# '84 TD Quantum; blower motor troubleshooting



## dieseljosh (Nov 10, 2003)

How does the rain cowl come off on the windshield side? The engine side is held on via the rubber gasket, and that just pulls right off, no problem. How can I remove the cowl without damaging it, and then how does it remount? 

Meanwhile, I just propped it up so I could get to the white cover beneath. I got the 4 8mm bolts off without an issue. However, the thing just does not budge whatsoever! Is it glued on? How do I remove it without breaking it? 

I've checked the fusebox fuses and they're fine. The rotary switch is also not the issue. I think the issue must be the motor itself or the big chunky fuses that I see in the nonsensical section of the official VW repair manual for the quantum. 

It's getting cold outside, and I want to be able to drive some distances without freezing, and also could really use a functional defroster blower. 

Thanks for any advice experienced diesel Quantum owners may have! 

-Josh


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## JimmyPringles (Apr 11, 2004)

dieseljosh said:


> How does the rain cowl come off on the windshield side? The engine side is held on via the rubber gasket, and that just pulls right off, no problem. How can I remove the cowl without damaging it, and then how does it remount?


The windshield side should have a couple of small metal clips (that you should be able to see), holding the lip of the plastic cowl to a metal lip that runs the width of the windshield. You have to pry those off carefully, and the cowl should just come right off. Even being gentle, it is probably going to crack in a couple spots.



dieseljosh said:


> Meanwhile, I just propped it up so I could get to the white cover beneath. I got the 4 8mm bolts off without an issue. However, the thing just does not budge whatsoever! Is it glued on? How do I remove it without breaking it?


Yes, it has a seal to keep water from ending up inside your car. It takes a bit of prying to get it up. What helps is a 2nd set of hands to pry it up & wiggle it up back n forth, etc. When reinstalling, be sure to use a nice helping of your favorite silicone/sealant, all around the outer perimeter of the old seal.

If you do go this far in removing the blower cover, you may as well replace the blower with a new one anyways. Even if the old one is working (I'm sure the blower is original/31 years old), and something else is the cause of your problems, you do not want to go thru all of this and not replace it.


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## dieseljosh (Nov 10, 2003)

*Thanks, JimmyPringles!*

I was able to massage the rain cowl and the white cover off, thanks to your tips. Does the blower motor have to be removed from inside of the car, meaning I'll have to rip out the dash? 

My car has factory A/C; not working, but it's there. All of the online blower motors I see for sale state they are only for non-AC cars. 

There was a levered door in the white cover for the blower motor. The lever mechanism was wired into the closed position, and the apparently vacuum operated control valve for it was removed. Am I correct in thinking that this must have been for some sort of automatic fresh air intake or something? My interior temp controls seem to only have adjustable temp, adjustable blower speed, and adjustable location of the blowing. I see no manual control for whether the air is to be from an intake, or a recirculation of the interior air. 

If I rig up the blower motor to the battery and it works fine, what else could I be missing? Is there some hidden circuit not described or pictured in the wiring diagram?

Thanks for any further insights you may have!


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## dieseljosh (Nov 10, 2003)

*bump*

Anybody have any clues?


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