How to Replace Blend Mode Actuator 2006-10 Ford Explorer

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In this video, we're going to show how to replace the automatic temperature door actuator on the driver's side. This is a 2006 Ford Explorer. Pretty much the same for this generation Explorer, as well as Mountaineer.

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The items we'll need for this video: interior trim removal kit, 7-8mm socket, ratchet, socket extensions, flashlight

Here's a 7 millimeter socket with a ratchet extension and there are two 7 millimeter bolts: one here and one here— remove those. Hold this panel straight back and remove it. Then your actuator is hid underneath.

There’s one of the mounting bolts right here, pretty easy to get to. There's another one up in further. You can see right there, that you can get to with a small 8 millimeter socket and a ratchet, and then the third one is reachable. You can see it right to the left of that corrugated tube. There's a third one that we can reach with an extension and a flexible joint. I have a flexible joint on here. The tape that you see just helps it so that the joint stays a little bit rigid. And we feed that in the long extension right in onto the screw. Then that one is kind of midway up, just the 8 millimeter socket with the ratchet, and remove it.

The last one's a little easier to get to, just a straight extension and your 8 millimeter socket. Remove it. Reach up in there. Hold the actuator straight out and bring it down. Get that out of the way. As you bring it down, there's a tab on the upper part of the connector, push the tab down, push the connector out of the way. The tab is this way when you're pushing it.

Here’s the original one from our vehicle and a new actuator from 1AAuto.com. You can see they're generally the same. Slight differences. Just cosmetic though. Once you bot the new one in from 1A Auto, if you're having issues with the temperature settings in your vehicle, this may be able to fix up your problem. There's a little seal, just put it on the actuator, and then you can just slide it right up in there. Line up the actuator pin with the hole in the air box.

Start with your easiest 8 millimeter bolt right down in the bottom corner. Before I put the other two in, I'm going to reconnect my lead. Guide it into place. It's hard to see. Take another one of your 8 millimeter bolts and, you've got to do this by feel a little bit, get it up in place. I'll tighten it up. This duct, here, actually connects right there. There's two alignment tabs and then the clips. These tabs go into the little holes. Push in place, and reinstall your two 7 millimeter bolts at the bottom. Again, this has a little alignment tab. It goes into the hole, here, to help you line it up. Then there's a plug at the front.

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