which may force me to removed a bunch of stuff i don't want to.

Went searching online for tutorials or perhaps videos of people working in this area to potentially give me a better idea as to how to correct this issue. Not having much luck, well any really. Out of ideas other than removing the whole dash and not even sure that would provide access to reassemble. Might have to remove the whole hvac which is crushing for me.

Hoping someone, anyone, on here either made the same mistake and figured out a better fix than i currently fear is in front of me; or perhaps someone knows of someone who can shed some light as to how to maneuver the cam gear assembly back onto the hvac box without removal.

Any and all advise, or comments, appreciated.

I have not had the opportunity to do the up/down actuator for the driver's side but theoretically you could adjust the actuator as needed to fit everything back together. No idea if this might work but you might be able to wrap a string around the door spindle and turn it to fit the actuator back into place then release the string. Not sure if that makes any sense either. Pictures might help so we can see what you are up against

 

[Doubeleive]

I am a GMT800 guy and to tell you the truth, I have no idea how a driver's door actuator and an HVAC unit cross paths.

My landlord has a 2018 Suburban and I hope I never have to dig in to his to find out.

Good luck.

HVAC actuator driver's side up/down, not the actual vehicle door

 

[OR VietVet]

HVAC actuator driver's side up/down, not the actual vehicle door

But he said "door" actuator and I should have guessed he meant blend door, as I read further. If the OP would have been "slightly clearer" on the explanation details, I would have had to still say, "Heck, I dunno".

 

[Joseph Garcia]

Welcome to the Forum from NH.

Lots of knowledgeable folks here who freely share their knowledge, experiences, and perspectives. Knowledge is power.

I hope that you will become a participating member in the Forum's discussions.

Pics of the truck, please.

I cannot personally assist you with your issue, as I am not familiar with your truck's model year, but other members of this Forum much more knowledgeable than me in this area will chime in.

 

[white yukon]

Thanks to all who took an interest. Hopefully i can clear up some stuff and leave some knowledge for future community members should they find themselves in the same bind i was in.

Yes, i should have said blend door. Thought i did but apparently not.

So long story short. Was sent on a wild goose chase for a no cold a/c issue. Ended up at the mode actuator and the end of the hvac box. The one that is on the driver side up behind the inverter box. Turns up being on the end of the hvac box just for knowledge sake. So if any of you have been up there you noticed the actuator sits on a cam gear that operates several levers. When taking out actuator i removed the can gear assembly as well. Thought i felt some binding so wanted to see if internal blend door(s) was the issue.

What i didn't see were the other 2 arms buried deep up under the dash and behind a bunch of mainly metal structure. In place it is impossible to get the arms reattached by hand which is why i was worried i would need to remove the whole dash to gain access. Well, by chance, ended up thinking why don't i see if there is any access behind everything in the center of the dash. In looking for an access route i found that by removing the center console, and bose box, there is juuuuust enough room to squeeze a fairly long flat head screw driver behind all that metal to get everything reattached. Gonna have to get the fingers in a pinch and bind but doable.

So no, no need to remove the whole dash if you mess up like i did. Just remove center console have some patience, flash light(s), cell camera helps, and lots of patience. You may have to contort yourself in some very uncomfortable positions, but no full dash removal is required.

Again, thank you all for trying to assist. Looks like i dodge a major headache, lesson learned.



keywords evap, hvac, mode blend actuator, cam wheel, cam gear, a/c, hot air,

 

[white yukon]

I have not had the opportunity to do the up/down actuator for the driver's side but theoretically you could adjust the actuator as needed to fit everything back together. No idea if this might work but you might be able to wrap a string around the door spindle and turn it to fit the actuator back into place then release the string. Not sure if that makes any sense either. Pictures might help so we can see what you are up against

Didn't think to take pics. However, in looking for a way to resolve i came across the video below. At around the 26 to 27 minute mark it showed me what i needed to see in order to confirm i could potentially resolve the matter without full removal of dash. Thought some of it might have to be done blind, but able to get in just the right positions to see what is needed and utilize tools to effectuate the reassembly.

Again, thank for the assist.